Well organized. Staff is exceptional and attentive. Food was excellent and bar well stocked. Fishing was hard on our trip. The bite was not hot but captains worked hard every day and kept trip was enjoyable. That’s fishing. I would do it again!!’
Dear Ausbkj,
Thank you for taking the time to leave your review of your recent fishing vacation with us. We're so glad that you had a great stay. We are happy to hear Captains and Mates for always working hard which is expecially important when the bite is a bit tougher. We'll pass along your compliments to the crew and staff. We hope to see you back to Tropic Star again soon!
All the best wishes,
Mallory and Richard White
I agree with the recent reviews of Casal, Todd C and Mi S. We must have been at Tropic Star the same week. We started fishing Sunday Feb 18 2024 and finished Friday Feb 23. It was a terrible bite - hence theirs and my review. We decided to book for the famed Black Marlin season with a premium that cost around $10K per person counting travel. I very much enjoyed the hype with YouTube videos and even reviews on this site before the trip. We were so excited. Our group of 4 was not impressed and the hype was not deserved. As others have indicated there were around 100 total fishing days combined for 16 or 17 boats for a total of 9 black marlin to be leadered for the week. There also was not much of a pelagic bite for tuna or dorado. The bite was absolutely terrible!! I understand Richard (Richie) White's explanations that Tropic Star cannot control the weather or bite. I fish out of Florida and into the Bahamas for yellowfin tuna, dolphin (dorado) and blue marlin. I would have been much better off spending $40K on a few trips on my boat to where I fish rather than going on this Tropic Star adventure.
I am not a novice fisherman. I've owned boats and fished offshore for over 20 years. I also understand weather conditions and slow bites. I always tell people that are going to fish with me that it's "all about the weather and the bite". We work hard to try to avoid days of getting skunked like we had a Tropic Star. But - when you book at least 9 months in advance to get in on the Tropic Star hype - I guess there's no looking back. Maybe something they should look at is at least offering, say, a 50% discount on any future trip when one has paid a black marlin season premium and it's been terrible. At this point I will not go back nor recommend any of my fishing friends to go to Tropic Star. It's a long way to go for a bad bite when you have to commit that far in advance.
On the good side the service at Tropic Star is excellent. From arrival at the airport, lodge staff ... all 5 star. Top notch all the way.
The food however is 3 star at best. We arrived on Saturday Feb 17 to have a lunch of seared tuna over risotto. It was spectacular. High expectations at that point. Things went downhill quickly.
- Over our trip we had 3 buffets at the pool restaurant. Cruise line type buffet food at best. Some barely edible - some not. On the first night they had grilled tuna. It was grilled completely dry and was not edible. I don't understand why someone would do that to fresh caught tuna - especially a supposed 5 star lodge that gets fresh caught tuna all the time
- First breakfast I ordered eggs, link sausages and potatoes. Link sausages were so over cooked and dry that they were inedible. The potatoes were cold on the plate. So second day I tried the same hoping that the previous day was an aberration. No - same result. It's hard to mess up a breakfast of eggs, link sausages and potatoes. Even Waffle House can get it right.
- On a few days at the Marlin Bar they fried up some fish fingers (presumably dorado). Again totally overcooked/overfried. The fish fingers had no moisture whatsoever. Couldn't even choke them down.
In summary - the staff is great. The bite we had while we were there was ugly beyond belief for the premium black marlin season - and that includes pelagics of YFT and dorado. The food needs to be improved to justify their prices and acclaim.
Dear Blainn2015,
We appreciate you taking the time to leave your review as we care deeply about our guests and their fishing trips at Tropic Star Lodge. We are sorry that your experience fell short of what you expected. We can completely understand your disappointment with the slow Black Marlin bite. In all transparency, Black Marlin season is eight weeks long. Within these eight weeks, the length of the bite fluctuates year to year. It is impossible for us to know exactly when the Pelagic species takes up their annual residence on the Zane Grey Reef due to their migratory patterns. Black Marlin are the most difficult Marlin to target. In fact, there are just a few places in the world you can target the species with Tropic Star being one. While we do everything possible to ensure the best possible fishing opportunities for our guests, it is impossible for us to guarantee fishing outcomes.
