When going on a fishing trip it is common to plan every detail of the trip in advance and to make sure that the tours and tour guides are booked and verified long before one goes on that trip. But what is the best way to find a good fishing guide and a good fishing experience if one simply decide one day that one want to spend on day of the vacation fishing. This is the question we are going to try to answer in this article. How to find the best fishing guide on every destination every time.

If you arrive at a destination and decide you want to go fishing you should start the work of finding a tour operator as soon as possible. The sooner you do the better chance their will be that the best guide will be able to fit you into his schedule and the better chance that you get a perfect fishing experience. Last minute tours might also turn out magically but having time on your side is always a plus.

The first step to finding a good fishing guide is to identify yours needs. What type of fishing to you want to do. The best freshwater guide might not be the best saltwater guide. The best boat to rent to go sailfish fishing might be unnecessary expensive if you just want to go out and catch some snapper. You also need to consider the local language and whether you speak it and can you use a local guide or if you need an English speaking guide. If you speak the local language their will usually be a lot more options available.

Once you have identified your needs it is time to find a tour. The best thing to do is often to go to a local bar where expats hang around. They usually fish and know the best guides. Avoid people who works as guide themselves or that want to bring you to a friend. They are doing themselves or their friend a favor, not you. People that recommend a third party is a lot more reliable. If you talk to a few expats you will usually soon know who is the best and who is the cheapest. It is usually best to visit the expat bars at night as you will find the highest number of expats in them then. When you have the information you can go talk to the guide of your choosing in the morning and see if he will be able to go out with you. It is always good to have one back up name in case the first one is booked. Make sure that you tell the guide exactly what you want right from the start so there are no confusions and so that he can plan a good fishing trip for you. Some guides will ask you to pay in advance other let you pay when you get back. Generally speaking we recommend that you do not pay the full amount up front although paying a part as deposit is often advisable.

If you are in a place where there are no busy expat bars, or if the expats are not able to give you any good information than it is time to start talking to the locals. They will likely know someone although by talking to the locals you are more likely the get a cousin of the person you asked that is a fisherman rather than the best fishing guide. In small beach communities it is not uncommon that there are no fishing guides and in these communities the best option is usually to go out with a local fisherman. You will find fishermen in basically every beach village in the world.