Serious anglers around the world have swordfish on their must catch lists due to the excitement and fight they know awaits them. You can’t catch this fish on your first time out. It takes years of practice and patience—and a lot of good fishing gear that can withstand the long fight ahead! Swordfish are found in many areas of the world. They are in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans and they can live in warm, tropical waters as well as colder waters. You will most likely need to purchase a permit and adhere to minimum size requirements as well as maximum catch limits. Since you’re fishing about 1,000 feet below, it can be hard to feel if a fish is on the line and ready to be reeled in. It can take anywhere from 15 minutes to 7 hours to reel in your monster fish!

You want to make sure you’re prepared before you head out to the deep waters. Keep reading to see how you can prepare for an awesome swordfish adventure in one of the world’s top fishing locations!

What is a Swordfish

A billfish, many anglers will confuse a swordfish for a marlin or sailfish, especially when one pops out during the day since swordfish lives thousands of feet below the surface. However, swordfish are the strongest of the billfish, mainly due to their tail that has a strong and steady base. They also have a much longer bill, that is flat and blunt instead of round and pointed like a marlin or sailfish. These fish are absolutely massive—they can weigh at least 1,400 pounds and reach lengths from bill to tail of 15 feet. This makes them one of the largest boned fish. Unlike marlin that use their bill to bludgeon and beat their prey, swordfish will use their bill to stab their pray and stun them by shaking them side to side. 

Swordfish is a prized fish for its meat around the world. Many parts of the world will fish for them a lot, but there are strong conservation regulations and overfishing rules that keeps the populations at a base level. They are at the top of the food chain, which means their meat can acquire a lot of Mercury toxins as they feed. You should not eat their meat too much—no more than one serving a week. 

How to Catch a Swordfish 

You have to be mentally prepared in order to catch this impressive predator. For a long time, daytime swordfishing was not a possibility. It wasn’t until technology advanced that fishermen could expand their catching horizons. You need to make sure the charter boat that you hire is equipped with technology that has radar that can see what fish are down below. On your radar, you need to look out for a deep scattering layer below that will be around a thousand feet below, which is where plankton, baitfish, and squid will hang out. At night, these fish come to the surface, which also brings swordfish up to the surface. 

If you are looking to go fishing during the day, there are a couple of techniques you can do to hook a big one. There is bump trolling, which the most popular option. You drop your bait into the deep waters on a few buoy rods, which is a line attached to a fishing buoy, at varying lengths. After you do that, bump your boat forward so your lines jerk up before slowing back down. You are making your bait look like a dying fish!

The second option is using breakaway sinkers. This is a good tactic if the current is strong. You tie a 10-to-12-pound breakaway to your bait so the bait hovers about 100 feet from the bottom. You need to attach strobe lights onto the lines or you won’t know where it went! You then add different lines with sinkers of various weights so they hang at different heights above the ocean floor. After you set the sinkers, you will drive your boat against the current, forwards and back, until you catch a big one. 

The final suggested way to fish for swordfish in the daytime is known as the two-weight rig. Meant for waters with little current with reliable fish populations, you will put bait on a light lead about 50 feet away from each other. You will then attach a steel bar to your line using a hanger and duct tape and watch it sink. This brings your bait down low enough to entice a big fish!

Top Five Fishing Spots to Catch Swordfish 

Swordfish live in the same waters as other sportfish, such as marlin. You don’t want to go for waters too deep, like 5,000 feet. Going for that deep scattering layer around 1,500 feet below is all you need to do if you are going fishing during the day. 

Florida 

 If you are looking for a good time fishing in a beautiful place in the United States, you must visit Islamorada in the Florida Keys. Here you will find great daytime fishing in waters ranging from 1,400 to 1,800 feet. You can go fishing for swordfish year-round in Islamorada, but the peak seasons and they best chances to catch on is from summer to fall, when the water temperatures rise thanks to the Gulfstream. You can find charter boats and captains in this part of the Florida Keys that will have daytime and evening trips. There are some differences between fishing either time, with nighttime fishing being the more traditional way to do it. Don’t plan on night fishing shortening your fighting time though—it will still take a couple of hours to reel one in.  

Australia 

Swordfish are commonly found in the waters off of eastern Australia, but they are really found all around the country. Australia does regulate how many fish each person is allowed to reel in to take home, including setting a maximum weight limit for commercial boats. The largest swordfish ever caught in Australia, in Mallacoota, weighed 962 pounds! There are signs that the fish in the waters around Australia may actually be developing different than their other worldly counterparts, and may be becoming a larger, denser, more aggressive species. And that’s alright—just means you will have an even more epic story at the end of your day on the water!

California 

Swordfishing as a tourist attraction has been growing in popularity in Southern California. You will need to be in about 1,200 to 1,400 feet of water. Unlike in other places around the world, the Pacific Ocean off of California can be a tad cold for swordfish, so they tend to be closer to the sun and surface. This introduces a new way to fish for these predators—with a harpoon! Since these fish are constantly moving, captains off of the Southern Californian coast know to go put bait out near the underwater canyons and mountains below. It is very possible to fish for swordfish out of Orange County or San Diego on your next trip to the West Coast!

Venezuela 

According to many, deep sea daytime swordfishing started in Venezuela with the breakaway sinker method, using rocks as weights in the late 1990s. Venezuela has a decent sized tourism industry for swordfish, and many people will come to this South America country to get a taste of the real daytime fishing experience. And you will certainly be able to reel in a big one down here! It is important that you use your sunscreen and wear a hat and sunglasses while fishing in these waters, the heat may start to get to you fast. `

Mediterranean

There is actually a rumor in the angler community that the slight overfishing that was happening in the Mediterranean Sea is actually why the fish adapted a grew longer as a species over time. It is possible that kilo of meat will be priced at 24 Euro in market. Swordfishing has been a large part of many Mediterranean economies, like Spain, Greece, and Italy. This does mean that the population has been deemed critical and catch limits have been implemented. Swordfishing is possible though and with how easy it is to access their habitats in the Mediterranean, you still may want to try it if you are in the area. Even if you can’t find a swordfish, there are tons of game fish in these waters and a beautiful port that you will be going home to. 

Recipe Ideas for Swordfish

Swordfish has a unique flavor, with a denser texture. Many consider it to be one of the best tasting fish you can have. There is a subtle sweet flavor and a moist meat. Swordfish steaks are considered to be just as good as quality beef steaks. You can broil or brill the meat and not worry about making the meat dry or too dense. You do want to be careful about how much swordfish you eat. Since they are at the top of their food chain, their meat does absorb Mercury from their prey. This only means limiting yourself to one serving a week. And after a whole day of fishing for this trophy dinner, you may sleep until its time to head back out on the water to catch another! 

Fishing for swordfish is a one-of-a-kind, unique experience that many anglers wait years to attempt. It is fun, energic, and rambunctious. You can go in the evening or during the day, depending on what type of experience you want. No matter what, make sure you are hydrated and paying attention to your lines, all while mentally preparing yourself for the fish of a lifetime.