This season with El Nino was a very tough year for the Black Marlin bite with it ending early. This happens when the water temperatures change as they did, and we have the Snapper species and Grouper inshore for spawning season and we get a fun tuna bite offshore making inshore and chasing tuna loads of fun and that is why we recommend March for this. Unfortunately, this happened mid-February this year and that’s why we saw some 200 lb tuna your week and some of the other guests catching Cubera and other species inshore.
Regarding your dining experience, we thank you for the constructive comments. We’re glad that you did address your issues with the Chef directly while here, so he was able to rectify the overcooked tuna on the buffet by bringing you freshly seared tuna. I know that your cold breakfast potatoes were also addressed. Chef Gabriel and I discussed your comments, and we thank you as we always strive to improve and will certainly be making changes based on your review.
We’re also happy to hear that you enjoyed the staff and service of the Lodge. Again, thank you very much for taking this opportunity to leave your review and the team at Tropic Star Lodge appreciates your comments and we are truly sorry for your one-star experience.
Kind regards,
Mallory and Richard White
Dont waste your money . Despite the premium price they charge for black marlin season, Very few blacks to be found….apparently .for multiple, multiple weeks, so it’s a trend. 11 in our week total out of 17-18 boats.and I think that was higher than the previous week. Some boats caught multiple. So there is definately a difference in captains and mates.
If we would have caught a lot of other fish, it may have lessened the sting a little of paying 21k, but one 30 lb tuna and 2 very small dorados, and 1 sail, was no consolation.
We asked why they don’t post weekly fish counts, didn’t get a real answer…but you can figure out why….cuz they are so low they wouldn’t get customers. So many people were disappointed, I don’t know how the staff can look you in the eye.
Lb121564
We appreciate your feedback, as we always strive to meet our guests expectations and understand the disappointment when fishing and climate conditions do not always allow that to happen.
Our black marlin season typically starts late December and runs through February when conditions are favorable as its the migration time of the black marlin at Tropic Star. Weather conditions this season have been unpredictable, one week a north wind would blow cooling the water down, the blacks would be on the bite and then it would drop off and the water temperatures would be back up, fish go down and marlin slows down, then before you know it, temperature changes back to good top water temperatures and fish come back up. El Niño is unfortunately causing extremely hot water temperatures from Central America all the way to Australia and Indonesia. I think we have been most fortunate that our wind has been on and off as it has which meant that we had some decent days and therefore some happy anglers. About 2 weeks prior to your stay we had some cooler water and therefore good marlin action and sailfish and dorado numbers were good as well creating good conditions and making predictions very hard.
Unfortunately weather and sea conditions is something we can’t control. Last year during the same time we released over 78 Black Marlin in a single week from 15 boats.
It is very tough for staff when fishing is difficult, they try their utmost to make sure that all our guests have a good time and our crews work very hard offshore trying to hook up on fish.
Yours Sincerely
Ursula Marais
A buddy and I planned a bucket-list trip to Tropic Star almost two years ago. We researched the best time to go and was told the week after the full moon during black marlin season in Feb. was a great time which, of course, was by far the most expensive time to come. In anticipation over the last 20 months, we watched every YouTube video and Big Water Adventure program and even bought the Guy Harvey book to prepare us for a trip of a lifetime. To say we were “hyped” and excited would be an understatement.
The Good: The TS land operation was 5 stars. Everything was exactly as represented from the service in Panama City to the Lodge and all its amenities. We paid for an upgraded room that was Four Seasons nice. The staff was friendly, the food excellent and the dining and bar facilities all you could ever expect. We met a bunch of very nice guests and made fast friends with 7 other folks with whom we will likely fish on future trips.
The Bad: The fishing was unimaginably bad, not just for us but for many others. There were only 9 black marlin caught our week between 17 boats and only 11 reportedly caught the week before. There were also a few blue marlin caught. We were told the fishing the two weeks before we arrived was not good either, but no details. Not only did we and many other boats not even see a marlin (blue or black), but the usual by-catch of sails and dorado was sorely lacking as well. Out of 5 ½ days of off-shore fishing, my fishing buddy and I caught a total of 2 sailfish and less than 10 small dorado. Some other boats did better, but we were average. Even when the “bad wind” shifted to the “good wind” mid-week, fishing did not pick up. Every day, we hit the boat with renewed hope, but it was never fulfilled. We learned from one of our new friends who is an experienced offshore angler that this was not an isolated event or week as he came for 6 days during black marlin season last year and was completely shut out of even sailfish. He returned because he desperately wanted a black marlin to complete his slam and luckily got one.
