Book a longer trip so you can go out farther. Dress warm in layers if your going early

The seasoned angler may be disappointed with the lack of “hands on” fishing

Last year I fished the bay and got skunked. It is definitely worth the extra time and money to fish the blue water.

We had a great day on the water! Everything was perfect!

Pangas are great for 2 on in-shore, close-in fishing. If you're after bigger game fish, charter a bigger, faster (yes more expensive) boat.

I was told by the deckhand for the best chance at larger species like Mahi, Tuna, Marlin, etc. to book a longer 10 -12 hour trip. 6 hour trips only go 18-20 miles out and the longer trips go 40 miles plus. Was also told that November and December are the best months at larger species around the Bay for shorter trips. I mention this as something to consider if booking, just depends how long you want to fish and dedication to fishing as it relates to the rest of your party. My friend and I only booked the 6 hour because our wives came along and fishing was not their primary focus of this vacation. One item to note: bring cash with you to pay for the balance of the charter in the morning, our friends thought they would be able to use a card to pay and ended up having to go to an ATM to get cash which cut into our primetime early morning fishing. Also, bring food or snacks if your group needs breakfast, the boat will stop at a dockside restaurant if you want it to and our group had some breakfast burritos delivered to the boat. We thought there would be stores and restaurants open by the marina that we could stop at before getting on the boat. I'm not sure what time these businesses open but at 6:30 AM and even after 7:00 AM marina was still a ghost town with nothing open.

Be ready to catch lots of Bonita on a short trip

If you're planning on fishing around the Marietas area, they're closed on Monday from any type of tourism.