Great for the kids and a half day. But if you are looking for meat than book a whole day.

I have lived in Florida all my life and always went fishing down in the Keys. A friend of mine and myself went out but we weren't crazy about fishing. We packed a big lunch and went up on the roof and listen to music and ate our lunch and we had such an amazing day. read more

The Critter Fleet is a marina located in Ponce Inlet. They have large "party boats," which take dozens of people out fishing for half- and full-day trips, as well as smaller charter vessels which focus on sport fishing of larger beasts, such as marlins and sharks. I can't say I have experience with charter fishing as an adult; my father was a captain here, and I spent many a happy childhood day here. What I can say is that this is a great place to stop by, even if you're not planning on fishing. Around 4 or 5 each day, the boats come back in. As they unload and clean the customers' catch, large groups of pelicans gather around to inspect the work and snap at scraps. It's a really happy scene, and one that is entirely Florida. I love coming here to take in that ambiance, as the sun is setting over the intracoastal and the happy, sunburnt fishermen are heading home. This is old Daytona Beach at its finest. read more

Critter Fleet - Fishing Near Me - Ponce Inlet, Florida

Of all the charters I've been on (there have been many) Critter Fleet is a complete waste of many. I know that fish don't always bite, but on all the other charters I've been on, the captain doesn't just set in one place. I have been with some captains that would move the boat after just 15 minutes of no bites. This captain made his first stop. After about an hour of mediocre fishing, he decided to move. We stopped, he said to drop the lines and that was it. We didn't move again until time to head back to the dock. Sorriest fishing trip I have ever been on. I could write a lot more but it's really not worth anymore of my time. Just don't waste your money on this outfit !! read more

the crew mates were friendly but very unprofessional. They ended up not having enough bait to last the whole trip because apparently someone didn't do what they were supposed to. The captain was very smug and wouldn't give me any space and kept telling me to do this and do that. We were suffocating from the amount of cigarette smoke on the boat, seems there was no rules against smoking. I must admit we did catch good fish and a good amount of them. We then got back to the dock and i brought my own rod so i just dipped my line in the water and caught a cat fish, i then just got barked at about how there's no fishing at the dock even though there's no sign that says no fishing. Most likely will not be coming back. read more

there updated equiptment claim is a kie maybe back in the 80s captian would not stay in one place for more than 5 min.even when the fish were starting to bite. I will never go on the charter again. the total day was a waist of time and money. read more

First I couldn't use my own rod because it had braided line, plus you were not allowed to have a knife because they were afraid you would chip there paint cutting up your bait, no coolers in the cabin if you have bait in them. The worst part is I caught a 6 ft nurse shark (over 54" is legal) and they wouldn't bring it aboard. That's a lot of shark steaks that I told the mate I wanted, and to make things worse they said it didn't count for big fish pot. The captains buddy must have won that pot with a 13 inch fish read more

Great ride today ! Note red snapper we couldn't keep but we had a blast regardless. Caught 4 snappers: lane , mangrove and vermillion Great crew!!! Wish I remembered their names but it was on the 9 am half day boat Tuesday the 16th of May Cheers to the crew!! read more

We went out on a 1/2 day March 15,2018. There was 6 of us in our group. The experience was wonderful. All the crew members were friendly, happy, ready to assist. Special thanks to John, he was on the spot every time we needed help, always encouraging and giving advice on how to catch fish, how to put the bait on, never let us run out of bait. Would highly recommend this group. Will definitely use them again. Robin , Clyde, Dave, Carmelita, Richard and Josh. read more

Have gone out three times over the years and couldn't have asked for better experiences. You have to know what time of year to go out or you'll catch... nothing. All three times we caught fish all day, the most exciting was trolling for sailfish. We caught so much grouper and snapper another time we could only keep a quarter of it. I don't know why you would only go out 28 miles, we usually go out at least 40, probably some misinformation there. I'll upload photos of a couple fish I caught on separate occasions. read more

