Deep Sea Fishing From Puerto Banús: Species by Season, Licences, Prices and Release Rules

The water off Puerto Banús is better fishing than the beaches suggest: the Strait of Gibraltar is about an hour west by road, and the bluefin tuna that enter the Mediterranean through it pass this coast. It is also more regulated than most visitors expect, and the rules changed in 2026. Clients of our Marbella escort agency ask about a morning's fishing every summer, usually with the same questions: what will we catch, do we need a licence, can we keep it. For the leisure side of a day at sea, see our yacht charter guide. Book a skippered charter, which covers licences and tackle: bottom fishing for bream all year, trolling for bonito and amberjack in the warm months and mahi-mahi from late summer; any live bluefin goes back.

What Can You Catch Off Marbella, and When?

Bottom fish such as bream all year. Bonito, bullet tuna, mackerel and amberjack on the troll in the warm months. Mahi-mahi from late summer into autumn. And bluefin tuna, which shoal through the Strait of Gibraltar between February and July on their way to spawn, and which must be released if they come to the boat alive.

Species, Method and Season

Seasons are broad: water temperature and the year's migration decide the week, and a good skipper tells you on the phone what is running.

The Bluefin Route

The almadraba trap fisheries west of here exist because bluefin migrate into the Mediterranean from the Atlantic between February and July, to spawn between June and August in water of 18 to 21°C, mainly around the Balearic Islands. Fish of 100 kilos and more pass within reach of a day boat from Banús. Luna Pesca, which runs big-game days from the port, describes fish of 20 to 100 kilos on the tuna route and fishes both by trolling and by brumeo, chumming with the boat stopped. Every bluefin it hooks is released.

Mahi-Mahi and the Late-Summer Pelagics

Mahi-mahi, lampuga in Spain, is a seasonal visitor to the western Mediterranean, approaching the coast at the end of summer and staying into autumn; off Mallorca and Alicante it appears around mid-August and is fished until October or November. Bonito, bullet tuna and mackerel are the bread and butter of a trolling morning, and amberjack, pez limón, are the hard fighters over rocks and wrecks. Since March 2026, mahi-mahi is on Spain's list of specially protected species for recreational fishing, with the paperwork that implies.

Do You Need a Fishing Licence on a Charter?

Not personally. On a commercial charter the boat's licences, insurance and tackle cover the anglers aboard; Luna Pesca lists them in the price. To fish on your own from the shore or a private boat, you need an Andalusian recreational licence, and the boat needs specific ministerial authorisation for protected species such as bluefin.

Andalusia's Four Licence Classes

The Junta de Andalucía issues recreational sea-fishing licences under Decreto 361/2003 in four classes: from the shore and individual from a boat, both valid three years; collective from a boat, covering anglers up to the boat's capacity and valid one year; and underwater, valid one year. The shore and boat licences are applied for online. Under Spain's national rules for open waters, a boat licence is issued per boat, and anyone fishing must respect the minimum sizes for each species.

Protected Species Need Their Own Authorisation

Royal Decree 347/2011 lists species under differentiated protection: bluefin, albacore and bigeye tuna, swordfish, marlins and spearfish, sailfish, and since 2026 also hake, blackspot seabream, sea bass, cod, pollack, sole and mahi-mahi. Catching or keeping any of them aboard needs a specific authorisation for the boat, valid three years and carried aboard. Since 2026 the authorisation is requested through the ministry's mobile app, and only by someone already holding a regional fishing licence. A serious charter holds it; ask before you book a tuna day.

The 2026 Rules: Catch Declarations in the PescaREC App

Since 20 March 2026, recreational anglers must declare catches of protected species, whether kept or released, in the government's mobile app within 24 hours of the end of the trip, under Royal Decree 214/2026. In open waters the duty also covers other species under EU rules. Charter boats notify their activity through the same app.

What Gets Declared

Royal Decree 214/2026 lists the fields: start and finish time, port, species, weight, number of fish, whether kept or released, area, method, the boat and the number of rods. Released fish are declared too, marked as released, and several separate trips on one day are declared separately. The declaration can be made by a representative, which on a charter means the skipper usually handles it; ask on the day so you know it has been done.

What It Means for a Charter

Commercial recreational fishing boats, registered in the sixth list, must notify their activity through the app's own module, and they need a licence from the regional government to do it. In practice the new rules favour well-run operators: the paperwork is the same for every client, and a skipper who logs each fish will also know the minimum sizes and the release rules by heart. How to check a boat's charter registration, sixth list or seventh, is covered in our charter booking guide.

Catch-and-Release: Which Fish Go Back

Every bluefin that reaches the boat alive. Spain's bluefin rules allow recreational fishing only while quota is available and require live fish to be released; if one dies, fishing for bluefin stops, the fish is declared and landed whole, and it can never be sold. Undersized fish of any species also go back.

The Bluefin Rules

Royal Decree 46/2019, which governs the bluefin fishery, reserves a tiny share of quota for fish that die during recreational fishing, and obliges sixth- and seventh-list boats to release every bluefin that comes alongside alive. The rules demand every measure to return the fish alive, which in practice means unhooking it in the water rather than hauling it aboard for a photograph. The species' recovery is real: the IUCN moved Atlantic bluefin from Endangered to Least Concern, but regional stocks remain depleted.

