Streaking bonefish. Tailing reds. Rolling tarpon. Fishing shallow-water flats is the stuff of dreams. Countless destinations across the globe provide striking diversity and opportunities to fulfill any angler’s fantasy-fish wish list. In many cases, flats-fishing allows anglers to single out a specific species, eliminating much of the luck and boiling down success — or failure — to split-second decisions and actions. Choosing which flats to target and when can take some research. But some areas, including the following eight destinations, maintain world‑class fisheries.
Throughout the decades, each has attracted its share of world-record seekers and globe-trotting anglers, who spread the fame throughout countless tackle shops, watering holes, and marinas around the world.
Cuba’s Everglades
A national park framed by mangroves and backcountry thicket featuring a treasure trove of inshore species—sounds like that famous chunk of Earth in South Florida we all know about. But this is no river of grass; it’s a peninsula of lagoons, islands, rivers and bocas in western Cuba known as Ciénaga de Zapata National Park. This is rarified air for anglers, a place where landing mutton snapper, bonefish, tarpon, permit and snook in one day isn’t unheard of. (It’s fly-fishing only, by the way.) The limited number of anglers allowed and the lightly pressured fish ensure that even greenhorns have a good chance of success. Yellow Dog Outfitters is one of the few American travel companies that can make it happen. —Shawn Bean
Contacts
Yellow Dog Outfitters
yellowdogflyfishing.com
888-777-5060
Quadruple-Layover Flats (Africa)
Pack the Dramamine and don’t forget your charger. On the other side of Earth, African Waters runs fishing camps and liveaboards across the African continent, including some of the world’s most remote and unpressured flats. Here’s its current menu of destinations.
Nubian flats liveaboard, Sudan: Seven nights on the gin-clear Red Sea flats of northern Sudan chasing triggerfish, giant trevally, bonefish and permit.
Faro River, Cameroon: This package includes six days wading through the Faro River and habitats of the West African savannah to cast flies at Nile perch up to 40 pounds.
Mnyera and Ruhudji rivers, Tanzania: It’s freshwater fishing for tigerfish done on the drift, searching out river structure like fallen trees and rocky outcroppings to target tigerfish in the 10- to 25-pound range.
Sette Cama, Gabon: West Africa’s most pristine coastline boasts monster tarpon. Other wildlife sightings include lowland gorillas, chimpanzees, and forest buffalo roaming the beach. —Shawn Bean
Contacts
African Waters
africanwaters.net
+27 33 342 2793
Seadrift, Texas
Seadrift, Texas, is a sportsman’s paradise on stilts, a salty community an hour’s drive from Corpus Christi known for its 365-day, 360-degree redfishing—a fishery that exists all year, in every direction. Bay Flats Lodge, the homespun hideaway with accommodations for 30, is the ideal home base.
Bay Flats sits on the front stoop of San Antonio Bay, a healthy ecosystem with ample bait and boundless opportunities for one highly sought-after, sometimes bronze, rarely silver and never-red gamefish. Skiffs and airboats depart the Bay Flats ramp at first light, with fly and spin anglers sight-fishing flats that shrink to less than a foot. At day’s end, a dinner menu featuring Black Angus ribeye, double-boned pork chops, fried quail legs and frijoles charros is the recipe for deep sleep deep in the heart of Texas. —Shawn Bean
Contacts
Bay Flats Lodge
bayflatslodge.com
888-677-4868
Turneffe Atoll, Belize
Mandating catch-and-release fishing only since 2009 for tarpon, bonefish and permit, Turneffe Atoll is the largest and most biologically diverse coral atoll in the Western Hemisphere. As such, extensive flats here offer a prime target for anglers who want to fly-cast their way to a flats-fishing grand slam by catching all three of these headline species in a single day.
The diverse selection and size of fish that reside on these flats make them unique, according to fishing guide Edison Gabourel of Turneffe Island Resort. “Seeing these flats is like looking at a nice slice of apple pie — you feast your eyes. You’ll see singles, doubles, and big schools of tailing bonefish, permit and tarpon. People who come here are thrilled with the fact that you can see schools of fish for hours; you can see your targets in the crystal-clear water, and then make your cast and do it right. After they fish Turneffe, people always say they’re coming back.”
