Deep sea fishing is a dream sport. Hooking that line into a big huge fish is adrenaline pumping. Eating that first catch or even your hundredth catch is even better. The Riviera Maya is a great place to try your hand at this sport, either as a hunter looking to feed your friends or as a catch and release sports enthusiast that likes to test their skills.
Technically fishing season is May. This is when most local towns and cities have their fishing tournaments, but your catch can happen any time of the year, all year long. Whether you find a local fisherman on the beach with all the gear or set up a half or full day tour out of Puerto Aventuras on a larger more luxurious boat, you will be sure to catch a great big fish that will feed more than your vacation villa occupies.
A Typical Deep Sea Fishing Trip
This is what you can expect on a local deep sea fishing trip. You can choose from a half day tour or a full day tour. Tours need to be reserved in advance, even if you hook up with a local fisherman. If you want to be guaranteed a tour date, book well in advance. Use our Loco Gringo concierge service to make this process easy and to ensure you get what you want. Paulina would be happy to reserve the trip for you. concierge@locogringo.com. If your deep sea fishing trip is a last minute decision (24 to 48 hours in advance) a boat may or may not be available. Tours book up quickly.
A half day tour is from 7:00 am to 1:00 pm. A full day tour is from 7:00 am to 4:00 pm. Deep sea fishing equipment, bait, a boat (of course) captain, boat hands, and either lunch or snacks are included. Larger boats leave from Puerto Aventuras. Small boats leave from any town or city beach. Your group size will determine the boat size. Choose from a 23 foot up to a 48 foot boat. You can have up to 12 people on a boat. One price, as many people as are legally allowed. Now that is a deal.
What the Heck Am I Going to Catch?
Grouper, Red Snapper, Sail fish (in season), Blue Marlin, White Marlin, Wahoo and Dorado is a pretty comprehensive list of what you will be reeling out of the Caribbean. Tropical fish are off bounds, sharks are super off bounds (can you say Illegal?), and no fishing can be conducted on dive reefs.
Most captains have a deal with a local restaurant where the restaurant will cook your fresh catch of the day. If you have rented a vacation villa and want to test your skills at cooking the fish yourself, let the captain know and they will filet that baby for you. It is always good practice to leave what you cannot eat as a tip for the captain and boat crew. No sense in leaving any of that beautiful catch of the day lay to waste.
If you wish to catch and release for the sport of it, let the captain know in advance. When you hook a fish on the line they will treat it a bit differently so it is safely released back into the ocean.
Never tried deep sea fishing? Give it a try. The clear blue waters of the Caribbean make this sport a great outing, educational, eventful and a ton of fun. It is a local sport and way of life that really should not be missed.