Lakeland Weather Forecast

Fishing reports straight from our guides in Lakeland

Ashley Beall
Ashley B.
Tampa, Florida
Reported 1 year ago
Recent trips have produced some quality snook and trout, and some Spanish mackerel are showing up also. We have been using artificial lures and live bait and doing very well. There are also some big redfish and huge snook cruising around the mangroves right now.
Ashley Beall
Ashley B. Tampa, Florida Reported 1 year ago
Recent trips have produced some quality snook and trout, and some Spanish mackerel are showing up also. We have been using artificial lures and live bait and doing very well. There are also some big redfish and huge snook cruising around the mangroves right now.
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Scroll for more
Phil Pegley
Phil P.
Ruskin, Florida
Reported 1 year ago
In like a lion out like a lamb, the month of March is certainly living up to its reputation. We have had water temperatures sore into the 80s, then right back down into the 60s with the numerous fronts we have had. Cooler water means deeper areas for the snook, trout, and redfish inshore and spawning sheepshead and snapper on our Tampa Bay rock piles. With some site fishing for Cobia on the calm days tomorrow we're heading out to the Gulf of America for a little bottom fishing and to see if the kingfish are here yet. Let's get...
Phil Pegley
Phil P. Ruskin, Florida Reported 1 year ago
In like a lion out like a lamb, the month of March is certainly living up to its reputation. We have had water temperatures sore into the 80s, then right back down into the 60s with the numerous fronts we have had. Cooler water means deeper areas for the snook, trout, and redfish inshore and spawning sheepshead and snapper on our Tampa Bay rock piles. With some site fishing for Cobia on the calm days tomorrow we're heading out to the Gulf of America for a little bottom fishing and to see if the kingfish are here yet. Let's get you booked in for some unforgettable memories and another great Captain's experience.
Fishing in Ruskin, Florida
Fishing in Ruskin, Florida
Fishing in Ruskin, Florida
Fishing in Ruskin, Florida
Fishing in Ruskin, Florida
Scroll for more
Phil Pegley
Phil P.
Ruskin, Florida
Reported 1 year ago
Warming water has heated up pre-spring fishing With the approach of springtime coming, the fish have been on the move on this warming trend just two weeks ago we were still fixed and a solid winter pattern with excellent catches on hogfish grouper and snapper at winter depth of 45 to 55 feet. There's literally low tides and high skies made for some nice sight fishing opportunities in shore. For some bruiser size cobia When the water rises after these low morning tides The snook and redfish have been to target in the afternoon Using live greenbacks Speckled chop fishing...
Phil Pegley
Phil P. Ruskin, Florida Reported 1 year ago
Warming water has heated up pre-spring fishing With the approach of springtime coming, the fish have been on the move on this warming trend just two weeks ago we were still fixed and a solid winter pattern with excellent catches on hogfish grouper and snapper at winter depth of 45 to 55 feet. There's literally low tides and high skies made for some nice sight fishing opportunities in shore. For some bruiser size cobia When the water rises after these low morning tides The snook and redfish have been to target in the afternoon Using live greenbacks Speckled chop fishing has kept everything going all winter long with greenbacks and shrimp plenty of keeper trout may December and January a big hit with clients that wanted to keep fish. Well, it seems like spring is right around the corner and we should get into some of our best fishing of the year. Let's get you booked in for another great Captains experience
Fishing in Ruskin, Florida
Fishing in Ruskin, Florida
Fishing in Ruskin, Florida
Fishing in Ruskin, Florida
Fishing in Ruskin, Florida
Scroll for more
Cody Beckman
Cody B.
Tampa, Florida
Reported 1 year ago
Too good not to post… so a client comes in from the eastern shore of Maryland and says he wants to catch snook. Mind you, he has never seen a snook in his life, let alone catch one. So we set out with a clear goal to target big snook but neither us of, especially me, expected to hook into this absolute behemoth. Most people will never get an opportunity to catch a snook this big and if they do, most people won’t be able to land it. This fish did not make it easy on us; we got her...
