Very Disappointing Experience -- I Will Not Be Returning…read more
On September 14, 2026, five of us booked an 8-hour private deep-sea fishing charter with Little River Fishing Fleet. Our original trip was scheduled for September 15, but Little River called us the day before and asked if we could move the trip to September 14 because of bad weather expected the following day. We agreed, and our trip ran from 12:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
At first, I was impressed with the company for being proactive about the weather. Unfortunately, that was probably the best part of the experience.
We were greeted by Captain Henry and his assistant, Jordan. Captain Henry was knowledgeable about fishing and answered many of our questions. He also helped one of the people in our group when a hook needed to be removed from their finger. Little River also cleaned and filleted the fish we caught.
Unfortunately, the negatives far outweighed the positives.
The biggest problem was that this was supposed to be an 8-hour deep-sea fishing trip, but we spent far too much of that time NOT fishing.
The boat was slow and appeared old, and the seats were extremely uncomfortable. We spent a significant amount of time simply riding to and from fishing locations. On top of that, approximately one hour of our trip was spent catching bait. I understand that catching bait can be part of fishing, but when you're paying for an 8-hour private deep-sea charter, losing an hour to catching bait--combined with the excessive amount of time spent traveling--leaves surprisingly little time actually fishing.
We also had an issue with how one situation on the boat was handled. The captain yelled at someone in our group. In my opinion, if customers are expected to know exactly how to handle a fishing rod and what to do when a large fish hits, those instructions should be clearly explained BEFORE someone is hooked up to a large fish--not after a mistake is made.
I was also disappointed with the equipment. Based on what we experienced, I did not feel that the boat and equipment were properly suited to the type of fishing we were expecting from an 8-hour deep-sea charter.
Then there was the issue that concerned me the most: barracuda.
We caught five large fish, approximately 3-4 feet long. Four of those five fish were barracuda. During the trip, the discussion about whether barracuda were safe to eat left us with the impression that they were okay to consume.
After returning home, I researched the issue extensively and spoke with other deep-sea fishing companies. I learned that barracuda can carry a significant risk of ciguatera poisoning, particularly larger barracuda. That made me very uncomfortable with how the issue was presented to us during the trip.
I'm not claiming the captain intentionally misled us. I am saying that, based on the information we were given and what I learned afterward, I believe customers should receive much clearer information about the potential health risks associated with eating barracuda before being encouraged to keep or consume them.
To be fair, I appreciated Little River contacting us about the weather, Captain Henry's fishing knowledge, and the fact that they cleaned our fish.
But an 8-hour private charter is a significant expense, and I expected much more time actually fishing--not spending large portions of the trip riding around and catching bait.
Five people paid for an 8-hour deep-sea fishing experience. We caught five large fish, four of which were barracuda, and I left feeling that we simply did not get the fishing experience we paid for.
Unfortunately, I will not be returning to Little River Fishing Fleet, and based on our experience, I cannot recommend them.
If you're considering booking with them, I would strongly recommend asking detailed questions beforehand about the boat, travel time, how much time will actually be spent fishing, whether you'll be expected to catch your own bait, what equipment will be used, and what they recommend doing with barracuda if you catch them.