Critter Fleet - 30lb+ Grouper - Fishing Near Me - Ponce Inlet, Florida

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Horrible communication skills, we drove 10hrs and was told to be there by 7:30am for a 8am launch. Well we get there early at 7:20am to be told that the boat left at 7am because of the tide. They said they told us but noone called us and I have phone records to back it up. Now I have to kids devastated and a long drive back home. Thanks for being a Horrible business. read more

I want to start off by saying I go on a lot of head boats and this turned out to be one of the better ones. I went in a full day trip (note half the time is travel time). The boat was very full of passengers which is to be expected on a head boat. We got a lot of or lines tangelos but the mates on the boat were very attentive to untangle lines, get fish, and re-rig the tackle. The boat captain was great and when the fishing slowed down or no one was catching he would move the boat. All and all a great experience only reason I did not give 5 stars is that when I got off the boat at the end of the trip I went to the office to ask to purchase ice for the fish we caught. The attendant told me that they did not sell ice. She did not offer free ice instead she directed me to 7-11. I had a small cooler and we had a party of 5 at $75 per person some ice is not to much to ask for. read more

My husband and I went deep sea fishing for the very first time yesterday 6/17/20. We did the full day. They have plenty of crew to assist you if you need help, and for a fee will clean what you catch when you get back to shore. We caught about 5 fish, but nothing huge. A few of the other guests did catch big fish. Saw sea turtles, dolphins and flying fish which was nice! 2 pieces of advice for newbies: get there early with a towel to pick your "spot" on the boat and bring food. They do have food available to purchase, but it is microwaved. Also, to the Critter Fleet management, please consider limiting smoking to the upper deck only. We non smokers were subjected to the stink of smokers all day, which sucked. But all in all we had a lot of fun! Would definitely do it again read more

Went for a full day trip (about 8 hours) the other day with my brother and sister in law. We had a great day! Perfect weather, great crew and caught plenty of fish for dinner. Will definitely do again the next time I'm in Daytona. read more

Critter Fleet - Our fish and others. - Fishing Near Me - Ponce Inlet, Florida

I created a yelp account with the sole purpose of giving this review. Me and my mom do not go on vacation often at all and get easily excited all of the new things we're seeing in Florida. We stopped by critters office and bought a hat because we thought it looked like a cool place and we love supporting local small businesses. While in there the woman working at the front desk was very stand offish and smug but we thought nothing of it and were on our way. Then we were getting our things together and figuring out our next stop outside of their office when a man drove by and asks if we were on vacation and we told him we were. He then told us to go look at the water because you can see dolphins and there are pelicans (which we don't have in Philadelphia). My mom turned around and got so exited by the pelican and was being loud about how cool the pelicans and dolphins were, the woman came out of the office and was so rude and nasty to us because we were being "too loud". We were not screaming profanities or arguing, we were just getting overly excited about what we could see off of the dock in this touristy area. I would not be writing this review if she had just asked us nicely to be quiet, this woman was rude and nasty to us and while I didn't take a ride on this charter boat I wouldn't suggest supporting this business. Find a charter boat that is friendly to the tourists who are excited to see things they don't normally see and isn't mean to people that are just having a good time. read more

Nothing but hapless little sharks. Way too many fishing , nothing but tangles. It appeared on the day I went that most did not catch anything. read more

We went out on a half day trip for $70 adults and $60 teens/kids and consider it a great value and a lot of fun for families. We were out from 11-4 and they moved us to a few different places around 9 miles out. We will do this trip again. The crew was excellent and ensured we always had a lot of bait. Our trip had a range of passengers including about 5 yr olds and middle agers. I don't think it would be good for those with unsteady mobility like a walker because the ocean was really rough at times making it hard to stand. The crew was very attentive even though there were about 20 of us catching fish. They removed the catch for us and either released it or threw it back into the water. You can bring coolers with alcohol or other drinks and snacks. You should bring cash to buy candy, drinks, participate in the jackpot biggest fish raffle or rent a towel to save your place by a pole. The pole were very easy to use even for a first timer. If you arrive before 10:30 for the 11am trip you can go on the boat and tie something around the railing where you want to fish. They close that option at 10:30 and then allow everyone on the boat at 11 to choose from the rest of the spaces. The crew will give you your fish to take home as is, or clean it for you. We caught mostly red snapper which is out of season so we had to throw it back. Fun to catch though. Highly recommend. read more

