Fishing with Captain Ben ( of Captain Jay’s Charter 2) is one of the highlights we’ve ever experienced in any of our family vacations . He specializes in fishing in the Gulf side of Marathon Keys which is ideal for families with children (our teenage girls) because the waters aren’t as choppy or deep , as it could be while fishing in the Atlantic Ocean side.
    He is genuinely personable, professional, and attentive. I’ve fished on charters from Hawaii to Hilton Head , and , I now realize that I feel like they were just going through the motions. FIshing with Capt. Ben feels like I was fishing with one of my friends.  He switched spots when the fishing slowed down when he could’ve stayed within a 50 yard radius to save gas and blame the slow fishing on the hot weather. He wasn’t afraid to switch to several (more expensive) baits to put us on the fish when he could’ve saved money and use cheaper versions while telling us it won’t matter since the fish stopped biting because of an upcoming tropical storm.  This actually happened to us !
    When Capt. Ben couldn’t find the Yellowtail Snappers, he never made such excuses. He worked hard to help us LIMIT OUT on decent size Mangrove snappers which , in my opinion, are more delicious ! He expertly filleted the twenty fish we were allowed to keep and recommended to us that we can bring our catch to certain restaurants in the area and cook it for us ( we highly recommend blackened ) ! I usually don’t enjoy writing reviews , but this one time I feel that this review is well deserved.

This is a very small company that delivers.  The captain, Kerry, was amazing with my 9 and 10 yo boys that were more than a little rambunctious.  We caught fish immediately, within seconds of putting the rods in the water.  The only time we didn’t have a fish on the line was when we were getting new bait.  We hit our catch limit within the first hour and enjoyed catch and release for the rest of the trip.  As a Mom, I was able to relax and enjoy my family.  Kerry did EVERYTHING, including cleaning the fish and helping untangle gear when a child accidentally got the strings caught.  Will recommend to family and friends!

My husband Loves to fish, whereas our two teen daughters and I were looking forward to a family outing that dad would enjoy but had low expectations.  However, we were surprised because we all had so much fun.  Brice made the experience fun for novices and experts alike.  We caught about 20 fish in 4 hours which included lots of laughter and races to see if dad vs girls would win. When we got to the dock he fileted them and told us local restaurants where they would cook our catch for us, which was unexpected.  What a great day! After the girls asked to do a second day tomorrow, but sadly they were booked.  I Definitely recommend…..you will not be disappointed!

Captain Ben could not have been nicer to me and my sons. We are novice fishermen, but Captain Ben and First Mate Tony were so knowledgeable that it made it easy for us. They gave us great instruction and were very patient with us. We caught a lot of fish using different techniques and equipment. Everything was expertly cleaned and filleted. One of the local restaurants cooked up our catch, and I am not exaggerating. It was the absolute best meal that we had in the Keys (and we have had some great ones).  If you get a chance, book a trip with Captain Jay charters and ask for Captain Ben.