Captain
Derek Gerritsen

Member since November 2017 Paihia, New Zealand
Background
Captain Derek runs fishing trips around the rich waters of the Bay of Islands. His vast experience in the area will be of great help if you want to land a memorable catch here and enjoy your day on the water. Derek grew up in Paihia and got into fishing at an early age. He fished for Marlin while he was still in school. He spent a great deal of his childhood going rock fishing and diving. He also worked as a guide. Capt. Derek worked for a decade for the second oldest gamefish club in the world - Bay of Islands Swordfish Club. His skills took him to the management level. Derek knows a lot about the local fishing grounds. He has fished around the world, landing Mahi, Wahoo, Tuna, Marlin, and more during the years. From Hawaii to the Great Barrier Reef, he's fished with success. Add to the years of experience of crewing on many well-known vessels around the Bay of Islands, and you'll understand why so many repeat customers come onboard with Capt. Derek.
Techniques
I prefer fishing with the freshest bait I can as I mainly live bait or stray-line for big snapper and kingfish. I also love soft baiting the reefs and islands hunting that big bite and jigging the depths out wider for that reel screaming kingy bite

Hey, I'm Captain Derek Gerritsen

Paihia, New Zealand
Background
Captain Derek runs fishing trips around the rich waters of the Bay of Islands. His vast experience in the area will be of great help if you want to land a memorable catch here and enjoy your day on the water. Derek grew up in Paihia and got into fishing at an early age. He fished for Marlin while he was still in school. He spent a great deal of his childhood going rock fishing and diving. He also worked as a guide. Capt. Derek worked for a decade for the second oldest gamefish club in the world - Bay of Islands Swordfish Club. His skills took him to the management level. Derek knows a lot about the local fishing grounds. He has fished around the world, landing Mahi, Wahoo, Tuna, Marlin, and more during the years. From Hawaii to the Great Barrier Reef, he's fished with success. Add to the years of experience of crewing on many well-known vessels around the Bay of Islands, and you'll understand why so many repeat customers come onboard with Capt. Derek.
Techniques
I prefer fishing with the freshest bait I can as I mainly live bait or stray-line for big snapper and kingfish. I also love soft baiting the reefs and islands hunting that big bite and jigging the depths out wider for that reel screaming kingy bite
Verified

My Charter Listing

Excellent
4.9 / 5
(149 reviews)
Paihia
 3 bookings in the past week.
 Instant Confirmation
Trips from US $476

Customer reviews

Rating summary
Excellent
4.9 / 5
out of 5 stars from 149 reviews
Boat
Excellent
4.9 / 5
Crew
Excellent
4.9 / 5
Experience
Excellent
4.8 / 5
Photos & videos by reviewers (130)
Bay of Islands Fishing Trip
Bay of Islands Fishing Trip
Bay of Islands Fishing Trip
+127
Angler rating
135
11
2
0
0
Anglers claimed
Good experience
99%
Friendly captain
100%
Recommend this charter
98%
Appropriate for children
89%
Satisfied with the boat
100%
Caught fish
94%
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Showing:
5 of 149 reviews
Helen S.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Great day!

VERIFIED   6 Hour Trip โ€“ VIP Fishing (max two) on May 4, 2026
What a great day out on the water! From start to finish, this fishing trip was absolutely top-notch. The weather conditions...
Helen S. recommends Big Fish Bay Of Islands
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Helen S. recommends Big Fish Bay Of Islands
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Kevin N.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall
Our experience fishing with Captain Derek in the Bay of Islands was absolutely incredible and easily the highlight of our trip...
Kevin N. recommends Big Fish Bay Of Islands
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Demi R. L.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Bay of Islands Fishing Trip

VERIFIED   6 Hour Trip โ€“ VIP Fishing (max two) on July 22, 2026
Captain Derek took care of us the whole 6 hour trip. Within 15 minutes he had us hooked on bait fish. We snagged a couple of...
Demi R. L. recommends Big Fish Bay Of Islands
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Demi R. L. recommends Big Fish Bay Of Islands
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Theo E.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Outstanding - Best charter by a mile

VERIFIED   6 Hour Trip โ€“ VIP Fishing (max two) on February 17, 2026
Derek was absolutely brilliant, went out catching bait fish within seconds were on, within 20 minutes had caught almost 50...
Theo E. recommends Big Fish Bay Of Islands
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1 person finds this review helpful
You and 1 other person found this review helpful
Theo E. recommends Big Fish Bay Of Islands
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1 person finds this review helpful
You and 1 other person found this review helpful

Layne S.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Snapper worthy

VERIFIED   NEW  4 Hour Trip โ€“ Half Day Snapper on August 21, 2026
Beautiful morning, kingi and snapper landed including my largest snapper yet! Derek runs a slick operation, weโ€™ll be...
Layne S. recommends Big Fish Bay Of Islands
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Layne S. recommends Big Fish Bay Of Islands
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