Los Santos and Blaine County
Everything in Grand Theft Auto V happens in San Andreas, Rockstar’s made-up take on Southern California. The lower part of the map is a dense metropolis, Los Santos, and above it stretches Blaine County, a rural belt of desert, crop fields, pine woods and peaks. Add a long coastline and a seabed open to divers, and the setting reads less like a game level and more like a small state with its own geography. Learning where things are saves time on every mission, pursuit and errand.
- State: San Andreas, modeled on the southern half of California
- Metropolis: Los Santos, Rockstar’s version of Los Angeles
- Rural north: Blaine County, with sand, crops, pine forest and peaks
- Bonus areas: the snowbound opening in North Yankton and a seabed you can dive to
The City of Los Santos
This Los Angeles parody pokes fun at almost everything: celebrity worship, self-help cults, gridlock and the gap between rich and poor streets. Nearly the whole bottom half of the map is built up, and the bulk of story missions kick off somewhere inside it. Many districts have an obvious real-world twin.
| Area | Real-life model | Look for |
|---|---|---|
| Vinewood | Hollywood | Movie lots, the big sign on the hill, stars’ estates |
| Rockford Hills | Beverly Hills | Designer boutiques, gated villas, the De Santa home |
| Del Perro | Santa Monica | A pier with a Ferris wheel and rides |
| Vespucci Beach | Venice Beach | Outdoor gym, boardwalk stalls, canal streets |
| South Los Santos | South Central | Franklin’s first home, rival gang turf |
| Downtown | Downtown LA | Office towers and the financial core |
Beyond those, the city holds Little Seoul, the container cranes of the Port of Los Santos, LSIA (Los Santos International Airport) and a tangle of freeways made for pursuits. Above the basin, the Vinewood Hills twist into narrow roads with views across the whole skyline.
Blaine County Up North
Leave the city limits and the scenery turns rural: trailer towns, crop fields, a vast salty lake and rugged ridges. Life here is slower and odder, the humor gets broader, and this is the corner of the map Trevor calls home.
Sunbaked lakeside town where Trevor keeps his trailer and runs his business.
Huge inland body of water modeled on the Salton Sea.
Agricultural patch in the northeast with barns and dirt roads.
Northern seaside town whose bank becomes the target of a major heist.
Highest summit on the map, served by a cable car and wrapped in mystery theories.
Army base closed to visitors; crossing the fence brings an armed response.
Raton Canyon, Mount Gordo and the woods near Paleto Bay complete the picture. This is the place for dirt bikes, hunting trips, BASE jumps and slow flights with the entire map spread out under the wings.
Below the Surface and Off the Map
San Andreas does not stop at the shoreline. With scuba gear you can find wrecks, marine life and collectibles resting on the seabed, and a submersible takes you deeper than most open worlds ever let you go. The plot itself opens somewhere else entirely: snowy North Yankton, scene of the 2004 robbery that sets everything in motion.
Fast Ways to Travel
- Freeways: the quickest drive between downtown and the north
- Aircraft: a chopper or plane crosses the state in minutes, and Trevor’s piloting skill makes the trip smoother
- Cabs: flag one down and jump straight to your marker
- Dirt bikes and 4x4s: the right tools for the slopes and sand of the north
Tip: Police cruisers handle rough terrain badly, so heading up a hillside is a reliable way to shake a chase. More tricks are in Escaping the Wanted Level.
First Stops for Explorers
It is tempting to drive from one mission blip to the next, but wandering is rewarded. Take the cable car to the top of Mount Chiliad and jump with a parachute. Watch the lights come on over Del Perro Pier in the evening. Follow the Great Ocean Highway up the coast to Paleto Bay. Steer a submersible down off the shore. Each trip shows how densely the world is packed, which is why players keep finding small surprises long after release.
Where the Leads Live
The layout says a lot about the three leads. Michael enjoys a comfortable life in a Rockford Hills mansion, Franklin begins in South Los Santos and later moves into a house in the Vinewood Hills, and Trevor runs his small empire out of Sandy Shores. Moving between their homes, you feel the distance between their starting points. Try it yourself: launch GTA 5 in your browser and drive north until the city disappears behind you.