Turneffe is relatively accessible for American travelers, only two to two and a half hours by plane from several southern U.S. airports. Anglers fly into Belize City, which features a large international airport, and take a 30-mile boat ride to the atoll. Several resorts lie on Turneffe; most offer pickup (some even via helicopter) from Belize City.
The height of the season is summer; June, July and August offer the best shot at catching a grand slam, but bonefish and permit prowl these flats year-round. Although there are some resident tarpon, most migrate away from the flats in winter.
Top tactics include wade-fishing and stalking, mostly while sight-fishing with fly-fishing gear. Seven- and 8-weight fly tackle is recommended for bonefish and permit. Reels should be spooled with at least 200 yards of 20-pound backing plus weight-forward floating line. For tarpon, size up to 11- or 12-weights and use 30-pound backing. Size six to 10 unweighted flies such as Crazy Charlies, Gotchas, and crab patterns work best for the bonefish and permit; use 3/0 to 4/0 Deceiver patterns for tarpon. Anglers can also use 10- to 20-pound spinning gear to cast plugs or live bait. —Lenny Rudow
Contacts
Turneffe Island Resort
turnefferesort.com
800-874-0118
Turneffe Flats
tflats.com
888-512-8812
Lower Laguna Madre, Texas
With low rainfall and little freshwater inflow, the Laguna Madre of south coastal Texas is one of just a half-dozen or so lagoons holding reliably hypersaline water. Add to that a shallow average depth of just over 3 feet and abundant sea grass, and you generally find gin-clear water. In the Lower Laguna Madre, on the east side in particular, white sandy flats intertwine with grassy areas. The area is best known for big schools of tailing redfish.
“The cool thing about the Lower Laguna Madre is that it’s unique,” says native Texan and captain Ben Paschal, of Laguna Madre Outfitters. “The water’s so clear that sometimes you can spot fish 200 feet out. When sight-casting, you often get multiple shots. And you can target species people don’t usually sight-fish for, such as big speckled trout.”
Because wildlife refuges or protected seashores comprise 75 percent of its shorelines, many of the best fishing areas are far from access points, and area lodging is fairly concentrated. South Padre Island is the most popular place to stay, and offers a number of good options.
The nearest commercial airport is in Brownsville, about 25 miles from South Padre. There are limited accommodations to the north in Port Mansfield and slightly inland at Raymondville. Some guides, including Paschal, commonly prearrange lodging for their customers in nearby rental houses, which are closer to the fishing, in areas such as Arroyo City.
Paschal says spring is his favorite time to fish the Lower Laguna Madre, but through the heat of summer, the fish continue biting. March through November provide top-notch flats-fishing. Many anglers cast from shallow-water skiffs and flats boats, but others prefer wade-fishing.
Anglers mostly sight-cast from skiffs along with wade-fishing, while using either fly or conventional gear. Popular flies include EP fiber crabs, gurglers and Clousers. The clear water dictates stealth at all times. When fly-fishing, use long leaders on 7- to 9-weight 9-foot rods, and limit false casts. Use 8- to 12-pound spinning gear to cast soft plastics rigged to jig heads, or bucktails (often tipped with shrimp). —Lenny Rudow
Contacts
Laguna Madre Outfitters
lagunamadreoutfitters.com
214-704-3158
Getaway Lodge
getawayadventureslodge.com
956-944-4000
Seabreeze Beach Resort
seabreezebeachresort.com
800-541-9901
St. Brandon’s Atoll, Mauritius
Ah, 2023. It was the year of Barbenheimer, the Chinese spy balloon over Oklahoma, the coronation of King Charles, and the year that (finally) St. Brandon, the 40-island archipelago roughly 300 miles east of Mauritius, reopened to international anglers. There’s good reason to rejoice: St. Brandon’s Atoll is the “finest bonefish destination on the planet,” according to Gerhard Laubscher, CEO of FlyCastaway guide service in Johannesburg. Giant trevally, triggerfish, Indo-Pacific permit, and bonefish up to 15 pounds roam St. Brandon’s flats, and its nominal tidal changes mean hours of uninterrupted tailing fish. Sure, you’re in transit for 24 hours to get there, but sometimes good things require three layovers. —Shawn Bean
Contacts
FlyCastaway
flycastaway.com
27-11-234-1450
Yellow Dog Flyfishing Adventures
yellowdogflyfishing.com
888-777-5060
Tourette Fishing
tourettefishing.com
27-84-622-2272 (mothership)
Florida Keys
It should surprise no enthusiast to find the Florida Keys on this list. And while anglers might continually bicker about the best flats in this string of islands, the Islamorada area south into Marathon often takes top honors. Tremendous diversity highlights this region’s fishing, and while species such as bonefish, tarpon and permit get most of the headlines, you never know what will end up inhaling your bait or lure. Jacks, barracuda, several species of sharks, snook, redfish, seatrout, ladyfish — the list goes on.
