Guardian Charters

4.8/5 (54 reviews)

955 Harbor Island Drive, San Diego, CA 92101, United States–

Guardian Charters

4.8/5 (54 reviews)

955 Harbor Island Drive

San Diego, CA, United States

Trips & prices Targeted species Boat info What's biting What's included Contact captain

Trips & prices What's included Targeted species Boat info Reviews Contact captain

Fish Guardian Charters and have a memorable time on the water with one of San Diego’s best fishing charters! Taking pride in customer service, Captain Sam Skinner and his crew will do everything to put you on the fish and provide an enjoyable trip. Whether you’re a seasoned angler or just a beginner, they want you to have the best experience while on the water with them.

Depending on the duration of the charter, we can fish for Bluefin and Yellowfin Tuna, Yellowtail, Mahi Mahi, Rockfish, Spotted Seabass, and Halibut. Feel free to keep your catch if you want to. The captain welcomes kids aboard that are 12 or older.

The captain’s 2022 29' Defiance is an offshore sport fishing boat built for luxury, speed, and function. She is equipped with the Seakeeper Ride system making it the smoothest riding pilot house on the West Coast! This system eliminates 80% of roll and bow slap while running at speed. Powered by twin 300 HP Yamaha four-stroke outboards, she can easily cruise at 30 knots getting us to the fishing grounds fast. She is fully equipped with a 110 gal bait tank, state-of-the-art Simrad electronics, and a stereo system.

All charters include the use of rods and reels, tackle, bottled water, live bait, fish iced immediately, cleaned, and bagged. We have spearfishing equipment as well.

A California Fishing License is required for fishing in US Waters and a Passport for the Coronado Islands charters.

Ready to go fishing? Pick your day and hop aboard, Guardian Charters is waiting for you!

Customer reviews

Rating summary

4.8/5

out of 5 stars from 54 reviews

See details

Boat

4.8/5

Crew

4.8/5

Experience

4.7/5

Photos & videos by reviewers (75)

Solid captain - solid deckhand - solid boat!

+72

Anglers claimed

Good experience

87%

Appropriate for children

92%

Friendly captain

100%

Satisfied with the boat

95%

Recommend this charter

91%

Caught fish

88%

Showing 1 - 5 of 54 reviews

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Showing: 5 of 54 reviews

Michael Campbell

5.0

Verified

awesome boat and crew

12 Hour Trip – Coronado Islands on September 23, 2025 • 3 adults

I’m a local thats fished my adult life in San Diego. Brought my friends from the midwest for their first time ocean fishing. Great communication from Sam to start with. the Islands blew out with the storm, he called and said offshore wouod be better. Got to the dock, easy instructions. Clean boat/good equipment. Sam and his deckhand Kai worked tgeir tails off the whole day. put us on the fish three times. My buddy caught his first bluefin ever. Hooked up a 120lb bluefin that kicked out butt for 3 hours. Sam worked that whole three hours maneuvering the boat, putting us in the best possible position to land the fish. I will 100% be booking with Sam again. Great boat, even better crew, positive attitudes. Thabk you Sam and Kai

Hector Agdeppa

5.0

Verified

Book your next trip with Capt. Sam and Crew

3/4 Day - Coronado Islands on June 8, 2025 • 5 adults

My family and I had an amazing time. First, Capt. Sam is easy to communicate with and answered all my messages within minutes. The boat is super clean and tidy, and they have really nice gear to use if you don’t have your own Seeker rods and Shimano/Penn reels). Second, Capt. Sam got us on fish and was flexible depending on what we wanted to do. My middle son pulled up a bucket list fish - big ol’ black sea bass (in MX). Lastly, Capt. Sam and the crew were so polite, helpful, and accommodating. One of the deckhands paid special attention to our youngest - making sure he was doing things right, getting him out of tangles/trouble, always asking/making sure he was having a fun time. You have lots of choices - mine will now always be Guardian Charters.

Christian Talavera

5.0

Verified

An amazing crew!

3/4 Day - Coronado Islands on October 4, 2025 • 5 adults

Sam and Kai are awesome, they worked hard to get us on the fish and were patient with our inexperienced anglers. This is my second time on the water with them, I’ve also gone on large boats and there is just no comparison with the level of attention, flexibility, and fun we had on the water. They make it feel like you're out fishing with friends and you can tell they themselves really want you to land the fish, they go above and beyond to get you the fish. I’m excited to go on another charter with San and Kai, I highly recommend them.

Reported catch:

Andrew Kelly

4.7

Verified

Sam and Kai are awesome!

9 Hour Trip – Offshore Fishing on July 7, 2025 • 4 adults

This trip was a true bucket list for me. We booked last minute in hopes to have my Dad and my Adult kids catching fish that make a true memory! Sam was open and honest saying it was going to be very bumpy due to weather. We are familiar with SoCal boating and we were fine with the adventure. Sam made a very bumpy ocean almost comfortable even for my 76 yr old Dad. (But like I said we are used to SoCal waters) Sam and Kai are great dudes and fish their A$@@ off. They put us on Bluefin and Yellowtail and if we were better fisherman we would have done even better!! They kept us on the water longer than we deserved and even tried hard after our time was up. Totally above and beyond! The boat is a purposeful fish killer! They cleaned all the fish and I would 100% fish with these guys anytime!

Reported catch:

Tim Rutti

5.0

Verified

Solid captain - solid deckhand - solid boat!

9 Hour Trip – Offshore Fishing on August 31, 2025 • 4 adults

Great day with Sam and Kai, but the bluefin weren’t cooperating despite schools of tuna, bait balls, dolphins, and whales all day. Still, managed to land a 25lb bluefin! Will be back, these guys were relentless to get us in the fish, stayed longer just trying to get that next bendo. Clean and comfortable boat too!

Reported catch:

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November 2025

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2 adults • 0 children

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4 Hour Trip – San Diego Bay