Fishing guides › American Samoa
FISHING GUIDE · AMERICAN SAMOA
American Samoa Fishing Guide
American Samoa offers trolling for wahoo, mahi-mahi, blue marlin and tuna, plus reef and bottom fishing, mostly from small local boats. The marine sanctuary bans anchoring everywhere and fishing in Fagatele Bay, and the national park allows only traditional subsistence fishing with village permission. Many villages also manage their own reef areas, some of them no-take.
📍 American Samoa, South Pacific, about halfway between Hawaii and New Zealand. Main island Tutuila (Pago Pago Harbor), plus Aunu'u, the Manu'a Islands (Ofu, Olosega, Ta'u), Swains Island and Rose Atoll.
Map: spots, ramps and marinas
★ Fishing hot spot · ● Boat ramp · ● Marina · ▭ Protected area (solid red = no fishing, dashed = fishing with rules)
Open the full American Samoa map →
Quick facts
- The National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa protects 13,581 square miles in six areas; it began in 1986 as 0.25 square miles in Fagatele Bay and was expanded in 2012.
- Fagatele Bay is a no-take area: no fishing, and fishing gear must be stowed.
- The National Park of American Samoa (1988) covers 13,500 acres, including about 4,000 acres of ocean, mostly coral reef, with some 950 reef fish species.
- American Samoa's governor banned SCUBA spearfishing by executive order on April 6, 2001, to help reef fish recover.
- Fagasa village and DMWR closed part of Fagatele within Fagasa to all fishing for 5 years starting June 4, 2024.
What you can catch
- Wahoo
One of the main non-tuna pelagic catches. - Mahi-mahi
Main non-tuna pelagic catch. - Blue marlin
Main non-tuna pelagic catch. - Sailfish
Caught offshore. - Skipjack tuna (atu)
Culturally important; mostly landed by purse seiners for the Pago Pago cannery. - Albacore and yellowfin tuna
Albacore is the longline target; tuna also caught trolling. - Bottomfish (snappers, groupers)
Handline fishing from small alia catamarans; federal catch limits apply. - Reef fish
Surgeonfish, parrotfish, goatfish, groupers and wrasses; village rules may apply.
Month by month
| January | Trolling and bottom fishing; ask local captains what is running. |
|---|---|
| February | Trolling and bottom fishing. |
| March | Trolling and bottom fishing. |
| April | Trolling and bottom fishing. |
| May | Trolling and bottom fishing. |
| June | Trolling and bottom fishing. Fagasa no-take closure began Jun 4, 2024 (5 years). |
| July | Trolling and bottom fishing. |
| August | Trolling and bottom fishing. |
| September | Trolling and bottom fishing. |
| October | Trolling and bottom fishing. |
| November | Trolling and bottom fishing. |
| December | Trolling and bottom fishing. |
Tips
- Ask the village for permission before fishing anywhere, and always in the national park.
- Never anchor anywhere in the marine sanctuary.
- Before fishing from a boat in Aunu'u Zone A, notify the sanctuary superintendent or designee in Aunu'u village.
- In Aunu'u Zone B you may troll for pelagic fish, but bottom fishing is banned.
- Free-dive spearfishing is allowed in many areas, but SCUBA spearfishing is banned.
Rules and license
American Samoa Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources (DMWR); NOAA National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa; National Park Service · Official rules page ↗
- Fagatele Bay: no fishing or harvest; gear must be stowed.
- Sanctuary-wide: no anchoring; no taking giant clams, live coral or live rock; no spearguns with SCUBA; no seines, trammel, drift gill or fixed nets; no bottom trawls.
- Aunu'u Zone B: no bottom fishing; trolling for pelagics allowed.
- National Park: only traditional subsistence fishing (rod and reel, net or basket, pole spear); no license needed for visitors; Fagasa no-take areas closed.
- Village marine protected areas: villages may ban all fishing or set their own size, gear and season rules; no taking sea turtles.
- DMWR fishing license applies to commercial seafood operations; recreational license rules and fees not confirmed. Check current rules with DMWR (684-633-4456).
- Territorial fishing rules are in the American Samoa Administrative Code, Title 24, Chapter 9.
Rules change. Always check the official page before you fish.
Boat ramps and marinas
The map above shows 3 boat ramps and 0 marinas from OpenStreetMap. Tap any dot for directions.
- Boat ramp near Faga`alu Bay
Sources
- https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-15/subtitle-B/chapter-IX/subchapter-B/part-922/subpart-J
- https://americansamoa.noaa.gov/about/
- https://www.nps.gov/npsa/planyourvisit/fishing.htm
- https://www.nps.gov/npsa/learn/news/fact-sheet.htm
- https://www.wpcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/AS-Fisheries-Fact-Sheet_Aug2016.pdf
- https://www.wpcouncil.org/fisheries/american-samoa-archipelago/
- https://lists.coralreefs.org/pipermail/coral-list/2001-April/029565.html
- https://faolex.fao.org/docs/pdf/ams107515.pdf
- https://www.samoanews.com/node/129437
- https://dmwr.as.gov/
- https://dmwr.as.gov/permits/fishing-license/
Checked October 2026. BigJoe does not invent facts: every number on this page comes from the sources listed above.