An award-winning tourist destination and nicknamed ‘The Sunset Capital of Florida’, St. Pete Beach is a coastal city located in Pinellas County. Set on a barrier island, the city boasts a scenic seaside location and multiple natural and recreational offerings to tourists. Anglers can consider the city as a premier destination as it provides diverse and stunning fishing experiences with its local waters abundant with game.
Because of its prime location and sunny climate, St. Pete Beach is a great resort city where you can either opt for a relaxing time or seek thrilling experiences. In 2021, the city was named the number one beach in the US because of its white sands, emerald green waters, exceptional accommodations, and laid-back atmosphere. It’s also ranked the fifth top beach in the world. You can also visit the downtown area where you can eat fresh and local offerings at restaurants, go to bars, go shopping and even explore the historic district.
St. Pete Beach can be an angler’s paradise as you’ll never have a hard time finding great fishing spots, with piers, bays, and the Gulf of Mexico easily within reach.
St. Pete Beach has got you covered whether you want to fish inshore, nearshore, offshore or even go deep sea fishing. Whether you’re angling to unwind or experience action-packed battles with your catches, the city is an idyllic spot that would satisfy both ends.
If you want to test out or hone your surf casting skills, a great place to fish is at Pass-a-Grille Beach. You can catch species like big snook, pompano, redfish and flounder from the shore. You can also access the Gulf of Mexico from there where you can hook fish like kingfish, sharks, mahi mahi and tuna. Near the shoreline, you can nab Key West grunts and small grouper. Big mangrove and American red snapper, and red, gag and scamp grouper can be found in ledges and rock piles. On the southwest tip of the beach at the jetty, one can find snook, sheepshead, snapper, Spanish mackerel and other predators. On the beach’s east side, there is a seawall where lots of trout, mackerel, and sheepshead gather. At the beach, anglers can baitcast, spin or tackle fish for grouper and big snook from Merry Pier.
The Gulf Pier in Fort De Soto Park is another great fishing spot where you can hook pompano, mackerel, permit, and ladyfish. If you want to do some wade fishing, go to Fred Howard Park and land gamefish like tarpon, redfish, snook and trout without leaving the shore. Sunshine Skyway Fishing Pier is where you can enjoy not only fishing for tarpon, kingfish, Spanish mackerel and grouper, but also do some sightseeing as it provides magnificent views of the sunrise and sunset.
Weedon Island Preserve is a great place for kayak fishing but you can fish from its maze of mangrove-lined waterways and shallow waters overrun with oyster bars and still have a fruitful experience. The preserve, which mixes the beauty of nature with historical significance, is frequented by fish like trout, Spanish mackerel, and ladyfish. If you want to see dolphins jumping from the water, go to Upham Beach where you can catch snook, tarpon, mackerel, redfish, trout, and flounder.
It’s not hard to find great places to fish at St. Pete Beach as it’s peppered with several fishing piers such as 11th Ave Pier and 1st Ave Pier. The city also has many boat ramps and boat launching areas including the Don CeSar Boat Ramp and Egan Park Boat Ramp. Local waters also house cobia, tripletail, hogfish, porgy, mutton snapper, lane snapper, vermilion snapper, yellowtail, wahoo, and blue marlin. You can also troll or bottom fish for mahi mahi, sailfish, and blackfin tuna offshore.
Being named the number one beach in the US in 2021 and the fifth top beach in the world, it would be amiss if you don’t go visit St. Pete Beach and enjoy its natural and recreational tenders. Go beach bumming at Pass-a-Grille Beach and witness the stunning sunrise or sunset views or spend time with your loved ones at Upham Beach and even visit its Secret Garden. Water sport activities like surfing, kiteboarding, windsurfing, parasailing, and stand-up paddleboarding can also be done at the beaches.
If you want to tap into your competitive spirit as an angler, you can sign up for the Fall King of the Beach or the Spring King of the Beach Fishing Tournaments held at Madeira Beach every year. Young anglers can also take part in the Kids Fishing Slam. You can also sign up for the world’s largest spearfishing tournament, the St. Pete Open, which is held during the summer.