Snorlax rules, it’s just a fact. He’s one of the best Generation 1 designs, and thanks to great base stats and strong moves, he’s also a fantastic team member for your party.
But in Pokemon Red, Blue, and Yellow, though, he’s a bit of a roadblock – literally.
South of Lavender Town and west of Celadon City you will find two Snorlax blocking both routes to Fuschia City.
The original Pokemon games don’t give you many clues on how to progress, so it’s unclear that you’ll have to complete a seemingly unrelated mission to wake the sleeping giant.
You only get two chances to add Snorlax to your team, so I recommend stocking up on Pokeballs and saving your game before challenging them to a battle, but here’s what you need to do!
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How to wake up Snorlax in Pokemon Red, Blue and Yellow
After using Flash to get to Lavender Town via Rock Tunnel, enter the Pokemon Tower on your right.
Inside you will find the tower overrun with ghosts that are immune to your attacks. You must complete this quest line to move Snorlax.
To identify and defeat the ghosts, you must first go to Celadon City via the tunnel in the small house at the end of the route going left from Lavender Town. Then go to the Celadon City Game Corner and talk to the Team Rocket Grunt in front of the poster along the back wall.
Defeat him in battle and you’ll gain access to Team Rocket’s secret lair via a staircase to your right. Make your way through the dungeon and at the end you will receive the Silph Scope! You can then return to Pokemon Tower and fight the ghosts all the way to the top.
At the summit, you once again foil Team Rocket’s plans and rescue Mr. Fuji, an elder from Lavender Town who was trying to calm the ghosts.
You will be taken to his house at the base of the tower and given the Pokeflute. This item is what you need to wake up Snorlax.
Walk your character up so that he is standing in the square next to Snorlax and open your inventory. Select the item menu and then the Pokeflute. While standing next to Snorlax, the melody will wake them up and start a battle!
You can also use the Pokeflute to wake up your own Pokemon during battles. When they’re put to sleep through hypnosis, play the Pokeflute as a free, reusable awakening.
Snorlax is a great Pokemon and definitely worth using on your team. But it’s not only a strong Pokemon, it can also learn both Surf and Strength!