Cody Beckman
Cody B. Tampa, Florida Reported 1 year ago
Too good not to post… so a client comes in from the eastern shore of Maryland and says he wants to catch snook. Mind you, he has never seen a snook in his life, let alone catch one. So we set out with a clear goal to target big snook but neither us of, especially me, expected to hook into this absolute behemoth. Most people will never get an opportunity to catch a snook this big and if they do, most people won’t be able to land it. This fish did not make it easy on us; we got her boat side and in the net and she immediately shook her head and ripped a huge hole in the landing net with her gill plates. This is when the chaos ensued. She swam through the net and wrapped the power pole and motor and swam completely under the boat while still being hooked. So I immediately jumped in the water and swam under the boat to secure the fish. I managed to get a good grip on her bottom lip and pull her from under the boat and untangle the mess she got us in. Instead of taking this big fish out of the water in the heat of summer, I kindly but sternly “asked” him to get in the water also for the picture. Fish that big in water temps this hot do not survive if kept of out the water for the normal boat picture “photoshoot”. He didn’t hesitate and jumped in and we got this amazing photo of his fish of lifetime. The rest of the day everyone was smiling from ear to ear and in shock of what had just taken place. A day and fish I’m sure neither of us will ever forget.
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Scroll for more
Christian L.
Tampa, Florida
Reported 1 year ago
Currently lots of sheepshead been biting along with some sharks and sand trout. The cold weather has slowed down some bites but the back creeks have been shows to catch them
Christian Lugo
Christian L. Tampa, Florida Reported 1 year ago
Currently lots of sheepshead been biting along with some sharks and sand trout. The cold weather has slowed down some bites but the back creeks have been shows to catch them
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Scroll for more
Ike Carrasquillo
Ike C.
Tampa, Florida
Reported 1 year ago
Pass few weeks have been dead, no Charters for two months because of the hurricanes but it has picked up for me and I have several this month and next month. The Sheepshead action is good on the grass flats, oyster beds and anywhere crustacean grows. The Flounder action has been slow for me but the dark muddy waters in tge back country has produced Blackdrum, Mullet and Gar.
Ike Carrasquillo
Ike C. Tampa, Florida Reported 1 year ago
Pass few weeks have been dead, no Charters for two months because of the hurricanes but it has picked up for me and I have several this month and next month. The Sheepshead action is good on the grass flats, oyster beds and anywhere crustacean grows. The Flounder action has been slow for me but the dark muddy waters in tge back country has produced Blackdrum, Mullet and Gar.
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Scroll for more
Wade Osborne
Wade O.
Tampa, Florida
Reported 1 year ago
Even though the sheepshead spawning season doesn’t start until February, the cooler water temperatures have them feeding very aggressively. On a recent charter, my clients specifically requested sheepshead, and the day did not disappoint. On the very first cast of the day, they reeled in a 16-inch keeper. Throughout the charter we must have caught close to 30 sheepshead, along with numerous redfish, seatrout, and snook. At the end of the day, they went home with six nice sized keeper sheepshead. If you enjoy catching redfish, now is the perfect time to catch plenty. Even though most are rats, “under...
Wade Osborne
Wade O. Tampa, Florida Reported 1 year ago