Critter Fleet - Lane snapper - Fishing Near Me - Ponce Inlet, Florida

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Took the half day trip in late December with the whole family -- an hour to get to the fish, two hours fishing, and an hour ride back to the dock. Captain put us right on the fish, and the mates were very helpful for us newbies (including the kids). Caught Red Snapper (which we couldn't keep because they weren't "in season"), Mutton Snapper, and one other kind which I can't remember the name of but was tasty when fried. Two of us fishing brought home five fish totaling ten pounds. Things to know: 1) As soon as you arrive at the dock, tie a towel around the boat's rail next to a fishing pole to reserve your seat. The "best" spots are at the back of the boat. We didn't know this, so ended up near the front of the boat. Still caught a lot of fish, so I don't know that there's a "bad" spot. 2) If you are prone to motion sickness at all, use Dramamine. Once you're on the boat, it's too late. Five of us went, only two got to fish -- three were too sick. Saw several others -- adults and kids -- get sick as well. Mates suggested taking Dramamine at bedtime the night before, and again in the morning before heading to the dock, to give it time to get into your system. read more

DO NOT USE !! VERY RUDE !! Called last week to check on prices and availability for me, my fiance and a few friends from church and work. after attempting to get info on availabilty and what we need to do and get together. the lady rudely told me once I got my "stuff together" to call them back when I was more prepared. as If could know who all was willing to go and pay their prices and get everyone signed up with no info from the charter on availibilty. price and what was included. I overlooked it and chalked it up to her having a BAD day. But the final straw was when I called back to book a group of 6 for the allday trip and I asked if it was still available for tomorrow and she said yes with a attitude and as I was trying to explain that we talked last week about a group of us for tomorrows allday trip she cut me off and put me on hold. when she finally came back and ask what I needed, i started to get back into our conversation that we had about my church and friends, she quickly cut me off and VERY RUDELY ask HOW CAN I HELP YOU !? I have someone on hold and all i keep hearing about is your church and buddies. If thats how they treat [eople trying to set up a allday fishing charter I can only imagine how the trip onboard would be !! DO NOT USE !! HORRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE !! read more

With the money that I paid I assumed I would be taken to the fish. Did not even catch a single thing and not many people on the boat did either. Staff wasn't very friendly as well. All around not a very good experience. Will not return. read more

The mates were great and helpful. There seemed to be some regulars in the charter, and they definitely received preferential treatment. The regulars were able to use live bait fish while everyone else didn't. When I caught a live bait fish I refused to let the mate take it although he tried a few times. Also a young pre teen caught a huge amber jack the biggest fish of the day, yet one of the 'regulars' received the biggest fish of the day pot. Kinda shitty. read more

Very poor fishing spots, 28 miles out to catch 12" seabass. Impossible to understand what captain says over intercom. On top of everything, $40 was stolen from my mothers wallet. Will never, ever go on this boat again. read more

What a scam!!! Buddy's get best spots at the back of the boat then strategically place the rear of the boat at the drop off of the reef. Then you can catch the bait fish for them. Don't get in the "big fish pot", another scam. Then when I did catch something, they told me it wasn't worth anything and not edible. Come to find out, it was worth something. Don't waste your money. read more

Awful employee. Nasty staff not nice. Yelled at my son who is nice and made cry. Followed all the way to the car yelling. Because not allowed to take a picture of a sea turtle. read more

Our party went out today on the vessel "Waterproof". Captain Tim and mate Nick nailed it! We caught a total of 14 fish which included Barracuda, King Mackerel, and a 47 lb Wahoo! And all we have to say is...WAHOO!!! A perfect day with a very professional captain and mate. It could not have been better. read more

I was very disappointed in the way the crew approached fishing in general. A toad fish was caught and kept on the surface so long that is belly filled up with air. Then it couldn't get below the surface. The crew said it doesn't matter it's a trash fish. A morey eel was caught and extremely tangled. I asked the guy if he was going to get it out of the line. He released it completely tangled and there is no chance it would live. He didn't care. Once again called it a trash fish. I have no problem with eating fish, we kept what we could. I have no problem cutting up fish for bait to catch bigger fish. I have a problem with killing fish because you don't give a shit and think their useless. Also there must not be a smoking policy because we had to sit and smell cigarette smoke all day. I don't see myself using this company again. read more

NEVER AGAIN with these people. I have been party boat fishing for 30+ years (in fresh water) and this was a new low! The absolute worst fishing experience ever...and yes I caught a few fish, wich is beside the point. The worst of it was the crew ; smart ass and lazy and only interesed in tips. Tips mean " To Insure Proper Service" I did , they didn't. I guess 5 bucks a man wasn't enough. The mate gave me a junk outfit to fish with. Since there were but 20 people on a boat that seats at least 40, I asked for a better rod and reel ; they had plenty of extras stacked on the boat...My equipment was missing 2 rod guides, the reel squeeked and complained and had no level wind. my so-called helper curtly stated that "pfffft, they are all the same " and briskly joined his buddies in the back of the boat where he remained most of the day, (I guess that's where the big tippers were) except when he made fun of me when the junk reel backlashed saying " that's the 3rd time you did that ! can't you operate that thing?" This is guest services? When we finally stopped to fish, mate came by and threw some chunked bait in my bucket without a word. The people in the back started catching some good fish on whole bait ,and when I asked the crew for some they "didn't have any more". even as I noticed the bait well had a good supply. This was my first salt water fishing experience and I got not 1 word of instruction or encouragement from any of this mercenary crew. As we docked and the crew was passing out the fish caught, he held high my lone, small keeper as the other crew members chuckled amid the other fishermen. Insult added to injury and for this I paid $65.00 plus tips. The only thing I can say about the other glowing reviews is that you folks must have had a completely different crew than I ,or you have a pile of extra money to tip with. read more

If you are looking for a place to go deep dropping, this is it. Great crew, fish and times!

Joe and Dana T. When we went out it was cold weather. The CPT. worked very hard to get us on fish and the crew was great. (Zack was the best. Worked his a$$ off all day) Did not catch a lot of fish because of weather but we did get some fairly large fish. We will be back next year in warmer weather to try again. Thanks for a great time. read more

Very unorganized.....Very unprofessional. I booked a fishing trip with this company. I was reassured that the date was reserved and that there was NO NEED to make a deposit. I stated to them that this would be announced to a church group of 360 people and 45 would come. I announced to my church group that reservations were made. I printed out 55 invitation with "Critter Fleet" name on them. 45 people changed appointments, asked for time off etc...2 weeks after I made the reservation I got a call from Critter Fleet stating that my trip was cancelled!! Someone had made a deposit and reserved the date I had reserved 2 months before I called and they "forgot" to check the books when they booked my trip. The manager was sarcastic "oops, nothing we can do, call another company" and very careless.... I'm not happy with this company, they are unorganized and unprofessional. read more

My family drove 2 hours to do the half day fishing. When you drive that distance and they tell you there was a cancellation of a party of 5 and they're not going out because they were not able to collect enough fees is very UNPROFESSIONAL. Fortunately, several people ponied up so they could collect the $220 deficit for a cancelled party why don't you consider the potential of income/tips? IMO our family would never use this company again. There are plenty of other reputable companies that will go out despite a FIVE passenger deficit. Yes, the crew were nice hence the three stars. Also, why don't you get off your rear lady and clean the restrooms? The lady helping us, not sure if she is part owner, is extremely lazy...she explicitly said she would contact us regardless if the boat was going out. Never received a call, In fact I had to call to listen to their recorded message to verify if they were going out. Step up your game folks because there's plenty of competition. Three stars is generous. The booking lady needs to be replaced. Replace her and you may get four or five stars since the crew was on top of their game. The only suggestion I have is to start your cruise earlier and replace the rude and unprofessional booking agent. read more

I've never been fishing in the ocean so wasn't sure what to expect. They have half and full days .But the boat was extremely crowded some guy took my brothers spot and we tied on a rag or whatever then he was an ass and didn't move so I passively aggressively took it when left and told him to use the empty pole on the front of the boat that he should've used the whole fucking time anyways you basically had a huge weight and dropped it straight down in front of you and hoped you didn't get tangled with three other people. We did catch some fish I was just happy to pull something out of the ocean. We also went out a long ways like for an hour and half both ways so I thought that cut into the full day of fishing. The crew was very on top of it helping people when they had fish on and filling the bait trough you could tell they really bust their ass so no complaints they're a great crew I jus think the party fishing isn't really for me. read more

Nothing but good things to say. All the crew was super friendly, the food and drink available on board was good and inexpensive. Loved how the crew asked and was available to help if needed. Make sure to "rent" a towel to reserve a rod spot insuring a space to keep your group together. Plenty of bait was given and the captain took us to a number of fishing spots, the fish were biting at each and every place we went to. Can't say enough good things, a great experience, we loved it!!!! read more

it was a good time fishing monday june 12 1/2 day, got there at 8 am a couple of people there before me, I got the port side corner back of the boat. mates were respect full and professional. murphy the galley guy was very help full when my nephew was woozy. caught all kinds of fish, all sizes. the best was the 25 lb red snapper i caught. so what i had to let it go, it was a great catch and got a awesome picture first. will be back!!! JAY QUEENS N.Y. read more

Took a group of 20 employees on the boat. Overall was very happy with the experience. Couple things to note: - regulars do get preferential treatment, back of the boat privilege, and live/cut bait that everyone else catches. They should share the fresh caught cut bait instead of just giving it to the regulars. When they sell the pot for who catches the biggest fish, it's not fair when there is not a level playing field. - the captain is flat out rude. I experienced it first hand, watched him mistreat someone who wasn't fluent in English, it was a shame and had he gone any further, I was going to speak up. It's been mentioned in previous posts I've seen. Had it not been for the captain, I would have rated four or five stars. He was barking orders at customers, like they were his hired help. While on the intercom, his tone and energy was dead. Overall very disappointed with the captain. With a few different ideas, I think this is an area that has the potential for being so good, but instead was so poor. - mates were attentive, fast and very good. They are well worth the money. - they are very stingy on the bait. You get as much squid as you want, only get a couple ballyhoo unless your a regular. If you ask for more, they say they are out. - I was partly serving as company photographer on this company outing. Because of that I got around the boat a lot. I notice often when someone caught something the mates would say, sorry it's not a keeper, but then they would carry it to the back and then cut it up. Eventually the cut fish would end up on the regulars line as bait. Didn't feel like a fair situation. Again, was overall happy with the experience, but if you are booking with them, know what to expect. SP read more

the worst trip we have ever taken. 74 people on our boat and all three in our party could not get up to the rail at one time. A WASTE of money. When we did get up to fish there was tangle after tangle because of over crowding. Fishing was terrible everything we manged to catch was thrown back in and most fish weren't even 12 inches !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! read more

i gave my daughter my brand new ugly stick w a good penn reel when i was checking in for the boat i asked for an upgraded rod and reel 10 bucks extra when i got on the boat i was given a setup out of the same pile of rods and reels as everyone else on the boat. that was yesterday today i told " holly" about it her response was well are you going today or not she should have made it right and put the ten bucks towards todays trip capt is good kept trying to put us one fish which he did murph the galley man and the mates cameron and Luke did an excellent job might try the sea spirit next time due to the principle. read more