Question about Multi-Locale/Lang Sitemaps

[DRSearchEngOpt]

If you have one site with multiple language and locale variations how best should one approach the sitemaps.  Here is what I believe the options to be:

1. sitemap_index.xml which includes all of the difference lang/locale sitemaps on the site

2. create 1 main sitemap that includes the rel=alternate href lang for ever alternate page to the main US version.

3. Do the sitemap_index.xml for all the other sitemaps and also include the rel=alternate href lang in those separate ones as well.

I have these in this order because it goes from least to most work....Thoughts folks?

[OlegKorneitchouk]

You can do #1 if the actual pages have the hreflang tags on them

#2 = suggested by G

#3 = most likely to index all pages and associations

[DRSearchEngOpt]

For #1 you are saying both have the href lang on the page and the Sitemap?

[OlegKorneitchouk]

Nope, you can just have a regular sitemap with all of the urls. Then on the actual pages, declare the localities via the hreflang tag.

Overall, you should declare the location associations on either the pages, the sitemap, or ideally, both. The more direction you can give crawlers, the easier it would be to understand.