These are the best places to hunt lionfish on vacation based on ease of regulations, number of lionfish, and quality of the dive destination. Dive operators in the United States and around the Caribbean have figured out that allowing visitors to hunt lionfish is a double win because it increases tourism and it helps the environment. Divers themselves win because they get to add a little more adventure to their already memorable vacation and usually a fresh fish dinner to go along! We aren’t the only ones to plan their vacation around places where you can hunt lionfish, so we’ve decided to compile this list of the best places to hunt lionfish as a tourist. Interested in maximizing travel rewards while venturing out to hunt lionfish? Check out The Point Pirate for great information on getting the most bang for your buck. There are a lot more spectacular destinations then we have room to list here, so if you are looking for an operator in a specific location check out our extensive list of dive operators who allow lionfish hunting here.
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Surface interval betwen lionfish hunts at Pompio Cay, Belize
Belize
Placencia is a small town in southern Belize along the coast and close to the amazing barrier reef just offshore. The rustic community of Placencia is currently going through a rapid growth phase and things are only getting better. Along with the incredible water clarity and marine life, Placencia has a lot of lionfish still and some great local dive operators. We used Splash Belize by Patty Ramirez when we were there and highly recommend them for their professional staff and organization. We have also been told that GoSeaBelize also in Placencia will take you lionfish hunting also. Be sure to stop in and say ‘Hi!’ to Kaj at the Treasure Box jewelry store and see her amazing lionfish jewelry.
We’ve also had friends tell us about successful lionfish hunts in the northern Belize islands as well, so check with the shop where you plan to visit and they will probably be able to help you out. -
Aruba
Dining on fresh speared lionfish in Aruba
‘The one happy island’ of Aruba is not only a great place to visit, but also a fun place to go lionfish hunting. There are several very active groups and dive operators hunting around the island of Aruba to contact before you go and very few restrictions which makes it one of the best places to hunt lionfish. We went lionfish hunting with JADS while we were there and you can also contact Scuba Safari Aruba, Unique Sports of Aruba, Aqua Windies, or the Aruba Lionfish Initiative. Before you go take a look at some of the great lionfish hunting videos from Hunting Lionfish Aruba.
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Cozumel, Mexico
Cozumel has to be on the list because it’s one of the most popular dive destinations in the Caribbean for good reason. Beautiful reef on the leeward side of the island, incredible marine life, lots to do and plenty of affordable accommodations all combine to make Cozumel a top-notch dive destination. Much of the regular diving is done in a marine park and only the divemasters are allowed to carry spears, so much of the lionfish hunting is done a short ferry ride away on the mainland side or outside the park. Check ahead of time with Scuba Luis to set up a lionfish hunt while you are there. If you visit in the summer you can knock another bucket list item off by swimming with whale sharks offshore of the nearby Isla Mujeres.
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Jamaica
Cleaning up the lionfish at Couples Resorts in Jamaica
The dive operators at Couples Swept Away and Couples in Negril and Ocho Rios are on top of their game when it comes to providing lionfish hunts to their guests. These luxury all-inclusive resorts include the diving, and after getting your PADI Lionfish Hunter Specialty they will take you out for some hands-on lionfish hunting excitement as part of your vacation. We’ve been following their facebook page here for a while, and I can tell you that with all the positive feedback I see from their visitors they are doing everything right! We’ve also heard positive reports about the South Side Sandals resort in Jamaica.
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Incredible numbers of lionfish in the Northern Gulf of Mexico
Florida Panhandle from Mobile Bay, AL to Apalachicola, FL
Florida has great diving and great lionfish hunting all around the state. Jupiter, FL is one of my favorite places to dive along with the gorgeous Florida Keys, but it is the sheer quantity of lionfish in the northern Gulf of Mexico that makes it one of the best places to hunt lionfish. Perhaps it is the numerous and scattered artificial reefs in the area that draw the lionfish in from the relatively sparse hard bottom around the area, or maybe it’s because the northern Gulf of Mexico was later in the invasion cycle than some of the eastern areas, but whatever the reason the hunters in the area are spearing ridiculous numbers of lionfish. The local charters that we have heard great things about are Niuhi Charters in Pensacola , Panama City Diving , Reef Cleaners Dive Charter , Gulf Diver ( Coastal Alabama) and DreadKnot Charters.
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Barbados
The author freediving for lionfish in Barbados
Barbados is another great vacation destination with excellent diving and plenty of opportunities to hunt lionfish. Carlisle Bay is full of excellent wrecks to visit and the nearby Garrison provides rich and interesting history to explore. When we were there we had excellent lionfish dives with Barbados Blue, run by marine biologist Andre Miller. If you’re a freediver you can also brush up on your freediving skills while lionfish hunting with Alex at Spearfishing Barbados.
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U.S. Virgin Islands
With the 3 gorgeous islands of St. Thomas, St. Johns, and St. Croix there is plenty to discover and enjoy in these easily accessible islands with direct flights and no passport needed for Americans. The ease of access, spearfishing friendly environment, and limited restrictions are why the USVI make our list of best places to hunt lionfish. CORE is a local non-profit group which has been working hard to promote lionfish hunting in the USVI and are a good place to start for local info. Much of the water around St. John is a marine preserve, so St. Thomas and St. Croix will have easier access to hunting grounds. We’ve heard positive reports about lionfish hunting in St. Croix with Sweet Bottom Divers and there is also a private charter Blue Canyon Charters.
