Cabo San Lucas is known as “The Marlin Capital of the World” and it is home to some of the best sport fishing in general. Anglers come from around the world to catch the striped, black, and blue marlin and many more of the 5,000 different species living in the Sea of Cortez. Whether you are a rookie angler or a seasoned pro, everyone can have a great time reeling in the biggest catch of their life out on the Los Cabos waters. Sport fishing in Cabo San Lucas has brought in some of the best charter boat companies, tournaments, and anglers from all over. You can charter a smaller 4 man boat or celebrate with all your friends on one of the state-of-the-art all inclusive yachts that can host up to 25 guests. If you are planning a trip to Cabo San Lucas, do not pass up the opportunity to go sport fishing, it is an adventure you will remember forever.
Cabo San Lucas Fishing - General Information
Los Cabos Charter Boats: It is highly recommended that you reserve a charter boat far in advance, and at latest up to one week before you arrive in Cabo San Lucas. You can reserve anything from a shared charter to help lower the costs if you only have one or two people all the way up to 8, 12, and 25 person super yachts. View a list of Cabo San Lucas sport fishing charters or read advice on sharing a fishing charter.
Cabo San Lucas Fishing Costs: A smaller vessel that will fit up to four people will generally cost around $500 for an eight hour day, not including taxes, fees, gratuity, cleaning and freezing, etc. If you have a large group, expect to pay upwards of $1,500 for a whole day on a nicer boat or $2,800+ for a yacht. It is expected that you tip your captain anywhere between 10-20% of the total charter price, which he will share with his deckhand. Tipping should be related to their quality of service, not for the amount of fish you caught on the trip. If you plan on keeping any fish, you will have to pay for the cleaning and freezing once you get back to the docks; price depends on size of fish.
Catch and Release: Although the Los Cabos area is well known for its abundance of large sailfish, you are only legally allowed to bring in one sailfish per day. Most anglers will catch and release all of their sailfish and bring in the smaller game fish that are great for eating like tuna, Dorado, Wahoo, and yellowtail. Bring your fresh fish back to your resort’s restaurant and for a small fee they will cook your fish for dinner that evening… nothing better than fresh fish that you caught with your own hands.
What to Bring: After several margaritas the night before and an early meeting time with your captain, people will often forget the bare essentials. Here are several items that you must remember if you want the fishing trip to be fun for your group: sunscreen, sunglasses, hat, warm clothes for the early morning, camera, Dramamine for sea sickness (take one hour prior to setting sail), lunch and beer if you didn’t pay in advance for them to be included, and towel for when you get wet.
Cabo San Lucas Fishing Season: Sport fishing is great year around in Baja, but there are several months where the big prized marlins are biting. If you want to catch a blue or black marlin, your best bet is to head down sometime between June and October. View our entire Cabo San Lucas fishing calendar for a complete breakdown of what fish are biting and when. Read over our insider fishing tips to ensure a successful adventure your next time visiting Baja California.
Complete Cabo San Lucas Fishing Guide
Reviews
We had a great time! The villa was excellent & the transportation to & from airport was right on time! Perfect- we'd do it again!
Lisa F., Roseville, CA
I just wanted to take a minute to let you know how much we enjoyed our recent Cabo vacation. The Villa del Arco was just a fantastic place to get away and enjoy the awesome weather that is Cabo San Lucas. More importantly, I would like to thank you for the professional way in which you handled all of the details of this trip to make it as hassle-free as possible. Having been in the vacation reservation industry for several years, I can appreciate how many details need to be addressed to make a trip and stay a great experience. All of the information and coordination you provided was excellent. I especially appreciated the recommendations of several outstanding restaurants that turned out to be the best finds of the trip.
This also applies to the trip my son made to Cabo a few weeks before. He had never been to Cabo and absolutely loved everything about it. For a relatively inexperienced traveler, you made his trip one that he will remember for a lifetime.
Again, thank you for doing an outstanding job and providing a service that is second to none. I will certainly be a repeat customer.
