Book Your Fishing Charter in Ventura, CA

Book a fishing trip in the beautiful beach city of Ventura, CA where you can fish both Northern and Southern California waters.

Book Your Fishing Charter in Ventura, CA
Book Your Fishing Charter in Ventura, CA
Team Guidesly

February 10, 2022, 2 min read

Updated on June 19, 2023

copyCopy Link
copyCopy Link

Enjoy mild summers and 300 days of sunshine in Ventura, one of California’s most popular beach cities on the Pacific Coast. As a family-friendly and pet-friendly destination, Ventura is filled with all that you can expect from a California beach city — a stunning harbor, a nice fishing pier, a fun downtown, waves that surfers adore, and sunsets overlooking the ocean.

But Ventura is more than just a fun beach town. It is home to North America’s Galapagos, Channel Islands National Park, and Marine Sanctuary, one of the least visited national parks in the country but one of its most pristine and beautiful. And because of its location smack dab in the middle of Southern and Northern California, it’s a great place to experience the fishing in both regions, making it a truly wonderful destination for all anglers.

Ventura Fishing: The Best of Southern and Northern California Fishing in One Place

fishing boat near jetty

Ventura fishing is all about heading out into the ocean, but warm-up and do some fishing inshore before you do. Spend a day fishing at Ventura Pier on the popular San Buenaventura State Beach. Here you can catch plenty of barred surfperch, yellowfin croaker, spotfin croaker, and corbina, along with bigger fish such as queenfish, kelp bass, white croaker, leopard shark, shovelnose shark, bat ray, and California halibut. On this long pier, other species you might find include walleye surfperch, rubberlip seaperch, pompano, and blackperch. At the end of the pier, you can target even more leopard shark, spiny dogfish, and thresher shark here, along with some mackerel, barracuda, and bonito.

No more room on the pier? Find great surf fishing spots in Ventura and its neighboring cities. At McGrath State Beach, you can catch barred surfperch and spotfin croaker. If you come here during the evening, you might even land sand shark. Corbina, halibut, and cabezon can be targeted at Emma Wood State Beach. Go jetty fishing at Harbor Cove Beach and Marina Park Beach, where rock jetties attract plenty of corbina and croaker

If you’re now ready for some deep-sea fishing, book a fishing charter to experience some of the most productive fishing on Channel Islands National Park. The Channel Islands National Park consists of five islands off the coast of Ventura, namely Anacapa, Santa Rosa, San Miguel, Santa Cruz, and Santa Barbara. As a fishing ground, it is rich in species such as California halibut, sheepshead, barracuda, white seabass, yellowtail, vermilion rockfish, lingcod, and salmon, along with sand bass, kelp bass, and barracuda.

Enjoy a Family-Friendly and Pet-Friendly Getaway at Ventura

1. Bike Around the Promenade

Rent bikes or e-bikes for you and your entire family while strolling around the promenade. 

2. Stroll on the Beach With Your Pet

Ventura is a very pet-friendly city. Some of the beautiful spots around the area where you can bring your pet include Harbor Cove Beach, Marina Park, Arroyo Verde Park, and Surfer’s Point. Make sure to check out each venue’s specific pet regulations and always clean up after your dog.

Fish in Ventura and beyond.