Sport Fishing - A Real Whopper of a Fish Tale Come True

With over 84 International Game Fishing Association (IGFA) world records to its name, Costa Rica is quickly becoming the destination of choice among serious sports fishermen. Mineral rich rivers flowing down from the mountains provide for a constant population of bait fish which attract the bigger game fish, rocky shorelines and islands make the for the perfect hiding place for rooster fish and wahoo, and the nearly always calm Pacific Ocean is home to some of the largest numbers of billfish anywhere. The world record tarpon, abundant billfish, and year round excellent inshore fishing have also drawn the attention of countless sport fishing magazines, outdoor shows, and even ESPN. When you combine its natural beauty, perfect fishing conditions and booming tourism industry, it’s easy to understand why Costa Rica is known as a fisherman’s paradise. On any given day you can catch and eat the bass you caught at Lake Arenal, fight 50+ pound rooster fish, battle a 300 pound tuna, or raise at least 10 sailfish! Now if that’s not heaven on earth for the serious fishermen out there – we don’t know what is!

The country's Pacific ports and beach resorts provide access to some the best deep sea fishing in the world. Though deep sea fishing is the country's forte, there is also great fresh water fishing in Lake Arenal and the larger rivers in the Northern Zone, where anglers can fight with the small but ornery guapote, a hump-backed fish also known as the rainbow bass. Giant marlin, sailfish beyond number, high-jumping tarpon, record class snook and a dozen or more hard hitting fresh water species...Costa Rica has them all! Fishing just doesn't get any better than you will find in friendly, peaceful Costa Rica, and because this is a small and very accessible country, it's possible to enjoy it all on a single visit, perhaps with a day of white water rafting and a volcano and rainforest tour thrown in.

Billfish are the country's biggest attractions, with abundant sailfish and marlin off the Pacific coast, where it's not uncommon to release a dozen or more sails and even a marlin or two in a single day, and not unusual to release more than 30 sailfish a day. Costa Rica boat operators release all billfish that are not record contenders, so the future of the resource is assured. Marlin fishing in Costa Rica is in a class all by itself. Costa Rica marlin fishing charters attract a special class of angler that thrives on the thrill of the hunt for this magnificent billfish. The anticipation of the knock down, and then the hook-up is when the heart and adrenaline start pumping. Then you're ready to test your fighting skills against the awesome Pacific blue marlin. The challenge is to get him to the boat before he jumps, shakes, or flips his way to freedom. A successful battle with a powerful blue marlin makes for the best vacation pictures and fish stories to take back home. Are you up to the challenge?

Combine Costa Rica sport fishing, known as some of the best in the world, with the natural beauty of the rainforest and you have a recipe for a fishing vacation in paradise.