World class bass fishing at Stick Marsh in Palm Bay, FL

Boating & Fishing

No shortage of opportunities to reel one in!  

Florida's Space Coast offers many boating and fishing opportunities. Access to the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian River Lagoon and the Intracoastal Waterway opens up a boaters’ paradise, and fishermen will find plenty of bodies of water to cast their lines in while visiting. Saltwater and freshwater fishing provide a wide range of fishing experiences and expectations that no matter what season it is, something is biting somewhere.

The boating life is here.

Feel like going on a boat ride? With 72 miles of Atlantic Ocean coastline, the Intracoastal Waterway (Indian River) and additional waterways including Headwaters Lake, Lake Washington, Lake Poinsett, Lake Winder, Sawgrass Lake, the St. Johns River, the Banana River and canals everywhere on Florida’s Space Coast; it could be a long ride.

There is something magical about being out on the water. Here, boaters can dolphin and manatee watch, tube, ski, wakeboard, stop at lots of nice sandy islands with palm trees to camp, BBQ, swim and socialize with other boaters.  The area has lots of great restaurants and bars with boat slips to tie up to. 

Whether visitors enjoy fresh or saltwater fishing, watersports, nature trekking or simply cruising the waterways with family and friends, there is rental boat available.  From Titusville down to Sebastian Inlet, boat rental locations offer everything that floats from paddleboards and surfboards to kayaks, canoes, ski boats, deck and party boats, and good ol’ fishing boats.  There are also jet ski and jet board rentals.

Visitors with trailer boats can put in at any number of the public ramps accessing the waterways across the county. Boaters new to the area are encouraged to learn the rules of the waterways particularly as they relate to manatee zones and no wake zones.

Fishing

Florida’s Space Coast offers great fishing year round – from Mosquito Lagoon south to Sebastian Inlet.  Some of the distinctions the area has earned include:

  • Space Coast has more than 500 species of fish.
  • Mosquito Lagoon is known as the redfish capital of the world.
  • Stick Marsh/Farm 13 is one of the top largemouth bass fisheries in the U.S.
  • The largest Tripletail in the IGFA Record Books was caught off Canaveral.
  • Space Coast is the northernmost boundary on the East Coast for snook.
  • Space Coast has some of the largest spotted seatrout around.
  • Port Canaveral has great surf fishing or pier fishing from Jetty Park
  • Cocoa Beach’s Thousand Islands area is lively with ladyfish, snook and trout
  • Bass Pro Shops in Palm Bay has all the gear needed to enjoy a successful day of fishing
  • Sebastian Fishing Museum has artifacts from fishing families involved in early commercial fishing
  • Go to the Sebastian Inlet where snook, Spanish mackerel and redfish bite
  • Many charters are available for salt and freshwater fishing
 

Vacation Planner for Florida’s Space Coast

Dive into the Space Coast Vacation Planner then launch into an unforgettable getaway. 

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