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Fishing charter, whether on a kayak tour or a large sport fishing yacht, can be an enjoyable and educational experience if you love fishing. Unfortunately, sometimes things can go wrong and make a day of fishing a miserable experience. To maximize your enjoyment, here are some guidelines if you plan to hire a guide and a charter boat.

1. What to Expect

You should discuss all expectations with your guide before you send off the deposit check. Ask about the fishing and what you might catch. Ask for a detailed explanation about how your day may go. Ask about the cancellation policy, tackle, bait, and what is included. Are there hidden fees? To avoid disputes, it is important to clarify all details before you leave the dock. While seasoned guides should have complete clarity, it is a good idea to start a dialogue with them to get a better understanding of their normal procedures.

2. Manage expectations

Communicate your goal to your guide if you want to achieve a particular goal. Ask them how realistic their expectations are. It is important to communicate with your guide if you have a specific goal and to ask him if it is possible to achieve it. Your plan should be tailored to catch fish that are realistically possible.

3. Prepare!

PRACTICE before you go if you have a mission that requires skill. You may have the goal to catch a permit on a fly rod, which can be very difficult for even the most experienced fly anglers. Make sure you practice your casting skills at home before you go. To achieve advanced-level goals such as these take a team effort. While the guide would be responsible for getting you to the species, you must execute a flawless cast. To avoid disappointment and failure, you should prepare well in advance if you are going to undertake any task that requires advanced skills, training, or physical ability.

4. Bring supplies

It is important to have enough food and water for everyone during the day. It is important to have enough cold drinks and food on hand for a full day on the boat. You might not have enough time to eat for long periods of time so it is important to keep snacks and sandwiches on hand. It is important to stay hydrated, especially in the heat of the sun.

5. Don’t be “That Guy”

It can be difficult to drink alcohol while boating. While many fishing charter operators won’t allow alcohol, others will. It’s okay to have a cold beer on the vessel, but it can lead to new liability issues. A guide won’t like to babysit a drunk, and the chances of an accident increase exponentially with every drink.

6. Do not “Guide the Guide”

When you hire a fishing crew, remember that you are paying them for their knowledge. Sometimes the bite can be slow, unfortunately for everyone aboard. This is not the time to suggest a change in tactics or second-guess the crew’s tactics. Let them do what they are supposed to. It is true that not all days are good. And the guide may be stressed enough about the lack of action.

7. Get the kids involved

Fishing with children can be one of the most fun days on the water. Sadly, it can sometimes be torture for children. You should make it about your children if you are going to charter a boat with kids. You should assess your child’s attention span and plan accordingly. Children need to be entertained constantly. If they get bored, they will stop having fun. If your kids lose interest, don’t let them stay. It will only make them hate fishing altogether.

8. Respect the boat and all equipment

The cost of buying and maintaining a boat, as well as all the fishing equipment required to operate a charter boat business, can be quite expensive. People can sometimes be careless and swing leads or rigs into paint or drop things on the deck.

9. Spend within your means

Charter fishing can be very expensive. However, you can offset some of the cost by sharing the cost with a friend. You should not bring more people than you need to in order to lower your costs.

10. Tips are important!

When it comes to fishing guides, a topic that is often in dispute is how much a tip should be. Asking guides how much they consider normal is a common question. It is a gratuity to show appreciation for someone’s efforts and it puts the guide in an awkward place when you ask that question. The industry standard for tipping fishing crews is 15-20% of the trip’s cost.

Visit Voyager Deep Sea Fishing & Dolphin Cruises to plan your fishing charter.

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Voyager Deep Sea Fishing & Dolphin Cruises
1525 13th Ave N
North Myrtle Beach, SC 29582
(910) 575-0111
(843) 626-9500
http://supervoyagerdeepseafishing.com/