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Lionfish hunters in Curacao
Curacao
LionfishCaribbean is a great resource in Curacao where you can learn to hunt lionfish and even have jewelry made out of your catch. Based out of The Dive Shop, they can help you with all of your lionfish hunting needs.
Ocean Encounters in Curacao has been running lionfish hunts on the island for several years now and have removed thousands of lionfish from the local waters. Lots of the local divers are hunting lionfish regularly in Curacao as well and the majority of other dive shops on the island will take divers hunting. Interestingly, the Zookeeper lionfish container was designed and originally built by Allie ElHage while living and diving in Curacao.
Please know that this list is not meant to rank the locations in order, they are all great places to dive and hunt lionfish and one is not necessarily better than the others. There are also a lot of other excellent places to hunt lionfish on vacation that we did not list either because we haven’t had the chance to visit yet ourselves or the location may have other restrictions. Some great destinations require special permits, high fees, or have gear restrictions that are keeping them off this list because we want to provide you with the easiest and most accessible places to plan your hunt.
Comment below with your favorite lionfish hunting destination!
Special thanks to the intrepid travelling lionfish hunter Roger Muller and to Allie ElHage of Zookeeper for their help and recommendations in compiling this list. Do you have any recommendations for a top lionfish hunting destination? Please comment below to let us know your favorite place to hunt lionfish!
Que de beaux endroits ! Mais vous me trouverez aussi en Guadeloupe et en Martinique, si vous voulez me chasser en français. Come in French West Indies, in Guadeloupe and Martinique, if you want to hunt me in french style.
Salut, je viens d’arriver en Guadeloupe et j’aimerais beaucoup aller en chasser ici. Connaissez-vous des clubs de plongée en Guadeloupe qui chassent le poisson-lion? Merci!
Guadeloupe– An-Ba Dlola
Great article and it is bittersweet that Florida made the list, but it looks like you’ll have to do another article about top places to EAT lionfish while on vacation! Hunting is fun and wonderful but can be a limiting conservation action since many people do not dive, but everyone needs to eat a we now know lionfish are delicious. For that reason on the east coast of Florida we are highlighting eating lionfish as the best mitigation effort for the lionfish invasion. Check out our website, the event is coming up next month and if you are interested come out and dive in the 2-day tourney as well!
Yes, we went to the Sebastian Lionfish Fest last year and it was great! Planning to dive the tournament this year too!
lionfish.co,
A great list but can I suggest two additions:
First, the difficulty of the hunt, and therefore the skill and determination of the hunter is directly proportionate to the frequency of hunting on any given reef. For instance, in grand Turk, in Santa Maria marine park, local dive masters regularly clean the reef and so lionfish, giant, 15 inch plus lionfish, are only found at depths of about 30 m. Or in roatan, off west bay, fish now see and hear a divers approach. These wily fish hide in coral heads and require the hunter to delicately explore these tunnels to find their prey deep inside. Neither is for the unskilled hunter but both are more extremely satisfying then say, the Dominican Republic, where large fish rest in barrel sponges, literally shooting fish in a barrel. Any LF vacation should take account of the divers skill and so the list might be ranked accordingly.
Second, this article only endorses the hunt. On our recent LF vacation, My Wolfpack and I ran out of ways to eat the fish; nachos, pizza, burgers, tartar, ceviche, fry, stuffed,sashimi and fingers. Any LF vacation destination requires the facilities to properly prepare the fish. The more rugged and back water areas have more fish but fewer options to prepare the fish. Perhaps including local restaurants that will clean the fish for the novice hunter, wary of spines, would be helpful.
Happy hunting,
Scott
St Kitts. Was there last week. They’re plentiful and huge! There may be some red tape to get thru to make it happen but the lionfish are eating too well out there, and too many of them. Go get em!!
Great article… But the place with the most Lionfish is off the shores of Daytona Beach, FL. I won the FWC 2016 Lionfish Challenge by killing 3,324 lionfish in this area. Come by Atlantic Scuba to visit or contact Sudden Strike Offshore Adventures.
I am more than a little confused as to why the posted article does not mention Key West all the way up to Cape Hatteras.
There are many dive operators that specifically target Lionfish,
can provide local guides,
as well as Lionfish elimination/specific rental gear,
and have relationships with local restaurants that will prepare the harvest.
Don’t be confused, this is not a list of all the places you can hunt lionfish, just the best ones to go on vacation that have the easiest regulations and the most lionfish. I even specifically mention how I love Florida diving, but the best place for lionfish hunting is the northern Gulf of Mexico because they have the most lionfish. Long boat rides, often poor visibility, to go shoot a few lionfish doesn’t make for an ideal lionfish hunting vacation. Tried to keep this focused on warm, clear water, great vacation spots, ease of regulations, and plenty of lionfish. You can find the full list of places to hunt lionfish here https://lionfish.co/where-to-hunt-lionfish/
A great opportunity to hunt lionfish in November 2019. Long Island, Bahamas is looking for lionfish hunters. Only a couple hours from Florida. Our teams are welcoming seasoned lionfish hunters to join them in bringing them in. Here is the website and contact: https://www.lionfishhunt4.com
Thanks, Charles
Hi,
Akumal Mexico is an excellent diving location for beautiful reef and cenote diving. The Akumal Dive Center is proud to sponsor lion fish hunting trips for locals and tourists. Many of our local restaurants also serve lionfish, which has been compared to lobster. We saw the list of locations for lion fish hunting and would invite you to Akumal, located 1 hour south of Cancun in Quintana Roo.
contact dive@akumaldivecenter.com or visit http://www.akumaldivecenter.com