Costa Rica Fishing Map
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Fish
Disclaimers:
- Fish spots come from our guides and their sources. Protected-area rules change, so check with the park office or your captain before you fish near one.
- The presence of a fish icon on our map doesn't guarantee there will actually be that type of fish at that location when you go there and drop a hook!
How to read the map
The coloured discs are the businesses we list: gold for charter boats, blue for marinas, coral for lodges and resorts, and aqua for dive shops. Where several sit close together they're grouped in a named circle; tap it to zoom in. A charter with no office is shown at the marina or beach its boats leave from.
White dots are the fishing towns and ports. The more of our listings are based in a town, the bigger its dot, so Quepos and the Papagayo area stand out. Tap a town for its guide and the crews based there.
The small fish drawings sit in the water where our guides, and the sources behind them, say each species is caught: sailfish and marlin well offshore, roosterfish along the rocky points, snapper and grouper on the reefs, and tarpon and snook in the Caribbean river mouths and lagoons. They're a guide to where crews look, not a promise the fish will be there that day. The season chart on our species page shows when each one runs.
The protected waters
Red areas are no-fishing zones, such as the sea around Cabo Blanco, Manuel Antonio, Ballena and Isla del Caño. Purple areas allow some fishing under a management plan, and green areas are responsible-fishing areas, where local fishers and the fisheries institute agree the rules. The lines on the map are a guide only. Rules change, and boundaries at sea are hard to see, so ask your captain or the park office before you drop a line near one.
Frequently asked questions
Can I fish inside a Costa Rican national park?
Not in the marine part of a national park or a biological or absolute reserve. Those waters are closed to fishing, and the red areas on the map show the main ones. Wildlife refuges and marine management areas allow some fishing under their own rules.
Why is a charter shown at a marina instead of its office?
Many crews don't have a shopfront. Their boats leave from a marina or a beach, so that's where we put them, and the card says so.
Where do the fish spots come from?
From our own species and town guides and the sources they cite, such as FishBase, INCOPESCA and the crews' own reports. Tap a fish to see the spot, a line on what's caught there, and a link to the guide.
Is the map free to use on my phone?
Yes. It works on phones and computers. On a phone, use two fingers to move the map so the page still scrolls normally.