There were also controllable negative issues. Our “upgraded” boat’s air conditioning did not work Day 1, was supposed to be fixed Day 2 but stopped before lunch. We were credited for the “upgrade” for the 2 days and given a larger “back-up” boat whose air worked, but that was little compensation for the heat those two days. Moreover, when we finally got one bite on Day 2, a small dorado, the reel malfunctioned from the get-go and my buddy had to bring in his first pelagic fish by hand. By Day 2, it was clear our captain and rotating mate were not getting along and after we advised Richard of the obvious conflict after Day 4, he put a new mate onboard who worked his tail off. He even had his fleet director, a wonderful fisherman named Duncan, fish with us the next day, but even though he tried his best, we only caught one sailfish.
The saddest story came from a couple who became close friends. His bucket list fish was a big tuna and they had a no-fish week to rival ours. The last day, he got what was estimated as a 200 lb.+ yellowfin on shortly before the end of the normal fishing day. After fighting it for over an hour, he said the crew tightened the drag until the fish broke the line even though it was hours before dark. He was devastated and our whole group felt his and his wife’s disappointment.
When I was researching this trip, I never saw a review like this one which would have at least prepared us for the possibility of what happened. I have fished off-shore at least 25 days in the past and never had any 2 or more day trips that were this bad. I truly believe RIchard, Ross and Duncan and most of the crew work very hard to make the fishing operation the best they can since it is 100% in their control where to catch bait, where to fish, how to fish and, usually, how to hook the fish, but the fish have to cooperate.
My advice, contrary to Big Water Adventures Mark Davis whose catchphrase for TS I have heard many times, “Don’t believe the fishing hype.”
Todd C,
Thank you so much for taking the time to give us your feedback. It is very important to us, as we always strive for the excellence our guests have come to expect.
It makes us happy to know that you enjoyed our land-based amenities and staff. All of us here at Tropic Star Lodge are very passionate about this lodge and the work we do.
We absolutely understand your disappointment with not catching your Black Marlin during Black Marlin season and yes, the bite was slow for your week and this season in general. El Nino has been playing havoc with the sea temperatures and the weather which directly impacts fisheries including ours.
Black Marlin is commonly known as the toughest Marlin to catch and can only be targeted in a few parts of the world successfully. We can expect a concentration of Black Marlin in January and February but, regretfully, can’t always predict the length of the season or season in general. The fleet of 17 boats only raised 16 Black Marlin and released 11 during your week. We raised 8 Blue Marlin and released 6. The crews managed two Grand Slams with two boats releasing a Blue, a Black and Sails in the same day.
For this time of year, the bill fishing was slow for us and unfortunately something we can’t control. The time of year that you booked is considered our best time of year for targeting Black Marlin. Last year during the same time we released over 78 Black Marlin in a single week from 15 boats.
We strive for perfection in our tackle and boats and take pride in them. Our tackle shop services our Shimano Tiagra reels every week and we put new fishing line on every reel for each new guest arrival. Unfortunately, even with this we have some human error, which is very uncommon but is not impossible. I checked the reel with you on the dock after you brought it to my attention, thanked you and apologized. When you and I tested the reel together it worked perfectly. In the shop we stripped the reel and found that a drag screw had sheared off and so I’m not sure if it was human error or a bad screw. However, that is exactly why the failure happened.
With the AC going down on the boat we re-gassed it and then it was on the way. On your second day, the strainer picked up trash in the water while fishing and clogged it so we again had a problem. I am glad you enjoyed the upgraded boat after that.
With regards to the crew, the captain you fished with is a highly decorated captain with many years fishing with us and is very highly requested, especially in Black Marlin season and so too is the mate. We rotate all our mates between captains all season long. The mate rotation is to ensure mates learn and work with all our captains. Most of our returning guests request captains and mates to fish with and we are always attentive as possible with their requests. I really appreciate that you brought it to my attention that there was an issue between your crew during your stay, so I was able to address it by swopping out your mate and inviting Duncan, our fleet manager, to fish with you.
I make sure that I personally address fishing every day with guests and I felt sad for the couple you made friends with. They lost a big Blue Marlin on the second to last day after it gave an amazing display, but after around 15 minutes it got wrapped up in the line while jumping and broke off. On the last day they hooked up to a big 200lbs tuna just before 15:00 and after fighting it for over an hour the crew got the leader touch but then the tuna disappeared to the depths as big tuna do. The crew started putting the drag up as they were not getting closer to landing it. Our cut off for fishing after hours is 18:00 for safety as we don’t run boats at night. We all felt the disappointment for not landing the fish, especially during a tough week.
I truly apologize that your experience at Tropic Star Lodge did not meet expectations. We really appreciate your comments and hope to see you back in the future to try and get your Black Marlin in the future.
Tight lines and fair seas,
Richard White
The lodge, the staff, the food and the service is all great on shore. Unfortunately, it’s everything once you leave the dock that is below par.
I’m a long time fish fanatic but had never gone for deep sea fish. My buddy talked me into it and I spent months waiting to go. Watched every YouTube video I could find and was looking forward to catching a wide variety of fish for the first time.
I’ve fished long enough to know there are good and bad days. So I was not expecting them to just jump into the boat. But our entire week was bad. We saw no marlin at all. Caught only two sail fish and a handful of Dorado.
What made it worse were things that could be controlled. Our first mate spent much of his time complaining about the captain and told me several times that he did not know what he was doing. (I also learned some Spanish curses as the two yelled at each other, so that was a plus.)
We had paid for a boat with air conditioning and it did not work the first two days.
I was supposed to reel in the first fish we hooked, but found the reel did not work. I did pull it in by hand, so that was cool.
We’d spend hours each morning trolling around looking for live bait and then spend hours trolling with dead bait dangling behind us. I’m not a deep sea guy so maybe that is normal. But I questioned why we spent so much time searching for live only to use dead and never really got a straight answer.
Many other guest reported they also caught few fish. Only a handful of the Black marlin that many were the specifically to catch. One guest told me he’d spent a full week the year before chasing one with no luck. The overall consensus was that the fishing was bad and had been for some weeks.
Hopefully, the marlin come back and good fishing returns. But for the cost, it’s hard to recommend this location due to the lack of fishing action. Sad, because the grounds and staff on shore were outstanding.
Dear 722mis,
Thank you so much for taking the time to write a review and we really appreciate your comments.
It makes us all really happy that you had a great time at the lodge as we are very proud of it and this work is a labor of love that we all put in daily.
January and February is our prime Black Marlin season. We don’t have a huge variety of species over this time of year and people generally come to target the Black Marlin specifically as it is the most difficult Marlin to catch and this time of year is the best time to target them. There are also Blue Marlin around in January but they start going away as the Black bite generally gets stronger in February. The same will happen with the Sailfish and Dorado over this period. This is why so many deep sea anglers join us to target their Black Marlin over this period.
In regards to the AC going down on the boat on your first day- we re-gassed it and, after testing, we believed it was ready to fish. On your second day, the strainer picked up trash in the water while fishing and clogged it so we again had the problem. This was very unfortunate and I understand this makes things worse when the fishing is slow. We do try our best to rectify things that we can control I am glad you enjoyed the upgraded boat after that.
We are very proud of the tackle we use. Our Shimano Tiagra reel are assessed every week and we put new fishing line on every reel for each new guest arrival. Even with this we have some human error unfortunately, which is very uncommon but is not impossible. I checked the reel with you on the dock after you brought it to my attention, thanked you and apologized. When you and I tested the reel together it worked perfectly. The next step, we took the reel apart in the shop and found that a drag screw had sheared off and so I’m not sure if it was human error or a bad screw. However, that is exactly why the failure happened.
Our crews go through a lot of training here at the lodge. To become a mate, all trainee’s must go through two years before being allowed to fish with guests. Then after a minimum of ten years they are eligible to become a Captain but must again go through two years of training. We have all our mates change boats weekly to make sure they learn from as many different captains as possible. We also do this as many guests make good friends with different crews and so we do our best to make it possible to fish with their preferred crews. The Captain you fished with has been a captain for over 16 years and the mate has worked the deck for over 12 years. It is not normal at all for crews to fight and I really appreciate that you brought to my attention that there was an issue between your crew during your stay, so I was able to address it by swopping out your mate and inviting Duncan, our fleet manager, to fish with you.
Thank you very much for your review, we sincerely apologize for the inconveniences that occured, we do genuinely try to go above and beyond to make your fishing experience amazing, but unfortunately sometimes there are certain aspects that are out of our control.
Tight lines and fair seas,
Richard White
