Planning a fishing morning
Your First Catch on a Side Fishing Boat: What a Beginner Can Expect
You can step aboard a fishing boat having never baited a hook. This is the morning seen through their eyes: what you are shown, what you do, and what you can honestly hope for.
Short answer
As a beginner, you need no experience and no equipment: rods, lines and fresh bait are supplied, and the captain walks you through hooking bait, letting the line down and winding up a fish, then deals with whatever you land. Red mullet, sea bass, sea bream and shrimp are common, with small colourful species and sometimes a larger fish, but no catch is ever promised. The pleasure lies as much in learning as in landing.
Before the first cast
The morning begins with a hotel pickup, its exact minute messaged to you the evening ahead, and the boat leaves at 07:00. Once the boat is out and anchored over the fishing ground, the captain hands out rods and shares the bait. This is the moment to say you have never done this before. Nobody minds, and it means the captain will show you from the very beginning.
Our rods, tackle and bait guide explains what is supplied, in case you are wondering whether to bring anything. You do not need to.
What the captain shows you
- Baiting the hook — how much bait to use and how to fix it so it stays on.
- Letting the line down — how to drop it, and how to tell when it has reached where it should be.
- Feeling for a bite — the difference between a fish and the boat's own movement.
- Reeling in — lifting the rod and reeling in steadily, without jerking.
- Handling the fish — the captain takes it off the hook for you.
The first bite
It often feels less dramatic than you imagine: a tap, a twitch, a small heaviness at the end of the line. Beginners sometimes reel in too early or too late, and that is part of learning. The captain is on hand to tell you when to lift and how fast to wind.
When something does come up, it is most likely to be one of the regulars of these waters — a red mullet, a sea bass, a sea bream, a shrimp — or one of the small, brightly coloured species that delight children and adults alike. Now and then, someone feels a much heavier pull. The what fish can you catch guide describes each of them.
An honest word about expectations
These are wild fish in the open sea. Some mornings the bites come quickly; on others the line is quieter. We do not promise a catch, a number or a size, and we would rather you came with curiosity than with a target. What is certain is the equipment, the bait, the captain's help and a morning on the water; food is not part of it, so bring your own.
If you are anxious about being on a boat, tell us before you book; the captain decides on the day. The beginners' guide covers the rest of what a first-timer might want to know.
Booking your first fishing morning
The shared morning costs €45 per person, the same for every age, plus the €5 sea fee per person in cash on the boat. The boat is out from 07:00 to 12:30, 5.5 hours on the water, and the transfer then takes you to your hotel. Nothing is paid online: the fare is due in euros on the day, and free cancellation is possible until 48 hours before.
Reserve on the deep-sea fishing trip page, from tomorrow onwards.
Side Deep-Sea Fishing Trip: prices, what is included, and booking