campeche — los petenes
Shallow coast of mangrove and seagrass north of Campeche city, in the Los Petenes Biosphere Reserve. Juvenile tarpon and snook on the fly.
The Los Petenes Biosphere Reserve covers the north coast of Campeche, from the outskirts of the capital to the border with Yucatán. About 70% of the area is sea, with the largest and best-preserved seagrass meadow in the Mexican part of the Gulf, according to the Carta Nacional Pesquera. The petenes are forest islands around springs in the middle of the mangroves. Fly fishing for juvenile tarpon has taken place there for over 20 years, from small boats with no more than 2 anglers, up to 300 m off the mangrove line, in 1 to 2 m of water, and also in rivers and canals. Most tarpon weigh less than 10 lb. There are also white snook, barracuda and jacks. Fishing is catch and release.
best season
Juvenile tarpon all year; in spring and summer, fish of 30 to 40 lb also show up. From September to February, cold fronts (nortes) leave the sea too rough for fishing.
Local rules: Los Petenes is a Biosphere Reserve (DOF decree of May 24, 1999) under Conanp: in the core zone any extractive use of fauna is prohibited, and commercial activities, such as fishing services, need Conanp authorization. Fishing from a boat requires a Conapesca permit. Under NOM-017, tarpon has a bag limit of 2 per day; here fishing is catch and release. Nets in mangrove channels are not allowed. Campeche has no federal snook closed season. Confirm local rules.
- getting there
- Guides leave from Campeche city, which has an airport, and from Isla Arena, in the north of the reserve. Boats follow the coast to the mangrove areas.
- facilities
- Small fly-fishing operators in Campeche city and ecotourism services in Isla Arena. Hotels and restaurants in Campeche's historic center.
- country
- Campeche, Mexico
tip
Bring a 7- to 9-weight fly rod, a leader with a heavy fluorocarbon tip, and small flies. Fight tarpon quickly and release them without taking them out of the water.
Loading…
Each card shows the day's index (0 to 100) and, below it, a strip with the index for each hour, from 0h to 23h. from poor to excellent.
what you can catch here
before you fish in Mexico
Anyone fishing from a boat needs an individual recreational-sport fishing permit (permiso de pesca deportivo-recreativa), issued by Conapesca and obtained online through the e5cinco system, with fees paid per day, week, month, year or excursion. 2025 values reported by Conapesca: 1 day, MXN 204; 1 week, MXN 510; 1 month, MXN 766; 1 year, MXN 1,021; excursion, MXN 1,453 (adjusted every year). Fishing from land does not require a permit; spearfishing requires an individual permit (NOM-017-PESC-1994, amended in 2013).
- Marlin, sailfish, swordfish, sábalo/chiro, roosterfish and mahi-mahi (dorado de mar) are reserved for sport fishing within 50 nautical miles of the coastal baseline.
- Sea catch limit: up to 10 fish per angler per day, with a maximum of 5 of the same species. Billfish (marlins, sailfish and swordfish), sharks and giant sea bass (Stereolepis gigas): 1 per day. Sábalo, mahi-mahi, roosterfish and baya: 2 per day. In freshwater, 5 per day. Fish caught beyond the limit are released alive back to the sea.
- Fishing within 250 m of beaches with bathers and of commercial fishing boats or nets is prohibited. Sport-caught fish may not be sold, and billfish may not be filleted on board.
- In natural protected areas, sport fishing is only allowed under the terms of the decree and each area's management program (Conanp); many have closed zones and stretches for catch and release only.
The rules and closed seasons in the rest of the app are Brazilian. Outside Brazil, the regulations of the country and province apply: confirm with the official agency.
sources and references
Access, facilities and season information changes: check with the lodge, a local guide or the city hall before you travel.
- official DOF — Actualización de la Carta Nacional Pesquera (11/06/2018), Área Natural Protegida Los PetenesDecree of May 24, 1999; about 70% of the reserve is sea, with the largest seagrass area in the Gulf of Mexico; rules 11, 45 and 53 of the management program (Conanp authorization for commercial activities and no extractive use in the core zone)
- technical Bonefish & Tarpon Trust, Universidad Marista de Mérida e UNAM — Socio-environmental impact assessment of flat fishing in Campeche and Yucatan, Mexico (2023)Fly fishing in Los Petenes for over 20 years, catch and release; juvenile tarpon up to 300 m from the mangroves in 1 to 2 m; fish of 30 to 40 lb in spring and summer; illegal nets during the nortes months (September to February)
- official DOF — Actualización de la Carta Nacional Pesquera (26/07/2022), ficha Robalo del Golfo de MéxicoThe snook closed season applies only from Tamaulipas to Veracruz; for the other states, the sheet says there is no official regulation