“Options are what make this area so great,” says Capt. Ted Benbow, who runs Skins and Fins Fishing Charters in Islamorada with his son Donnie, a third-generation Florida fishing guide. “I can run to the Intracoastal; I can fish around the islands close by; I can run to Everglades National Park; I can fish north; I can fish south; and I can enjoy some of the best bonefish and permit flats-fishing around.”
Capt. Benbow explains that no matter which way the wind blows or what time of year it is, fishable flats lie within reach. Thanks to the countless mangrove islands scattered throughout the area and the innumerable sandy flats between them, clear, sheltered water can always be found.
Fall offers anglers their best shot at bones and permit on the flats, particularly on days with a northwest wind when the Atlantic-side flats are sheltered and calm. Spring is usually the top pick if you have tarpon in your sights, although they can be caught any time of year.
Although the Florida Keys isn’t exactly remote, getting there usually requires a flight into Miami, followed by a two-plus-hour drive south. Anglers can also fly into Key West and drive back north. Traffic, particularly during weekends, on the Keys’ Overseas Highway can be tricky, with speed limits bouncing between 35 and 55 mph. But once you reach your destination, you’ll find plenty of hotels, resorts and offbeat lodging to choose from, ranging from five-star accommodations to rental houseboats.
Peak seasons include bonefish and permit in the fall, spring for tarpon
Anglers in the Keys typically cast from skiffs, with some wade-fishing and stalking, while using either fly or conventional gear. When targeting bonefish and permit, an 8- to 10-weight rod is appropriate; size up to 11- or 12-weight for tarpon. Use floating fly line with 12-foot leaders. Tie 12- to 20-pound tippet for smaller species and 20-pound tippet with a 60-pound shock leader for tarpon. Muddlers, gurglers, shrimp, and crab patterns are all popular and effective. Anglers casting spinning or conventional gear often use bait (most commonly shrimp) or cast plastic shrimp or grubs. —Lenny Rudow
Contacts
Skins and Fins Fishing Charters
skinsandfinscharters.com
305-393-0363
Bud ‘N Mary’s
budnmarys.com
305-664-2461
Hawk’s Cay Resort
hawkscay.com
888-395-5539
Ascension Bay, Mexico
If there’s a single sight-fishing nirvana, Mexico’s Ascension Bay tops the list. It’s a blissfully remote showcase of the Sian Ka’an Biosphere Reserve, accessed mostly via a narrow road to Punta Allen and points well beyond the Cancun tourista traps. But the ride is absolutely worth every bump and pothole.
What awaits are massive schools of spunky bonefish eager to take a tan skimmer jig or a pink Crazy Charlie. Cooperative permit cruise the outer edges, while tarpon roll happily around the island moats.
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A dozen quality lodges dot the bay’s perimeter, yet their limited capacities also limit the pressure. Guides are friendly and osprey-eyed, with a working Spanglish vocabulary. Peak months are March through June, with light winds; summer’s heat wave brings schools of big shiner tarpon transiting across the bay. —Capt. Dave Lear
Contacts
Red’s Fly Shop
redsflyshop.com
509-933-2300
The Palometa Club
palometaclub.com
888-824-5420
Pesca Maya Fishing Lodge
pescamaya.com
888-894-5642
