Tamarindo Fishing Calendar

Two Seasons, Both Excellent

Costa Rica has two seasons: dry (December–April) and green/rainy (May–November). Both are outstanding for fishing — they just produce different species. Understanding this is the key to timing your trip.

Month-by-Month Breakdown

What's biting, what the weather's doing, and what to expect each month. Plan accordingly.

Licenses, Rules & Conservation

What you need to know before you get on the boat.

Timing Your Trip for Value

When the fishing is great AND the prices are right.

The Yellowfin Tuna Run: November Through January

While the dry season gets all the attention for sailfish, there's a window from late November through January that serious tuna anglers know about. As water temperatures start shifting and the Papagayo winds begin pushing nutrient-rich cold water south from the Nicoya Gulf, yellowfin tuna school up around the offshore seamounts in enormous numbers.

The best tuna fishing off Tamarindo happens 25–40 miles out, where underwater peaks rise from the deep ocean floor to within 100–200 feet of the surface. These seamounts act as bait magnets — skipjack, bonito, and flying fish concentrate around the structure, and yellowfin follow. Schools of 30–100+ lb tuna stack up in feeding frenzies that can last for hours. When you find them, the action is relentless — chunking cut bait or live-baiting near the seamount will produce strike after strike.

The fight is the real draw. Yellowfin tuna are arguably the hardest-fighting fish pound-for-pound in the Pacific. They don't jump — they just go straight down with incredible sustained power. A 60-lb yellowfin on 30-lb stand-up tackle will test your legs, your back, and your will. And when you finally get it to the boat, you've got some of the best eating fish in the ocean. Fresh yellowfin sashimi, sliced thick with soy sauce and wasabi, fifteen minutes after it came out of the water — there is no restaurant on earth that can match that experience.

Marlin Seasons Explained: Blue, Black, and Striped

Costa Rica's Pacific coast holds three species of marlin, and each follows a different seasonal pattern off Tamarindo. Understanding which marlin is around — and when — helps you plan the trip that matches your ambitions.

Blue Marlin (May–November): The big boys. Blue marlin move into Tamarindo's offshore waters as water temps climb past 83°F and the green-season bait migrations begin. They patrol the deep temperature breaks and current edges 25–40 miles out, hunting along the same paths year after year. Blues average 200–400 lbs off Tamarindo, with fish over 500 lbs caught every season. The peak window is June through August, when the water is warmest, the bait is thickest, and the big females are feeding aggressively before spawning.

Black Marlin (December–May): The heavyweights. Black marlin are the largest of the three species and hold the Costa Rica all-tackle record — a 956-lb monster caught on Tamarindo Reef, just ten minutes from the beach. Unlike blues, blacks tend to patrol closer to shore along reef structures and seamounts, which means you don't always need a full-day offshore run to encounter one. The Tamarindo Reef area and the structure around Playa Flamingo are prime black marlin territory during the dry season transition.

Striped Marlin (October–December): The acrobats. Striped marlin are lighter (100–200 lbs) and more athletic than their bigger cousins, with a habit of going fully airborne and tail-walking that makes for spectacular catches on lighter tackle. They're present year-round but peak in the October–December window as they follow baitball migrations along the Guanacaste coast. On 20–30 lb tackle, a striped marlin is one of the best fights in offshore fishing.

Seasonal Questions