Experience the Costa Rica Fishing adventure

Costa Rica fishing

is the best in the world the year round … but some months are better for certain sport fish than others. Here’s a Costa Rica sport fishing calendar to help you plan your

Costa Rica Fishing Vacation

based on your quarry.

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Best deep sea fishing in the world

Costa Rica is an angler’s dream come true. The country’s Pacific ports and beach resorts provide access to some of the best deep-sea fishing in the world, while the canals and rivers of the northern Atlantic coast feature world-class snook and tarpon fishing. Billfish (family Istiophoridae) is the country’s biggest attraction, with abundant Costa Rica sailfish and monster blue marlin off the Pacific coast, but the fishermen also hook plenty of other feisty fighters, such as wahoo and roosterfish.

Though Costa Rica boasts the best deep-sea fishing in the world, there is also has great freshwater fishing in Lake Arenal and the larger rivers in the Northern Zone, where anglers can fight with the small but ornery guapote, a hump-backed fish also known as the rainbow bass. Giant marlin, Costa Rica sailfish beyond number; high jumping tarpon, record class snook, and a dozen or more hard-hitting freshwater species…

Costa Rica has them all! Fishing just doesn’t get any better than you will find in a friendly, peaceful Rica, and because this is a small nation, it’s possible to enjoy it all on a single visit, perhaps with a day of water rafting and a volcano and rain forest tour threw in.

On the Pacific, it’s common to release a dozen or more sails and even a marlin or two in a single day, and NOT unusual to release more than 30 sailfish a day. There is also dolphin (including the long-standing International Game Fish Association’s all-tackle record 87 pounders), giant yellowfin tuna, wahoo, cubera, roosterfish, a variety of snappers; grouper; blue runners, rainbow runners, snook, and much more. And Costa Rica boat operators release all billfish that do not record contenders, so the future of the resource is assured.

Cabo Blanco to Drake Bay – Quepos is center of Sport fishing on the central coast, but there are charters available out of Puntarenas, the resorts at the southern end of Nicoya Peninsula, Jacó Beach, Punta Leona and at Drake Bay. Billfish are the target of most visiting anglers, and they are seldom disappointed from around December through April.

Some sails and marlin are taken throughout the year. From most areas mentioned above, it’s no more than 12 to 20 miles run to the blue water where most of the billfish action is encountered. Inshore sport includes tuna, roosterfish, wahoo, dorado, jacks, mackerel, cubera, a variety of small snapper species and even snook.

The snook can be taken trolling just outside the breaker line off the river mouths in the area, but are more often fished from shore. Some boats out of Quepos also offer multi-day trips to Drake Bay and Caño’s Island area, overnighting at one of the several lodges centered around Drake Bay. This region is best known for its wahoo, big cubera and roosterfish, but there are also tuna, dorado, sails and some marlin.

Costa Rica Fishing Calendar Marlin Costa Rica Sport Fishing: October is normally the top month for marlin in this area, but action is also good in September and November and occasional blues and rare black are likely to be found any time of year although they are usually out further than the boats hunting for sailfish are likely to be fishing.

Sailfish Costa Rica Sport Fishing: Middle of December to the end of April when they begin moving north is rated the best season, but the big schools often move in about October and occasionally stay longer. A few sail always show among the catch from June through September, mixed with the other species that are found inshore during those months.

Tuna Costa Rica Sport Fishing: Found through the year as they all along the Pacific coast, but most abundant from June through September. Most are the eight to 12 pounders, but a dozen pounders and maybe another two dozen in the 100 to 200 pound range are taken every year.

Wahoo Costa Rica Sport Fishing: Not common in the area around Quepos, but more abundant in the late summer further south, especially the Drake Bay and Caño’s Island area from late June to early August.

Dorado Costa Rica Sport Fishing: Best action begins with the winter rains that start in late May and wash debris from the river mouths lines that the dolphin favor.

Roosterfish Sport Fishing for this hard-hitting inshore species is incredible, with the best spots off the river mouths and the rocky drop offs. Favored spots are the mouth of the Parrita; Palo Seco between Parrita and Damas just outside Damas; off the mouth of the Naranjo River; around the points at Dominical and throughout the Drake Bay and Caño’s Island area. Best fishing is from June through early September. Snook: Favored spots are just the many river mouths all along the coast, up the Sierpe river and in the big lagoon on Sierpe.

The IGFA world record Pacific black snook was taken in the month of July at the mouth of the Rio Naranjo on a boat trolling just outside the breaker line. This a relatively new target for some small charter boats, but the best months seem to be from July through November during the heavy rainy season.

Cabo Blanco to the Gulf of Papagayo Flamingo Beach, with a full-service marina, is the major sportfishing center in the northern coastal area, but boats also charter out of nearby Coco’s beach, Book Here your Charters for Gulf of Papagayo, Tamarindo, Ocotal, Potrero, Brasilito and a few points in between.

A bit further south, there are boats operating below Cabo Blanco, out of Nosara, Garza, Sámara and Carrillo beach, a region that gets more protection from the winds that normally blow late December into March and April. Some Sport Fishing boats from the more northerly areas often base at Carrillo beach from about December through March if the wind is lowing and the main billfish population is moving north from the central coast area.

Sport Fishing Seasons

Marlin Sport Fishing: Caught every month of the year; with mid-November to early March exceptional, then slowing a bit from April into early June when it picks up again, peaking in August and September.

Sailfish Sport Fishing: Caught throughout the year; with May through August normally the top season. They may begin to thin out in September and from late August Through November.

