CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Corpus Christi is the #1 fishing destination in the country for the Fourth of July weekend, according to FishingBooker, the world’s largest platform for connecting anglers and fishing guides.
“They do a lot of work, and a lot of stories already on Corpus Christi, just because we are a year-round fishing destination. We have a lot of varieties of fish you can catch, in a lot of different ways you can catch it,” said Brett Oetting, the President and CEO of Visit Corpus Christi.
Oetting said there are many factors that he believes led to the city being named number one for fishing, but the overall theme is “variety.”
“I’ve fished in the downtown marina, I’ve fished on a boat, I’ve fished on a pier. I’ve caught a lot of different kinds of fish as well. You kind of never know what kind of fish you’re going to come across, depending on where you are, from the in-shore fishing, all the way out into the Gulf,” he said.
But it’s not just the fishing options that makes Corpus Christi the top destination for the Fourth, as FishingBooker mentions the city’s hotels, resorts, beaches, and attractions, specifically mentioning “The Mayor’s Big Bang Fireworks Show” scheduled for Sunday evening.
Local bait shops and fishing charters can expect a busy weekend with visitors coming to the city to fish on the holiday weekend.
“Corpus Christi every holiday weekend we always see a huge influx of people from San Antonio, Austin, all the surrounding big cities. It’s just a great destination, a lot of fish to be caught, a lot of area to fish,” said Tyler Millerstrom, the owner of Cos-Way Bait & Tackle.
Millerstrom said the Fourth of July is one of the busiest weekends the bait shop experiences, and every weekend has been busy since Memorial Day Weekend.
“It’s all hands on deck with holiday weekends. Merchandise, frozen baits, live baits, we try to do what we can to make sure we’re stocked up on everything,” he said.
Armando Fuentes is visiting Corpus Christi from San Antonio this week with his family. Fuentes frequently comes to the city to fish, and fishes outside the Cos-Way Bait & Tackle shop on the Humble Channel. He said the area is attractive to people from other cities in Texas because of its proximity to the Gulf of Mexico.
“People from San Antonio, or other places that don’t have the beach around them, they get to come here and get some of that ocean life, that salt life, get away from that fresh water and just get away from your home,” he said.
Similarly, Felecia Wilson frequently visits Corpus Christi from Dallas with her family. She said they always spend at least one day fishing on their trips.
“It’s in our family that we want to go fishing, and we want to just memorialize our dads, who taught us how to fish,” she said.
Wilson jokingly said they don’t try to catch any fish in particular, they just hope to catch a fish.
The full list of the best Fourth of July fishing destinations can be found below.
- Corpus Christi, Texas
- Destin, Florida
- Nelson County, Virginia
- Lake Texoma, Oklahoma
- Crystal Coast, North Carolina
- Missouri River, South Dakota,
- Huntington Beach, California
- Mackinaw City, Michigan
- Charleston, South Carolina
