The Best Sailfish Charters

Our Damn Good Guides currently offer 263 sailfish trips, and the most popular trips are South Padre Island Deep Sea Fishing guided by Emilio, Open Ocean Big Game - 42' Sea Ray guided by Bryan, and Tulum Trophy Hunt guided by Carlos.

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Deep Sea fishing is the most popular for sailfish as well as nearshore fishing, inshore fishing, and flats fishing.

The most common fishing techniques are trolling, heavy tackle fishing, and bottom fishing but jigging and light tackle fishing are popular as well.

for sailfish prices can range anywhere from $330 to $3,000 and up, but the average price for a half day for sailfish is $1,293. The average price for a full day for sailfish is $2,488.

The most popular season for sailfish fishing is spring, and most anglers book their trips 69 days in advance.

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

The sailfish (Istiophorus platypterus) is most recognizable for it’s large dorsal fin, or sail, that stretches along their entire back. Known as the cheetah of the ocean, they are some of the fastest marine creatures alive, swimming up to 70 miles per hour, making them highly prized by anglers despite being one of the smaller species of billfish.

Other distinguishing characteristics of sailfish are their blue to gray coloring, and elongated bill. These colors will change into rust color and even black while hunting. There are two types of sailfish, the Pacific Sailfish, and the Atlantic Sailfish, who reside in the Pacific and Atlantic oceans respectively.

Sailfish grow quickly, being born at 0.125 inches long, and getting up to four to five feet within a single year. At full maturity, they can grow upwards of 10 feet long and 200 pounds.

That being said, there tends to be a size difference between the Atlantic and Pacific sailfishes. Pacific sailfish can get up to up to a foot longer than the biggest Atlantic sailfish. They can also be much heavier, by up to 70 pounds.

In 1947, Carl Stewart caught the largest sailfish ever recorded. It was a Pacific sailfish landed out of the waters of Santa Cruz Island in Ecuador. This giant weighed in over 220 pounds, and was over 11 feet long.

Sailfish are spread across tropical and subtropical waters, staying in preferred water temperatures of 70 to 83 degrees. They stay close to the surface, usually alone or in small groups, sometimes schooling when hunting.

In the Atlantic, one of the best places to target sailfish is Florida. There are hotspots along the entire Floridian coast, including Miami, the Keys, the Panhandle, and Destin. Outside of the United States, some of the top areas are Bermuda, Puerto Rico, and Hawaii.

When in the Pacific, Guatemala and Costa Rica are the go-to places. For the best of both Pacific and Atlantic oceans, head to Mexico, where you can go to either coast for access.

Sailfish are typically good to fish year-round, it just depends on where they are in their migration to make sure you’re headed to the right area. For example Eastern Atlantic Sailfish have a seasonal migration south towards warmer waters, so the best time to target them is November through February. Peak season worldwide though tends to be from May to September, especially in July, since summer is the sailfish’s spawning season.

The most common way to hook a sailfish is by fast trolling, using artificial or natural bait. Artificials typically used are plastic lures, feathers, or spoons. Natural bait is preferred, however, and can be live or dead and cut into strips, with options like mullet, ballyhoo, or mackerel. Other methods like jigs, poppers, kite fishing, and fly fishing can also be used.

The “dropback” technique is highly recommended for sailfish. To do so, you should feed line to the sailfish once it is spotted approaching the bait. Continue to free spool until you’re sure that the bait has been taken, then set the drag, wait until there is no more slack, set the hook and get ready to fight. Sailfish are know for their acrobatic leaps, shaking their head, and tail-walking, which is where they skip across the water using their tails.

Much like other billfish, sailfish are most often caught and released. They are edible, however they are not considered the most palatable since the meat tends to be very tough, and they also have a high mercury content.