Fishing techniques

Every listing on Reelzy says how the captain fishes: trolling, jigging, bottom fishing and so on. The method decides more about your day than the boat does. It sets how busy your hands are, how hard the fish pull and how much luck is involved. Here is what each one means on the water, and where the boats on Reelzy use it. Each technique has its own page with the boats that offer it.

Trolling

The boat moves at a steady speed and pulls lures or baits behind it, usually several rods at once, while the crew watches them. When a fish takes, someone shouts and the rod is handed to you. It is the standard way to fish open water for marlin, sailfish, tuna, wahoo and mahi mahi, and it is how most of the big game boats in Mauritius spend the morning. Expect quiet spells between bites. See trolling charters.

Bottom fishing

A weighted rig with bait goes down to the seabed, at anchor or on the drift, and you wait for the knock. It is relaxed, good for children and first timers, and it fills the cool box: bream, snapper, grouper, cod, whiting and conger, depending on where you are. The boats in Kent, Ramsgate, Plymouth and East Sussex, in Malta and in Gran Canaria fish this way. See bottom fishing charters.

Drift fishing

The engine goes off and the boat drifts with the wind and current, so your bait or lure moves naturally over the ground. Skippers drift over wrecks, reefs and banks, and it is often how bottom fishing and light jigging are done. See drift fishing charters.

Jigging

You drop a metal lure, the jig, to the depth where the fish are and work it back up with sharp lifts of the rod. It is active and tiring, and it catches the hard pulling reef predators: amberjack in Malta, trevally and grouper in the Indian Ocean, tuna when they are deep. See jigging charters.

Slow pitch jigging

A gentler form of jigging with a lighter, flatter jig that flutters as it falls. Short lifts and a slow rhythm make it less tiring, and it is good for fish holding close to the bottom. Several boats in Malta, Gibraltar, Cádiz and Mauritius offer it. See slow pitch jigging charters.

Popping

You cast a big floating lure, the popper, and rip it back across the surface so it splashes and spits. Predators smash it in full view, which is why people love it. It is hard on the arms and is mostly used for giant trevally and tuna, from Mauritius, the Seychelles and the Maldives. See popping charters.

Live baiting

The crew catches small fish first and puts them out alive on a hook, drifting or slow trolling. A live bait in front of a big fish is hard for it to refuse, so it is a favourite for tuna, amberjack and marlin, for example on the tuna boats in Malta. See live baiting charters.

Kite fishing

A fishing kite flown from the boat holds the bait right at the surface, away from the boat and with no line in the water for the fish to see. It is a Florida method for sailfish, and the Palm Beach boats use it. See kite fishing charters.

Light tackle

Lighter rods, reels and lines, so even a modest fish gives a proper fight. It suits inshore and reef fishing, mixed groups and anyone who wants to feel the fish rather than winch it in. See light tackle charters.

Heavy tackle

Strong rods and big reels for fish that can take a lot of line: marlin, big tuna, sharks and swordfish. Often fished from a fighting chair or with a harness. See heavy tackle charters.

Deep sea fishing

A general name for fishing offshore in deep water rather than close to the coast. On the boat it usually means trolling, jigging or deep bottom fishing, so check which methods the listing names. See deep sea fishing charters.

Spinning

Casting a lure with a spinning reel and winding it back. It is easy to learn, it is how the bass boat in Kent fishes, and it is a common way to work a reef edge for small game. See spinning charters.

Fly fishing

A light artificial fly cast with a weighted line and a long rod. At sea it is a specialist game. A few boats offer it, in Marbella, in Ramsgate and in the Florida backcountry. See fly fishing charters.

Spearfishing

Hunting fish underwater with a speargun while snorkelling or freediving. It needs real diving skills, and local rules on where and what you may shoot apply. One boat in the Maldives offers it. See spearfishing charters.

Other methods

Bow fishing, flounder gigging, handlining and ice fishing are fishing methods too, but no boat on Reelzy offers them at the moment. If you are not sure which method suits your group, ask the captain from the listing page before you book: say who is coming and what you hope to catch, and they will tell you what the day will look like. Types of fishing explains the kinds of water the trips go to, from reefs and wrecks to offshore.