Turks and Caicos Shared Fishing Charters
Want to reel in snapper, grouper, triggerfish, and jacks on your vacation to the Turks and Caicos? A shared fishing charter is a great way to explore the local fishing grounds and meet other hobby fisherfolk and travelers visiting the islands.
Not only do shared fishing charters visit many of the same sites that private excursions do, but they are a more cost-effective option. Private fishing charters start at around $1,500 for a half-day excursion, whereas a shared fishing charter can cost about $300 per person (2024 price). This is particularly ideal for beginners, who may not want or need to spend a large amount of money on a private charter to go fishing in the islands.
Seaside Tours is currently the only company on Providenciales offering shared fishing charters. It runs a half-day excursion once a week on Wednesdays at 9:00 AM, returning at 1:00 PM. The company requires a minimum of four people to depart, with a maximum of six passengers.
Good fishing grounds are located just a short cruise from the dock, meaning you’ll spend more time fishing and less time commuting than you might at similar vacation destinations. At this time, there are no companies that offer shared fishing charters for deep sea fishing and bonefishing.
To fish in the Turks and Caicos Islands, you must first obtain a fishing license. While the boat typically organizes the license for you as a paying customer, this is not always the case. For more information on fishing and obtaining licenses, see Fishing.
Head Boat Fishing
The Turks and Caicos does not have any large head boat fishing options. However, some charters with smaller boats operate in a similar way, with everyone casting a line at the same time over rock and reef formations.
Fishing Locations
Fishing locations can vary day-to-day, depending on the conditions and the company’s preferred spots, but reef and bottom fishing—as the name would suggest—generally takes place around the barrier reef off Providenciales.
Half-day shared fishing charters will take you to a few different spots throughout the morning, though if the fishing is great where you’ve anchored, you may want to stay there longer. Note that, unlike private charters, you might not have your say in where a shared fishing charter takes you (you can certainly ask, but it may be put to a group vote).
Reef and bottom fishing charters on Providenciales take place on both the north and south coasts of Providenciales. Seaside Tours’ half-day shared fishing charters depart from the South Bank Marina in Long Bay.
What You Can Catch
Reef and bottom fishing is a great type of fishing for beginners and kids to start with, given that the size of the catch is much smaller than what you would reel in on a deep sea excursion and is more manageable to bring in to the boat. Snapper, grouper, barracuda, red hind (strawberry grouper), jacks, ocean triggerfish, queen triggerfish, margate, and yellowtails are common catches. You may also catch kingfish (Spanish mackerel) or cero, if you’re lucky.
Many of the fish you can catch on reef and bottom fishing trips are edible. Typically, the crew will clean any edible fish you catch for you, though if you’d prefer to clean your fish yourself, you can. It’s rare to go reef and bottom fishing in Turks and Caicos and not catch anything.
