Cairns Reef Fishing

Come fishing on-board Cairns premier charter boats!

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Cairns Reef Fishing is a locally, family-owned and operated fishing charter business based at The Marlin Marina, Cairns, in beautiful Far North Queensland.

 

We take pride in giving our passengers an enjoyable, reef and deep sea fishing charter experience aboard our large, comfortable, fully equipped, purpose built fishing vessels, Aqua Cat, Blue Whaler and the newest addition Reef Runner!!
Our Experienced Skippers and Deck Hands provide the best fishing charter trips in Cairns to the surrounding waters of the Great Barrier Reef, for any level of angler. Our waters are internationally renowned as some of the most prolific fishing grounds in the world, so get set for some of the best fishing ever!

 

With years of commercial and offshore deep sea charter fishing and diving experience behind our crew, they know where the fish are and will give you your best chance of landing your very own prize catch. A variety of fishing methods and equipment are used including trolling, live bait fishing, bottom fishing and drift fishing.

 

You don’t need to bring much at all on our fishing charter trips as we provide quality, well-maintained fishing equipment, bottled drinking water and a delicious fresh lunch of selected meats, salads, bread rolls and a tropical fruit platter. We clean and ice your fish and then bag them up ready for you to take home. We can even give you some cooking tips for your catch or point you in the right direction for a restaurant to cook it up for you. Flying home? No problem, we can assist with that too!

 

No matter the time of year, ideal weather, location and productive fishing grounds make the offshore reefs of Cairns the best destination for your next charter fishing trip.

The Day

Your Cairns Reef Fishing experience begins at Cairns’ Marlin Marina. The boats are berthed at D Finger (see the map on the Contact page) behind the Shangri La Hotel.

On the way out to the reef we will troll some lures. This can result in hook ups of large Dolphin fish, Mackerel, Wahoo, Sailfish, Marlin and different varieties of Tuna. We set the lures then hand the rod to you, so be ready for some reel screaming action! We will be right behind you offering encouragement and ready to help you safely land your fish.

Out at the reef we will be targeting Coral Trout, Red Emperor, Large and Small Mouth Nannygai, Sweet Lip, Cod, Trevally, GT’s and many other reef species. We will be generally fishing on the bottom or close to it and usually in 30 – 60 meters depth. We will also put out some surface baits targeting Mackeral or Cobia. Be warned that we expect to land fish up to 10kg or bigger so hang on!

A great day of fishing, a delicious lunch and maybe even a cold beer on the way home, it doesn’t get any better than that.

Our Fishing Gear

A full range of quality fishing gear is provided, including new Fin Nor, Shimano and Penn reels as well as handlines for those who, like our crew, prefer this method. We hand make all our own rigs and are constantly updating our fishing methods and equipment. Our knowledgeable crew can also happily show you how to use all of the gear.

The Boats

Cairns Reef Fishing provides comfortable, safe and enjoyable charter trips to the Great Barrier Reef and beyond. Our boats include; Blue Whaler a 42 foot Randell, Aqua Cat a 48 foot Randell and Reef Runner 37 foot Kelvacat. All our vessels are fitted with the latest in electronics, safety and fish finding equipment and are fully equipped with undercover decking area, seating for all and full size toilet facilities.