FISHING GUIDE · VERACRUZ & TAMAULIPAS, MEXICO

Veracruz and Tampico, Mexico Fishing Guide

This coast mixes reef and nearshore fishing around Veracruz with river and estuary fishing for tarpon and snook around Tampico. Mexico requires a federal sport fishing permit to fish from a boat, and the Veracruz reefs are a national park run by CONANP. Snook have a closed season in summer, and winter cold fronts can close the ports to small boats.

📍 Mexico's Gulf coast. The Sistema Arrecifal Veracruzano national park covers reefs off the Port of Veracruz and off Punta Antón Lizardo, split by the Jamapa River mouth at Boca del Río. Tampico sits on the north bank of the Pánuco River about 6 miles inland from the Gulf, on the Tamaulipas-Veracruz line.

Map: spots, ramps and marinas

★ Fishing hot spot · ● Boat ramp · ● Marina · ▭ Protected area (solid red = no fishing, dashed = fishing with rules)

Open the full Mexico Gulf Coast map →

Quick facts

The Sistema Arrecifal Veracruzano national park was decreed on August 24, 1992, covers about 52,238 hectares and has 23 reefs in two groups.
UNESCO named the Veracruz reef park a biosphere reserve in 2006; it is also a Ramsar wetland.
The Pánuco River is about 320 miles long and empties into the Gulf at Tampico-Ciudad Madero.
Zane Grey's book 'Tales of Fishes' opens with 'Byme-by-Tarpon,' about tarpon fishing on the Pánuco from Tampico.
Atlantic tarpon are listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN.

What you can catch

Tarpon (sábalo)
Classic Pánuco River fish; limit 2 per angler per day under NOM-017; release is encouraged.
Common snook (róbalo blanco)
Rivers and estuaries; closed season July 1 - Aug 15.
Black snook and fat snook
Also covered by the July 1 - Aug 15 closed season.
Snapper
Reef and nearshore fish around Boca del Río.
Jacks
Nearshore around Veracruz and Boca del Río.
Dorado (mahi-mahi)
Offshore; 2 per angler per day under NOM-017.
Sailfish and marlin
Offshore; 1 billfish per angler per day under NOM-017.

Month by month

January	Cold fronts (nortes) can close ports to small boats. Octopus closed in the reef park Jan 1 - end of Feb.
February	Cold-front season; octopus closed in the reef park.
March	Cold fronts still possible; check port status.
April	Fronts can still arrive (Cold Front No. 50 closed Veracruz departures in May 2026).
May	Late fronts possible; check weather and port notices.
June	Snook open through June 30.
July	Snook closed season starts July 1 (federal waters off Tamaulipas and Veracruz).
August	Snook closed through Aug 15. Octopus closed in the reef park Aug 1-30.
September	Snook open again after Aug 15.
October	Start of cold-front season on the Gulf; watch forecasts.
November	Cold fronts; check port status before trips.
December	Cold fronts; check port status before trips.

Tips

Get a CONAPESCA sport fishing permit before fishing from a boat; shore fishing does not need one.
Carry your permit on board and show it if asked; charter operators must carry vessel and angler permits.
Release tarpon and snook you do not need; released fish do not count toward the limit.
Ask at the reef park (CONANP) office about no-fishing and no-anchoring areas before fishing near the Veracruz reefs; the Isla de Sacrificios reef has been closed to fishing since 1982.
Watch for cold-front port closures and red beach flags around Veracruz and Boca del Río.

Rules and license

CONAPESCA (federal fisheries); CONANP (Sistema Arrecifal Veracruzano National Park) · Official rules page ↗

Federal sport fishing permit (CONAPESCA) needed to fish from a boat; issued by the day, week, month or year. Not needed from shore.
NOM-017-PESC-1994: 10 fish per angler per day, no more than 5 of one species.
Marlin, sailfish, swordfish or shark: 1 per angler per day (counts as 5 fish). Tarpon, dorado or roosterfish: 2 per day (each counts as 5).
Marlin, sailfish, swordfish, dorado, roosterfish and tarpon are reserved for sport fishing within 50 nautical miles of the coast.
Snook closed season July 1 - Aug 15 each year in federal waters off Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Tabasco and Campeche (2025 federal agreement, written for commercial fishing).
No taking crustaceans, mollusks, marine mammals or reptiles under the sport fishing rules.
Octopus closed in the Veracruz reef park Jan 1 - end of Feb and Aug 1-30.
Sistema Arrecifal Veracruzano is a national park run by CONANP; check its management rules with the park office before fishing there.

Rules change. Always check the official page before you fish.

Boat ramps and marinas

The map above shows 2 boat ramps and 1 marinas from OpenStreetMap. Tap any dot for directions.

Barra de Cazones
Boat ramp (Veracruz)

Sources

Checked October 2026. BigJoe does not invent facts: every number on this page comes from the sources listed above.