Sincerely,
Wayne Hoover
Lexington, KY
Wayne Hoover, Lexington, KY
We had a wonderful time in Cabo for our honeymoon and we were very happy booking the all inclusive option. Your suggestion to visit the restaurant at Capella was excellent! We actually went there on the full moon and it was awesome.
We got caught up in the airport with our rental car. It was hard to find the company that I booked with due to the crazy rental car competitors and timeshare salesmen.
At the Del Arco we were promised half off the spa for the week if we went through a timeshare appointment. We went through the appointment and then only got 15% off which was still less than their daily specials so the timeshare appointment was a waste of 3 hours. Just some good lessons learned in case we ever decide to make it back down there!
Thank you for all of your help with our booking.
Trevor J
Trevor J., Fort Collins, CO
Your low rates surprised us (we go to Cabo often and usually use Orbitz or other such sites.) On this trip we booked through you at way lower rates and our suite had the best location of any of our trips! Thank you.
Shelley Sugar Land, TX
We had a wonderful time, Villa Del Arco is an awesome place great for children, my 1 year old granddaughter loved the water fountain pool. The 1 & 2 bedroom suites were very nice and spacious, both had great balconies with an ocean view. I would highly recommend travelers try some of the restaurants you suggested, we did and were very pleased. Everything was perfect from the ground transportation to and from the airport along with Villa Del Arco, we could not have gotten a better deal. Thanks for all of your help Bob.
Lou M., Huntsville
Hi Bob! We had a fantastic trip to Cabo. We have traveled to Cabo several times but I feel like we enjoyed this trip a lot more simply because we saved SO much money on our accommodations. The resort was wonderful. Very nice-and very clean. We enjoyed every aspect of Villa Del Arco. Thank you so much for your services!!!!
Kim B., LA
We had an amazing time in Cabo. Thank you for the recommendation for Del Arco.The penthouse fit our family of five's needs perfectly. We were close enough to all the restaurants and fun in downtown Cabo (about a $7 cab ride or 25 minute stroll down the beach) but far enough away to avoid the cruise ship scene and crowds. Having the breakfast included in our rental worked out great as they served until 12 pm, late enough for our teenagers to enjoy the full breakfast buffet each day. The snorkel trip included was perfect, we saw whales and enjoyed a day on the ocean. The snorkel spot was crowded but the kids enjoyed jumping off the rocks and the view of the arch was very nice. The airport transportation to and from the airport you arrange was perfect, even stopping at Costco on the way in for a 25 minute power shopping to stock up for the week.
Our room was spacious, clean and a great view from the huge wrap around balcony including jacuzzi with an full ocean view to watch the sunsets. There were a few issue with jacuzzi and showers but maintenance showed up immediately to fix any issue. The spa at Del Arco is very nice and the massage rooms are wonderful. I've had many massages and the neck, back and shoulder massage I received was one of the best ever.
Thank you for your help in planning this trip. We had a great time!
Karen Schultz, Atherton, CA
I just wanted to drop you a quick email to let you know we had a wonderful time in Cabo. Villa Del Arco was beautiful and we could not have asked for a better room or room location. I also wanted to thank you for quickly taking care of the small snag for us at check in so quickly. I was starting to sweat it but it turned out seamless. Our kids want to go again next year, so I am be contacting you sometime in the future.
What we loved:
- Beautiful resort, excellent location, wonderful suite, good price, great amenities
- The food was AMAZING, especially the sushi; seriously, some of the best food I've ever had in my whole life
- Bob, you were a pleasure to work with
Molly B, Redmond, WA
I just wanted to say that I had the best time at the Villa del Arco. I took my daughter for a graduation present and loved every second of it. The staff were all very helpful and Esteban at the poolside really helped to make us feel welcome and looked after. See you next year!
Irene
Your low rates surprised us. (We go to Cabo often and like to stay at Villa del Palmar.) On this trip that we booked through you, our suite had the best location of any of our trips! Thank you.
Shelley Richey, Sugarland Texas