Captain
John Hangodi

Member since July 2014 Cairns, Australia
Background
Captain John Hangodi has 35 years of international guiding experience, including 15 years as partner at renowned Knight Inlet Salmon Lodge in B.C. Canada. Today, he's swapped the Pacific and the West Coast rivers for the peaceful estuary of Cairns and has been operating Paradise Sportfishing for 20 years.
Techniques
On a charter with Paradise Sportfishing we specialise in live bait. Each charter commences with John or his assistant guide throwing the cast net in search of Herring,Sardines,Prawns or Mullet. Sometimes it only takes a couple throws to get enough ''livies'' to last the morning. Then it's time to anchor up on a wreck,snag,drain or rubble patch and put the live baits down. Simple but most effective gear: single hook and sliding sinker. Let your bait hit the bottom and.......WAIT!!

Hey, I'm Captain John Hangodi

Cairns, Australia
Background
Captain John Hangodi has 35 years of international guiding experience, including 15 years as partner at renowned Knight Inlet Salmon Lodge in B.C. Canada. Today, he's swapped the Pacific and the West Coast rivers for the peaceful estuary of Cairns and has been operating Paradise Sportfishing for 20 years.
Techniques
On a charter with Paradise Sportfishing we specialise in live bait. Each charter commences with John or his assistant guide throwing the cast net in search of Herring,Sardines,Prawns or Mullet. Sometimes it only takes a couple throws to get enough ''livies'' to last the morning. Then it's time to anchor up on a wreck,snag,drain or rubble patch and put the live baits down. Simple but most effective gear: single hook and sliding sinker. Let your bait hit the bottom and.......WAIT!!

My Charter Listing

Excellent
4.5 / 5
(271 reviews)
Cairns
 2 bookings in the past week.
Trips from US $106

Fishing Reports

Customer reviews

Rating summary
Excellent
4.5 / 5
out of 5 stars from 271 reviews
Boat
Excellent
4.5 / 5
Crew
Excellent
4.7 / 5
Experience
Excellent
4.3 / 5
Photos & videos by reviewers (106)
captain was a legend
Perfect day!
Perfect day!
+103
Angler rating
173
65
18
6
1
Anglers claimed
Good experience
84%
Friendly captain
98%
Recommend this charter
86%
Appropriate for children
93%
Satisfied with the boat
97%
Caught fish
61%
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Featured  
Showing:
5 of 271 reviews
Andreas F.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Perfect day!

VERIFIED   Half Day Trip (AM) โ€“ Shared on November 17, 2025
Perfect half day fishing trip with the fantastic captain John! captain John is just a great guy with lots of experience...
Andreas F. recommends Paradise Sportfishing Adventures
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Andreas F. recommends Paradise Sportfishing Adventures
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Nichole L.
Excellent
4.3 / 5
Experience:
Very good
4.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Very good
4.0 / 5
Overall

Great for Inexperienced Anglers

VERIFIED   Full Day Trip โ€“ Private on December 25, 2025
We caught a lot of fish species on this charter, Capt Burn did great catching live bait, which definitely helped with catching...
Nichole L. recommends Paradise Sportfishing Adventures
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Brett F.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Captain was a legend

VERIFIED   Half Day Trip (AM) โ€“ Shared on January 6, 2026
captain went out before out charter started and picked up a ton of live prawns which was what i caught my first ever barra...
Brett F. recommends Paradise Sportfishing Adventures
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Brett F. recommends Paradise Sportfishing Adventures
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Carly W.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Great service and lovely Skipper

VERIFIED   Half Day Trip (AM) โ€“ Shared on August 18, 2025
Thanks for getting us in last minute when it didnโ€™t work out with another boat. For the short time frame, our Skipper...
Carly W. recommends Paradise Sportfishing Adventures
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Carly W. recommends Paradise Sportfishing Adventures
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Steve R.
Excellent
4.7 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Very good
4.0 / 5
Overall

Half day

VERIFIED   NEW  Half Day Trip (AM) โ€“ Shared on February 16, 2026
skipper was great easy going and very helpful. Trying to catch live bait with minimal success took time away from actually...
Steve R. recommends Paradise Sportfishing Adventures
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Steve R. recommends Paradise Sportfishing Adventures
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