Fujairah is one of the best fishing spots in UAE. Fujairah faces the gulf of Oman, which is open to the Indian Ocean.
The species you’ll find in Fujairah are completely different from the ones you find in Dubai. In Fujairah you’ll find the big fish that anglers love such as Mahi Mahi, Sailfish, Amberjack and Marlin. Imagine, you can get your hands on all of these strong fish an hour and half from Dubai!
That’s why from the time I found out about Fujairah I go fishing there almost every month, especially during summer. I usually book a 5hrs trip that starts at 7am with Yellowfin boat that costs 2,000AED (you can check the boat and book from here if you are interested).
Usually I ask the captain to start earlier at 6am so that the weather is cooler and the fishing is better. Below is how the trip goes:
- 4:00-4:45am: I wake up at 4:00am like a real fisherman. I pick up my friends and hit the road at 4:45am. - 4:45-6am: I live in Dubai so I need around 90min to arrive at the Fujairah International Marina including a stop for gas. Usually I call captain Calvin on my way to make sure that he knows we are on the road and by what time will reach there. Check the map below for the route:
- 6-6:30am: We arrive at 6am or 6:20am at the marina, park our car and get our stuff. We call the Captain and he will usually be waiting for us near the coast guard’s office near the entrance of the dock. We give them our IDs (Emirates IDs if not then your passport or driving license) to take a copy and we are ready to go.
- 6:30-7am: At 6:30am we are usually in the boat and ready for some action. Then we start moving towards the fishing spot, which usually takes 25-35min to reach.
- 7-11:30am – The fishing action: We usually fish next to the ships. There are hundreds of ships that transport oil and gas from Fujairah to all around the world. Many of the ships are anchored near Fujairah waiting for their turn , the longer they stay the more fish they have around them, a better fishing spot for us :)
Fishing in Fujairah is fun because you can use many fishing techniques such as live bait fishing, casting, popping, fly fishing, trolling and even jigging. The fish you’ll be targeting is mostly Mahi Mahi (Dorado). Mahi Mahi is strong, fast, acrobatic, beautiful and tastes amazing! If you’d like to try for different fish then you should do Trolling, if you are lucky you might land a Sailfish (it’s still in my most wanted fish) or a Marlin. To land these Billfish you’ll need some special equipment and lures. Captain Calvin and his team are quite famous for landing Sailfish, they are definitely the best you can find in Fujairah. We usually start with live-bait, since it’s the most favorable way to land a Dorado. Then I personally move to do some popping and casting to workout my hands. Then if we got enough catch we move to Trolling the last two hours to try our luck with the Sailfish. Usually we catch something between 5 – 20 Dorados in one trip, depending on the season and the abundance of live-bait and Dorado. We only keep what we can eat, usually one piece per person, and release the rest. During the trip you’ll be moving from one spot to the other, in continuous search for the best fishing spot. Once you find a good spot and you start catching some fish, you’ll find the captain moving again to another location because the fish will move all the time. The trip is for five hours and towards the end you’ll start getting hungry and ready for lunch.
This is a video of one of the trips I did with our meetup group
- 11:30 – 12pm: Now it’s time to head back to the Marina, it will probably take you 30min to get back. Just lie down and relax on the way back and maybe sunbathe on the deck.
- 12-1:30pm: The best part of the trip is being able to eat your catch. And you are lucky because you’ll eat one of the tastiest fish on the planet. Yes, Mahi Mahi is considered one of the most delicious fish in the world competing for the 1st place. So after you arrive at the Marina you can take the fish to the Irish restaurant inside the Marina called Harbour Club Bar. They’ll cook it for you grilled or fried. They can also prepare the fried Dorado burger for you, yummy! The restaurant is huge with outdoor and indoor seating. It also has clean bathrooms and pool tables. One big fish (7kg and bigger) or two medium size fish will be enough for a group of 4 people. The price should be round 40-70AED per person including the drinks and everything.
Note: The restaurant opens at 12pm, so at times you’ll need to wait a bit before they open. - 1:30 – 3pm: The trip is officially over now and it’s time to go back home. If you need a cab you can call it from the restaurant. If you are living in Dubai then you just need to take the same route back home (the problem is I always get lost on my way back, I’m really bad with directions!). It should be an easy ride.
That’s it, this is what you expect to get when you go fishing in Fujairah. Below are some last notes: - What to bring with you:
- Your personal ID (Emirates ID or passport are the best, sometimes the coast guards also accept driving license and your local ID if written in English).
- Sun Screen and hat.
- Some snacks (chocolates, chips, sandwiches..etc).
- Your favorite rod, if you feel you can’t fish without it.
- Your camera (or smart phone) to take photos and videos.
- Towels and light jacket can come handy sometimes.
- If you Book with professional charter boats such as Yellowfin or others you’ll not need to bring any fishing tackle with you, everything will be provided except for Fly fishing tackle.
- Water and soft drinks will be provided
- If you have any questions about fishing in Fujairah, the fishing season or the best charters and captains there, you can always call fishfishme at +971 526 808 907 If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to email me at [email protected]. You can also follow me on Twitter at @A_alshalabi . I’d strongly suggest you subscribe to our newsletter in the top right and follow us on our Facebook page and Twitter account (we usually organize group trips to Fujairah and Dubai).
Last thing before I let you go I need to ask you one more question, do you want a demo on how to use fishfishme.com? If yes then please send “I want a demo” to [email protected]