Even though the sheepshead spawning season doesn’t start until February, the cooler water temperatures have them feeding very aggressively. On a recent charter, my clients specifically requested sheepshead, and the day did not disappoint. On the very first cast of the day, they reeled in a 16-inch keeper. Throughout the charter we must have caught close to 30 sheepshead, along with numerous redfish, seatrout, and snook. At the end of the day, they went home with six nice sized keeper sheepshead. If you enjoy catching redfish, now is the perfect time to catch plenty. Even though most are rats, “under slot-sized redfish” they are still fun to catch. The same can be said for seatrout. Clients have been catching some of the largest seatrout of the year recently. Seatrout schoolup in the winter, so when you hit the right spot numerous fish in the 15 to 19-inch slot range can be landed. Snook are also making their presence known. I’m finding snook mixed in with the redfish and seatrout also. Snook are closed to harvest until March 1st, so it’s strictly catch and release.
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Scroll for more
Steve Niemoeller
Steve N.
St. Cloud, Florida
Reported 1 year ago
We have had a lot of group trips on pontoons lately and the big bass have been biting on the wild shiners The temps have been lower and the winds high some days but all in all it is a great time to be fishing as the bigger bass are getting ready to go on beds So bring your family and friends book a bass boat or pontoon and come join in the fun
Steve Niemoeller
Steve N. St. Cloud, Florida Reported 1 year ago
We have had a lot of group trips on pontoons lately and the big bass have been biting on the wild shiners The temps have been lower and the winds high some days but all in all it is a great time to be fishing as the bigger bass are getting ready to go on beds So bring your family and friends book a bass boat or pontoon and come join in the fun
Fishing in Kissimmee, Florida
Fishing in Kissimmee, Florida
Fishing in Kissimmee, Florida
Fishing in Kissimmee, Florida
Fishing in Kissimmee, Florida
Scroll for more
Cody Beckman
Cody B.
Tampa, Florida
Reported 1 year ago
Inshore fishing and backcountry fishing has been extremely productive, averaging 30 fish days and the cooler water has redfish, trout and big snook fired up. The nearshore wrecks are holding good numbers of mangrove snapper and sheepshead with some spanish mackerel mixed in Weather has been ideal and looks to stay that way for the next few weeks. Definitely a great time of year to get on the water
Cody Beckman
Cody B. Tampa, Florida Reported 1 year ago
Inshore fishing and backcountry fishing has been extremely productive, averaging 30 fish days and the cooler water has redfish, trout and big snook fired up. The nearshore wrecks are holding good numbers of mangrove snapper and sheepshead with some spanish mackerel mixed in Weather has been ideal and looks to stay that way for the next few weeks. Definitely a great time of year to get on the water
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Scroll for more
Phil Pegley
Phil P.
Ruskin, Florida
Reported 1 year ago
People in West and Southwest Florida will not take the term hurricane season lightly .After the hit we took from Helene and Milton .as we patch up and pick up the pieces we quickly realize beautiful mother ocean still surrounds us and has so many positives to offer the water cleared quickly, and our Amazing fishery got right back on track booking through Captains experiences we got to meet Kai and Zach, snook , redfish, and trout. We're all first for them, and they were up for the challenge. Fall patterns have concentrated our fish. And persistence has paid off...
Phil Pegley
Phil P. Ruskin, Florida Reported 1 year ago
People in West and Southwest Florida will not take the term hurricane season lightly .After the hit we took from Helene and Milton .as we patch up and pick up the pieces we quickly realize beautiful mother ocean still surrounds us and has so many positives to offer the water cleared quickly, and our Amazing fishery got right back on track booking through Captains experiences we got to meet Kai and Zach, snook , redfish, and trout. We're all first for them, and they were up for the challenge. Fall patterns have concentrated our fish. And persistence has paid off with some of the nicest Snook of the year . and this past full moon has been stellar on resurging numbers of large speckled trout Get with Captains experiences and get your trips booked today
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Fishing in Tampa, Florida
Scroll for more