Tuna Sport Fishing: Peak months are probably August through October; but when all these fail, there are always tuna, any time of the year you want to look for them, and more often than not when you’d just as soon avoid them to concentrate on billfish. The yellowfin and some bigeye tuna are often found well inside the Santa Catalina Islands, 30 minutes or less running time from the beach, while schools of 12 to 20 pounders are usually abundant on the outside. You frequently find concentrations of 40 to 60-pound tuna, and there is plenty of the 200 to 400 pounder caught every year.

Dorado Sport Fishing: More properly known as dolphin, these colorful gamesters are most abundant from late May through October when the seasonal rains flood the rivers, carrying out debris that forms trash lines close inshore that they like to lie under. Troll past a floating long and you’ll like to hook a dorado.

Wahoo Sport Fishing: The first showing begins about the time the rains start in May, peaking in July an August. Most are caught around the rocky points and islands, but you will pick one up occasionally fishing offshore.

Roosterfish Sport Fishing: available all year, but are more caught in the Papagayo Bay area from November through March. That may be because more boats in the northernmost area of this region are fishing inshore during those windy months. and the roosters like the structure of the shoreline and islands where they’re found 50 to 60 feet of water.

Golfito and Playa Zancud Golfito is the largest Sport Fishing town on Costa Rica southern coast, but there are only a half dozen operators scattered between the northern end of Dulce Gulf, the town of Golfito, Puesto Jiménez on the Osa Peninsula and Zancudo beach.

Zancudo is a narrow peninsula with miles of beach on the ocean side and bordered by several rivers on the other. Expect to raise a dozen or more sails and likely a marlin or two outside Matapalo Cape during peak season, and plenty of jacks, runners, mackerel, amberjack, roosterfish and big sanapper inshore.

The Osa Peninsula in Costa Rica is unlike any other sport fishing hub in the world. Situated just 30 miles north of the Panama border, its unique location between the Pacific Ocean and the Gulfo Dulce, enables you to have the greatest Costa Rican sport fishing experience imaginable!

The cobalt blue waters of the gulf stream just offshore in the Pacific, combined with the mineral rich waters of the Gulfo Dulce, create and support an endless food source of bait in this area. As a result, many pelagic species can be caught throughout the year. This region continues to produce world record catches year after year.

There are two modern sport fishing marinas in Golfito, both offering fishing charters as well as facilities for transient yachts. Light tackle fishing inside Dulce Gulf, with these provision of small caves and rocky islets and shoreline, is also good for small barracuda and snapper, corvina and occasional snook to over 40 pounds.

Sport Fishing the drop off outside Matapalo Cape they get sails, marlin, tuna and other blue water species, and inshore there are roosters that average over 30 pounds, grouper, jacks, barracuda, trophy size Pacific cubera snapper and more. There is also excellent snook Sport fishing inside the Zancudo Peninsula and further north, at the mouth of the Esquínas river.

Seasons
Marlin Sport Fishing: August through December is the peak season, but an occasional striped, blue or black may be taken most any month if the water temperature is up.

Sailfish Sport Fishing: A few taken off and on year round with best fishing from December through March. It Often slows form April into early June, then picks up again and peaks in August and September.

Tuna Sport Fishing: Best fishing for the 100 pound up yellow fin corresponds with marlin and sailfish season, but the schools of up 30 pound tuna can nearly always be found outside.

Dorado Sport Fishing: Best runs are traditionally from late May through October, when the rivers are running full.

Wahoo Sport Fishing: Not abundant, but occasional fish may be taken most any time of the year while trolling offshore for billfish or around the structure off Matapalo Cape.

Roosterfish Sport Fishing: The region is famous for its big roosters and they can be caught virtually any month of the year.

Snook Sport Fishing: All year, but best from mid or late May through July and in January and February.

The Caribbean The canals and rivers of the northern Caribbean coast boast some of the best snook and tarpon sport fishing in the world, and they are lined with lush rainforest, which adds to the natural experience. The tarpon averages about 80 pounds in the Caribbean canals, and though the snook is much smaller, they are good little fighters that taste great. About half a dozen sport fishing lodges are located in Barra del Colorado, Tortuguero, and Parismina, all on the canals, and the houseboat Rain Goddess offers a roving adventure that lets anglers fish the canals, several rivers, and hidden lakes.

Seasons

Tarpon Sport Fishing: They’re always around, with the traditional high season from December through May, but that was a number of years ago when all of the lodges were fishing with 16-foot boats and couldn’t get outside the river mouths as they do today with lager boats designed for that purpose.

Snook Sport Fishing: Big snook generally peak from March through May and again from September through the end of November.

Fat Snook Fishing: (Calba) Peak from mid-November through late January, but often make an appearance much earlier.

Billfish Sport Fishing: When you can get outside to the blue water you will find Atlantic blue marlin almost any time of the year. Most are caught from February through September.

Wahoo Sport Fishing: Plentiful on the outside from early February through mid-June.

Dorado Sport Fishing: Caught just outside the river mouths throughout the year. Best fishing is when the runoff carries out the debris that forms inshore trash lines.

Tripletail Sport Fishing: January through June. Kingfish, Spanish and Cero Mackerel, Jack Crevalle, Barracuda Sport Fishing: Abundant close to shore any time the ocean is flat.

Costa Rica sport fishing check list

Being prepared with the following few items will ensure you and your
friends a great time costa Rica sport fishing

• sunscreen – spf 30+
• good polarized fishing sunglasses
• light colored clothing
• shorts and loose fitting short sleeve shirt
• shoes with non-skid surfaces like deck shoes
• your favorite fishing hat or visor
• camera: still or video
• your favorite music – cd’s
• cash to tip your captain
• and last but not least, plenty of ice cold beer and water