Most of the adventures of the main characters in SpongeBob SquarePants take place in Bikini Bottom, but over the course of the series they have also visited other underwater places, and here’s every one of them. SpongeBob SquarePants has been around for so long it has become the most successful Nicktoon and one of the longest-running animated series, having started on Nickelodeon in 1999. SpongeBob and friends have also expanded to other media, most notably film and streaming, and their universe will continue to expand with different spin-offs.
SpongeBob SquarePants follows the daily adventures of the title character alongside his best friends Patrick Star and Sandy Cheeks, his neighbor Squidward Tentacles, and his greedy boss Mr. Krabs. Together, they have been through all types of adventures in the underwater city of Bikini Bottom, but they have also taken them to different cities. Their biggest adventures to date have been in the real world in the SpongeBob SquarePants movies, but they have also visited different underwater places, including one believed to have been lost many years ago.
Throughout 13 seasons, three movies, and a spin-off series titled Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years, SpongeBob and friends have taken viewers through Bikini Bottom and other places – some of them very shiny and fun, and others quite intimidating though very close to the real world. Here’s every underwater location shown in SpongeBob SquarePants so far.
Bikini Bottom
Bikini Bottom is the main setting in SpongeBob SquarePants, where the main characters live and work and get involved in all types of trouble. Bikini Bottom is also home to the Krusty Krab and its competitor, The Chum Bucket, and has seen a lot of destruction through the years (most of the time due to SpongeBob’s terrible driving skills). Bikini Bottom is located in the Pacific Ocean, below the island Bikini Atoll, a part of the Marshall Islands, and is actually a real place that made way for an interesting fan theory about its origin.
Rock Bottom
Rock Bottom is a small city in a deep-sea trench, beneath Bikini Bottom. Rock Bottom’s first appearance in SpongeBob SquarePants was in the episode of the same name, in which SpongeBob and Patrick ended up there after boarding the wrong bus when returning home from Glove World!. Patrick then caught the right bus but left SpongeBob behind, who struggled to communicate with the locals. Due to it being located in the deepest parts of the sea, sunlight doesn’t reach the town, its residents are creepy and even bioluminescent, and they communicate in a language almost like English, except that they blow raspberries between most words.
New Kelp City
The metropolis New Kelp City made its first appearance in one of the show’s extended media before jumping to the main TV show in the episode “What Ever Happened To SpongeBob?”. New Kelp City has many (gray) skyscrapers and looks great from a distance but is actually broken, messy, and dirty. Activity in the city seems lazy and depressing, and blowing bubbles is not allowed as it gives the local gang red eyes when popped. SpongeBob ended up there when after developing amnesia he wandered into the city and even became mayor of the place, but he was rescued by his friends and brought back to Bikini Bottom.
Bass Vegas
Bass Vegas is the not-so-subtle equivalent of Las Vegas in the universe of SpongeBob SquarePants. It appears when Gary runs away from home in the episode “Have You Seen This Snail?” but has mostly appeared in other media, such as the online game Bikini Bottom Brawlers. Bass Vegas is bright and noisy, with casinos, stores, and more all over it.
Dullsville
Dullsville appears in the episode “Plankton Retires”, where Plankton, after many failed attempts to steal the Krabby Patty and its secret formula, decided to retire and move to this town. There’s not much to say about Dullsville as it looks like a regular city and even its welcome sign states it’s “a charmingly boring community”, but it has a shopping center (with stores like Dull-Mart and Shoes) and a retirement home called Dullsville Senior Living.
Far-Out-Ville
Far-Out-Ville appears in the episode “The Great Patty Caper”, and all that is shown of it are its houses and the bank. The latter is a very important place as it’s where Mr. Krabs temporarily hid the Krabby Patty’s secret formula. There’s nothing special about the town, other than, according to Mr. Krabs, it’s located across the ocean, very, very far from Bikini Bottom and others.
Atlantis
The lost city of Atlantis is a very real place in SpongeBob SquarePants and first appeared in the episode “Neptune’s Spatula”, where King Neptune challenged SpongeBob to a cooking competition. However, this Atlantis is different from the one in the episode “Atlantis SquarePants”, so there were either a lot of changes in the city between episodes or they are different places. The first one is ruled by King Neptune and looks like a mythological place, giving the impression that it isn’t even located underwater, and the second version, ruled by Lord Royal Highness, has a very futuristic look. Just like Far-Out-Ville, it’s located in the Atlantic Ocean.
Bubbletown
Perhaps the strangest city in SpongeBob SquarePants. Bubbletown, as the name suggests, is made entirely of bubbles and is the place where Bubble Buddy lives. It’s located in the Pacific Ocean and it’s the bubble equivalent of Bikini Bottom, and SpongeBob helped rebuilt it after he and Mr. Krabs completely destroyed it.