Target Species

View Full Species Seasonality Chart »
  • Get it while it's HOT!
  • This species is in play.
  • You might get lucky (as long as things are in-season).
  • Couldn't tell ya! (no data)

What's Biting in Lakeland

Top Fishing Trips in Lakeland

Fishing in Destin
Fishing in Destin
Fishing in Destin

Duck Hunting in Ruskin

Duck Hunting Tampa Bay

96% (26)
24 ft 1 - 4 People From $350
Fishing in Destin
Fishing in Destin
Fishing in Destin

Inshore, River, Flats in Tampa

Tampa Kids Fishing - Rick's

100% (6)
25 ft 1 - 12 People From $350
Fishing in Destin
Fishing in Destin
Fishing in Destin

River, Lake Fishing in Kissimmee

Pontoon Fishing Charter

100% (32)
25 ft 1 - 6 People From $550
Fishing in Destin
Fishing in Destin
Fishing in Destin

Inshore, Nearshore, Flats in Tampa

Bay Fishing At Its Best

100% (2)
22 ft 1 - 3 People From $500
Damn Good
Certified Damn Good Guides offer 10/10 trips. Guides earn this badge through quality reviews, quick and responsive communication, and low cancellation rates.
Fishing in Destin
Fishing in Destin
Fishing in Destin

Inshore, Nearshore Fishing in Tampa

Inshore Fishing Trip

100% (14)
26 ft 1 - 5 People From $500
Fishing in Destin
Fishing in Destin
Fishing in Destin

Flats Fishing in Tampa

Family Bowfishing Outing

100% (9)
22 ft 1 - 6 People From $600
See all trips in Lakeland

Recent Lakeland Reviews

  • ★★★★★
    My whole crew was extremely happy with excursion I was sick the whole trip so this review is for them. I’d recommend them very informative very nice and very caring.

    Lee S. | September 28, 2026

    Trip: Tampa Bay Inshore Rodeo

  • ★★★★★
    We had a great time with Captain Mike, and we all caught fish!

    Jamie L. | September 8, 2026

    Trip: Pontoon Fishing Charter

  • ★★★★★
    George was a great Captain, he was knowable of the area and very professional! He made my request for my wife who has never caught a slot red or a snook come true she actually caught both. George was a good conversationalist and after talking with him and sharing some stories, we found out he is really a good guy and we will use him again. Great day on the water, Thanks again Captain George!

    Mike G. | August 8, 2026

    Trip: Tampa Bay Inshore Fishing Fun!!!

  • ★★★★★
    Steven was a great captain! We first went bait fishing and caught some good fish, didn’t happen to catch any sharks this time but still had a great time seeing a hammerhead shark, stingrays, dolphins, and amber schools. It was a super fun trip and I highly recommend Steven as he seems to know the area and how to fish it very well.

    Troy C. | August 6, 2026

    Trip: Shark Fishing Charter

  • ★★★★★
    We had the best trip ever, captain john was so funny and was teaching us the ways of the bay. Ended up catching about 15-20 fish each between me and my dad. After the trip we were so pumped and hyped just thinking about all the catches. I highly recommend captain john for your next charter in Tampa Bay. 10/10 on the entire trip and the experience!!! Love that this charter is veteran owned as well, being active duty myself, I felt very comfortable and the vibes were immaculate. The boat was super clean and everything was organized which was helpful while out on the water. Please book with John!!!

    Marshall F. | August 5, 2026

    Trip: Tampa Bay Inshore Slam

  • ★★★★★
    Captain Steven is the real deal. We had a party of 4 and none of us had been on an ocean charter before and we all wanted to catch some sharks. Steven put us on a load of bull sharks, we each caught a shark, the biggest of the 4 sharks being about 5.5ft long. He’s great at instructing and demonstrating everything, he’s great with novice fishermen, and he’s a fun guy to be around. He will put you on some fish.

    Nicolas J. | July 31, 2026

    Trip: Shark Fishing Charter

  • ★★★★★
    He was awesome, was super accommodating to our group and made sure we left with a good catch. He was super personable and lets you reel in your catches, I will definitely be booking with him again!

    Sylvia H. | July 30, 2026

    Trip: Shark Fishing Charter

  • ★★★★★
    Had a great day out on the water with Steven picking up all different species from Triple Tail to Trout.

    Steven F. | July 16, 2026

    Trip: Inshore Fishing Trip

  • ★★★★★
    Captain Steven gave us a great trip catching fish. He was very knowledgeable and friendly and was a great experience overall. I recommend Captain Steven for those of you looking to take advantage of the Tampa experience.

    Dennis J. | July 14, 2026

    Trip: Shark Fishing Charter

  • ★★★★★
    Great host. Great time. Fun for both my boy and I. Caught some fish and experienced the bay. Will going back soon. Thank you Chris.

    Dave D. | July 10, 2026

    Trip: Inshore Family Fun Fishing

Need a Place to Stay?

Enter to Win a

$500 DAMN GOOD GIFT CARD

Gift Card

Sign up to win $500 towards ANY trip. Winners drawn monthly.

By subscribing, you agree to receive marketing communications from Captain Experiences. To opt-out, click the unsubscribe button at the bottom of our emails. Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions