What would you recommend to anglers fishing in Ocean City, Maryland for the first time?

Never book Coastal Charter Services LLC. Worse charter experience ever and that was before we even stepped foot on the boat. Complete bait and switch. The guy had his lawn mowing cousin be our "captain" for the day. Completely unprofessional would be an understatement.

Just have fun, look for smaller charters. Those guys are usually from around the area and know good spots because they fish them themselves. Bigger charters sometimes mix parties and are busier, there is A LOT going on. A smaller charter you get focused attention and instruction if you need it. This might be better if it's your first time or if you have kids in tow. Happy Fishing!

read the reviews , but more importantly talk to the captain, if he sounds like a jerk he's probably a jerk. Got a boat one time out of Lewes , great reviews, but the captain and mate were drunks and wanted to spend the entire day telling nasty jokes. The boat was an old wooden tub, very bad experience

You can fish for a number of species in Ocean City, whether it be something easier to catch for you first timers, or something that has a little more weight to it for those of us that appreciate a fight on the end of our line. You also have several areas available for throwing your line in the water or you can catch a charter for a few hours of overnight. And if you don't catch what you're looking for your first day, just go out the next day. It can change overnight!

The weather changed from many days of heat, to a cool fall like air temp...a windy day, we did not expect to be at all lucky, but were incredibly surprised. Kevin & Shane were very knowledgeable on how to land these nice size fish!

Look for small charters (like the Bayside Guide Service) around the bay for flounder during the day and rockfish & blues at night. Also try the Oceanic Pier at the inlet; especially good on moving tides and at night.

Book an evening trip with Captain Tony from Saltwater Adventures and tell him you want to catch blues under the bridge, it will blow your mind if you've never done it, I've fished all my life and you will never fight a fish as strong as a blue pound for pound. CRAZY FUN!!!

Do a private charter vs. the bigger boats with 50-60 people. The bigger boats a little cheaper but you have 4 people trying to fish in less than a 4 foot spot....lots of tangles and less opportunities to get fish with so many lines in the water.

Go with a good crew and spend the extra to get out of the bay. We went 20+ miles out and it was awesome.

Depending on target fish and booking charter really look at weather and peak season for target fish.

Understand fishing does not guarantee catching fish. Enjoy the sun the water and have fun. Life is short enjoy the moments.

We had a beautiful day for fishing. We went in the afternoon so we had to go to different areas but we succeeded.

Definitely book with Wayne and Bayside Guide Service! I never went fishing before and did not think I would catch anything! They made it so easy and enjoyable. We had a blast and would do this again!

I would recommend booking a charter with Saltwater adventures LLC inshore or offshore. Bring rain gear, and always check the weather because it can change in a heartbeat.

Make sure you book a guide to take you fishing since you may not know the places to go fishing guides will be greatly interested in helping you catch fish

Spend the money for the private charter and do atleast a 6 hour trip. The time flys buy. The Shark fishing at night is hot as is the flounder fishing during the day.

Very informative, and tried super hard to find the sharks. We even were able to catch, tag, and release a shark back into the ocean!

If you decide you want to go out on a charter boat consider Reel Naughty. Professional, friendly, and have the experience to have you catching fish.

Find a charter that you are comfortable with especially if you are un experienced or do not have a lot of time to fish.

Bring something for motion sickness. I’ve seen the big tuff guys bent over the side of the boat ?

I would recommend visiting with the "Bottom Bouncer Fishing" team to take you out for your fishing adventure.

Just make sure you’re going out when the tide is in and the bay water is clear, or go out a bit and catch stripers.

First timers would love this place to fish. Most Captain's are on one mission. For you to have fun. Never had a bad experience in OC Maryland. Some better than others but always great.

Check the weather forecast and plan ahead! We happened to book on a very windy and cold day that was much colder than the annual average for this time of year (second week of May).

Listen to the Captain, if he does not think it makes sense to go out, reschedule. We were lucky, and had a nice weather day.

Weather is always a crap shoot, but the fish are out there. Its easy to find a great boat to fish with.

Yes, if this is your first time going out take your motion sickness pills at night and again in the morning. Good luck fishing. Safe seas and plenty of fish, The Moore Family

The only reason it wasn’t what we expected was only due to the weather and out of our control but we still had a great time

We fished in a canal, on the pier, on the Judith M (head boat) and with Sportsfishing East Coast. In all that had more fish than we could eat. A Great trip!!

Take trip for sea bass easy first time catch, good eating, lots of fun. Don't judge the trip by the size of the boat but the history of the captain.