Great trip, even while only catching a bonito. Captain was great “Pepe”, and deckhand Christian, were great hosts. They cared a great deal about our experience, and trying to get us on the fish.

Day started with 4, but the very calm seas of 3 foot proved too much for the three novices. After 1.5 hours, we had to turn in to port. Which the captain gladly did without hesitation. We then set off with just myself to try after some billfish. We focused on trolling at my request, in an attempt to catch a trophy! I was given the option to bottomfish as well, but chose to focus on catching a storybook fish.

We set off promptly at 7, just after paying the balance. We were offered waters, and sodas. There is a restroom on board to use. I enjoyed sitting up too near the captain to catch the best breeze and views. It truly was a gorgeous day in the water, and the crew attempted every way possible to get us a sailfish. We had several bites, one bonito, and hooked up to a billfish but ended up getting away.

Would definitely recommend these waters for folks who have fished deep sea before, though the transit is only about 15-20 minutes to lines in the water. The crew has a good comprehension of English for non Spanish speakers, and worked hard throughout the 8 hours. Would definitely recommend again, and if I’m back in the area would book again.

So, I booked this particular charter going in blind. Out of all the charters El Patron seemed to have the best reviews. The bonus for my wife and I is that El Patron is a 36’ Blackfin. We always charter Blackfin’s or Bertram’s solely because of how seaworthy they are. The all day (8-hour) price was fare so we chartered the whole boat as we always do so it is entirely ours. They leave at 7am and call it quits around 2:40pm for a 3pm port return. We are catch and release Bill Fishermen and we specified that Billfish was our primary focus (especially Marlin) for the charter.  Note, that the drop off for fishing comes quick and you will have lines in the water between 15-20 min from leaving the Puerto Morelos city center pier. You should prepare your own sandwiches and bring drinks with you because you’re not going to be offered anything. They will provide ice for your cooler. The fishing – my wife backed out at the last moment so I went alone. They put out five lines for me all day long. They primarily use Ballyhoo on the spread and an artificial line of squid to catch Bonito for the Marlin. In the morning I caught a 4-5lbs Mahi Mihai and since it was small and lip hooked, I released him and told him to come back in five years. Around lunchtime I hooked into a really nice Wahoo and got him into the boat as a keeper. Toward the very end of the day, we had a double sailfish hookup. Both of them sounded instead of rising to the surface. As I battled the first one the mate made sure the second one didn’t get away. I landed the first one in about 20 min and as soon as we got in onboard, they got the hook out and released it back into the water. I was immediately handed the second pole and after about 15 min got him boat side where they cut the line close to the hook to release that one as well. All in all, this was a great day of fishing. Captain Pepe knows where the fish should be and his crew of two worked nonstop to make sure all five lines were free of seaweed and fresh bait. I highly recommend this particular boat and crew if you’re a serious sport fisherman. Zero disappointments with their efforts! I will definitely use them again on my next trip to Puerto Morelos.

Thanks to boys, we hooked up about a dozen times in the 4 hours we were out. I think we netted 9 Mahi Mahi and 1 Wahoo. Highly recommend them! Great guys, and the fresh ceviche was next level. Looking
forward to another round next time we’re down!

We had a great time fishing on El Patron with Captain Pepe, Christian & Georgie.  We did a half day charter on June 29, 2023 that started at 7:00am out of Puerto Morales.  It was my brother & I and four children ages 10 & 12.  The crew recommended that we do bottom fishing with the kids (more action).  Before we headed to the reef area for the bottom fishing, we trolled for about 30 minutes.  We ended up hooking a sailfish in that time!  After about a 30 minute fight, we had the sailfish in the boat!  The crew commented how lucky we were to hook sailfish in such a short period of time.  Afterward, we headed to a reef area where we fished off the bottom.  We primarily caught yellow tail and angel fish.  Christian & Georgie were constantly rebaiting hooks and dropping in lines.  A great time was had by all.  Also, Dramamine is highly recommended!  Thanks Pepe, Christian & Georgie for a half great day!

I brought my 8 and 11 year old for a 4 hour charter.  The captain and crew were amazing.  They never stopped working to get us on fish.  The kids caught 4 or 5 each and I finally landed a Red Snapper.  They were very patient with the kids and their limited attention spans too!  Highly recommend to anyone looking for a reputable charter.