Damn Good Mangrove Snapper Fishing Charters

The best mangrove snapper fishing charters are:

• Cat 5 Fishing guided by Luke B.
• Afishionado guided by Wade O. with 28 years of experience
• BearCutBandit Sport Fishing and Sandbar Charters guided by Alek F.
• Top Notch Sportfishing guided by Bill G. with 22 years of experience
• Seeley Charters guided by Kevin S.

Our Damn Good Guides currently offer 87 mangrove snapper trips, and the most popular trips are 4hr Jetties & Near Shore Reefs Run guided by Scott, Amelia Island Fishing Trips guided by Jeff, and Inshore Fishing Trip AM guided by Andrew.

Our guides are rated a 4.98 out of 5 based on 9498 verified reviews on Captain Experiences.

All guides on Captain Experiences are vetted by our team. You can access their reviews, click through trip photos, read bios to get to know them, and preview trip details like species, techniques, group sizes, boat specs and more.

Looking for kid friendly mangrove snapper guides / fishing lessons? Check out our beginner and family friendly mangrove snapper guides.

Deep Sea fishing is the most popular type of fishing for mangrove snapper as well as inshore fishing, nearshore fishing, and flats fishing.

The most common fishing techniques are light tackle fishing, live bait fishing, and bottom fishing but artificial lure fishing and trolling are popular as well.

Prices for mangrove snapper can range anywhere from about $593 to $2,993, but the average price for a half day trip for mangrove snapper is $1,124. The average price for a full day trip for mangrove snapper is $2,135.

Hiring a guide provides a number of benefits and many choose to book a fishing guide for a combination of experience, local knowledge, convenience, and cost-effectiveness.

Working with experienced fishing guides who know the best local spots and techniques can dramatically increase your odds of a great day. Having someone who is on the water every day and knows the area like the back of their hand is going to give you the best chances of success.

Booking a guide is also more cost effective, especially if you only get out a handful of times per year. When you consider all of the costs you would incur on your own such as the price of a boat, maintenance, insurance, gas, high-quality gear and tackle, repairs, and more, you’ll find that DIY is sometimes not worth the expense.

Even if you’ve got a great setup already in your home waters, booking a guide also provides a great opportunity to experience new techniques, new locations, or even a chance at a new target species to knock off the bucket list.

The most popular season for mangrove snapper fishing is summer, and most anglers book their trips 19 days in advance.

See here for more information on mangrove snapper fishing licenses, mangrove snapper bag limits, and fishing season regulations for mangrove snapper. When in doubt, your guide will always know all the relevant mangrove snapper rules and regulations.

The mangrove snapper (Lutjanus griseus), also known as the gray snapper or colloquially as a “mango”, is a species of snapper located in the Atlantic Ocean, in both brackish and fresh waters. They are popular commercially, as gamefish, and also in the aquarium trade. Although they are named after the mangroves where they like to reside, they can also be found in deep rocky bottoms, wrecks and reefs, seagrass beds, and even inshore estuaries, rivers and lakes.

They are usually a grayish red color, but can also be found range from bright to copper red, with a dark stripe across their eye. Although they become fully mature at about 2 years, these snappers can live for up to 20 years.

The smallest of all the snappers, the average size of a mangrove snapper is only one to 3 pounds. However, in rare instances, they can reach over 18 inches and 10 pounds. Unlike many fish species, both the females and males tend to be about the same size, and are externally indiscernible.

The current record with the International Game Fish Foundation is held by Tim Champagne, with a 32 inch long, 18 pound, 10 ounce mangrove snapper. On July 22nd, 2015, he landed the beast out of Cocodrie, Lousiana while aboard Captain Andre Bourdreaux’s boat, M/V Showtime. Using live croaker, it only took five minutes to reel into the boat, and completely crushed Steve Maddox’s 1992 record of 17 pounds.

Mangrove snapper can be found in the southern half of the United States, into the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. As their name suggests, you can find them in mangrove lagoons, the largest will be found on offshore reefs and wrecks.

Some of the most notable places to target these snapper are the Gulf of Mexico, Bermuda, and Puerto Rico.

Although mangrove snapper are good to catch year round, they spawn from April to November, making summer the peak season. The warm weather will bring them closer inshore, where you can find them around piers, bridges, and within jetties. Since they are night foragers, you can even target them after sundown.

Mangrove snapper are temperamental and finicky creatures. Once a few out of their school have been caught, they can become difficult to catch.

Though, when it comes to gear, it is much more simple. Any inshore, light tackle will do. Bait-wise, you can use artificials, live, or flies. For artificial bait, the most highly recommended is Berkeley Gulf shrimp, or any other soft, plastic imitation of typical live bait, which includes mud minnows, finger mullet, or crabs.

Mangrove snappers are typically regarded as being a very delicious fish to eat. Some of the most popular methods of serving are fried, grilled, and smoked, typically paired with garlic or citrus flavors.