What You Can Keep

Legal-sized bonito, mackerel, bream and similar fish can be kept, within the size and catch limits the skipper knows, and they make a fine dinner at the villa or the apartment, cooked by a chef if you prefer, as our private chef guide describes. Recreational catches cannot be sold or handed over for sale. Fishing inside Puerto Banús itself is banned by the port's rules, so the lines go in only once you are out at sea.

What Does a Fishing Charter From Puerto Banús Cost?

At Luna Pesca, which sails from Calle Ribera in Puerto Banús, two hours' bottom fishing costs €475 and eight hours €1,400, and four to eight hours' trolling or big-game fishing €800–€1,600, all before 21% VAT. Prices are for the whole boat, with drinks, diesel, skipper, licences, insurance and tackle included.

Luna Pesca's 2026 Prices

Figures from the operator's own pages in October 2026; the balance is paid on board.

Boats, Capacity and Terms

The fleet is two Rodman sport-fishing boats, a 12.5-metre and an 11.2-metre, carrying up to 10 people, with at most eight anglers on the tuna trips; the larger boat's fishing cockpit is 3.8 metres wide and takes five anglers at once. A booking needs a deposit of at least 25%, by card or transfer. Weather cancellations refund the deposit in full; a cancellation by the client forfeits it. Bring your own food, sun cream, a towel, a cap and boat or sports shoes.

What a Fishing Day Is Actually Like

Early, long and patient. The departure time is agreed with the skipper beforehand, and most of the day is spent trolling or drifting, with short bursts of hard work when a fish takes. Chumming with the engine off means a boat that rolls, so anyone prone to seasickness should prepare.

The Rhythm of the Day

Once clear of the harbour, the lines go out and the boat trolls slowly while the skipper watches the sounder and the birds. A strike on a tuna rod is loud and sudden; the fight can last minutes or much longer. In between there is time to swim, if the skipper stops, and on Luna Pesca's trips dolphins are a regular sight. Spanish rules keep recreational boats 300 metres from professional fishing boats, or 500 metres when they are rod-fishing for tuna.

Sun and Seasickness

A boat stopped and drifting in open water rolls with every swell, and the smell of bait does not help. The NHS advice applies: sit low in the middle of the boat, watch the horizon, avoid heavy food and alcohol before and during the trip, and ask a pharmacist about tablets or patches. Shade is limited on deck, so take a hat and high-factor sun cream. The winds that cancel fishing days, and the months they blow, are set out in our water sports calendar. Our catamaran comparison explains why hull shape matters to anyone susceptible.

A Fishing Morning With a Companion

Only if she enjoys it, and many people do once a fish is on. A short bottom-fishing or dolphin trip suits a couple better than a long tuna day. Her time is €300 an hour, so four hours is €1,200; the boat is paid separately. Changes are free until 72 hours before a yacht day, and storms or skipper-cancelled boats are never charged.

Which Trip Suits Two

Two or three hours of bottom fishing, or the two-hour dolphin trip, keep the day light and leave the evening free; our seafood guide covers where to eat on the quay afterwards. A tuna day starts early and runs long, which is a different booking. Our yacht companions are the ones most at home on deck, and our Puerto Banús escorts page shows who is near the port. If she would rather see the fish than catch them, our scuba diving guide covers the dives off Marbella.

How to Book It

Book the boat first, then send us the operator, the departure time agreed with the skipper, the berth and the return. We pass her details to the operator and confirm the figure. For the full sequence, see how booking a Marbella escort works; the windows for every booking type are in our cancellation guide. If the skipper calls the trip off for weather, Luna Pesca refunds the deposit in full and nothing is charged on our side.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you catch bluefin tuna off Marbella?

You can hook them, but a live bluefin must be released. Shoals pass the Strait of Gibraltar between February and July on their way to spawn, and Puerto Banús charters target them by trolling and chumming. Spanish rules allow recreational bluefin fishing only while quota remains, and the boat needs a specific authorisation.

Do I need a fishing licence on a charter boat?

No. On a commercial charter the operator's licences, insurance and tackle cover the anglers aboard; Luna Pesca in Puerto Banús includes them in its price. Fishing on your own from the shore or a private boat needs an Andalusian recreational licence, applied for online from the Junta de Andalucía.

How much does a fishing charter cost in Puerto Banús?

At Luna Pesca, two hours' bottom fishing costs €475 and eight hours €1,400, while four to eight hours' trolling or big-game fishing costs €800 to €1,600. All prices are for the whole boat, before 21% VAT, with drinks, diesel, skipper, licences and tackle included, for up to 10 people.

What is the PescaREC app?

The government's app for recreational catch declarations, compulsory since 20 March 2026 under Royal Decree 214/2026. Catches of protected species, kept or released, are declared within 24 hours of the end of the trip, with species, weight, number and area. On a charter the skipper can declare on the anglers' behalf.

Can I keep or sell the fish I catch?

You can keep legal-sized fish of permitted species within the catch limits, but recreational catches can never be sold or handed over for sale. Protected species need the boat's specific authorisation, and any bluefin that reaches the boat alive must be released in the water.