Residents fish the ocean free; nonresidents 15 and older need the Nonresident Recreational Marine Fishing License, bought online. Striped mullet close on December 1, lobster and Kona crab are open through the winter, and the Kōkeʻe trout season on Kauaʻi is closed until June. Much of the shoreline is private property, and reaching it needs the landowner's permission.
What to fish for in early November
Hawaiʻi fishes all year, and winter changes where more than whether. The north-facing shores take the big surf, so shore anglers move to the south and west sides: ulua and pāpio along the lava and the rocks, ʻōʻio, the bonefish, on the south shore flats of Oʻahu, and reef fish off the Keaukaha shore and the Hāmākua coast. The ula and Kona crab seasons are open, and the boats keep trolling for pelagic fish whenever the weather lets them out, from Honokōhau, Kewalo, Waiʻanae, Māʻalaea and Nāwiliwili.
Yellowfin Tuna
Ahi feed around the buoys and ledges offshore, smaller in winter than the big summer fish, with aku in the same water.
Where. Off Kona and the Waiʻanae coast, around the fish aggregating buoys, and out of Nāwiliwili and Port Allen on Kauaʻi.
Wahoo
Ono run fast along the drop-offs and take lures trolled at speed along the ledges.
Where. Off Kona and Māʻalaea, and along the ledges of every island.
The wahoo waters we forecast Water Forecast Kohala coast off Kawaihae Best Sun, Nov 15, A+Today's forecast Kauai off Nawiliwili Best Mon, Nov 16, A+Today's forecast Mahi-Mahi
Gathers under floating debris and around the buoys, and arrives in runs that come and go.
Where. Offshore of every island, around the buoys and along current lines, with the Maui County boats trolling for them out of Māʻalaea.
The mahi-mahi waters we forecast Water Forecast Oahu south shore off Honolulu Today's forecast Maalaea Bay Best Thu, Nov 5, AToday's forecast
What changes soon
The next six weeks of this report's calendar for Hawaii.
- Tue December 1Striped mullet (ʻamaʻama) close for the season, to March 31.
This week's fishing reports
This report covers the season. For what was caught this week, read the people who report on this water.
Hawaiʻi has no regular winter reporter. The Division of Aquatic Resources publishes no fishing report, the Kona paper's fishing columns did not turn up after mid-2025, Hawaii Fishing News is a monthly print magazine, and the charter captains post their trips on booking sites. An Oʻahu angler's site posts a composite report a few times a year.
Where to fish in Hawaii, area by area
Each water links to its live forecast. The engine outlook in these areas was generated November 3, 2026, for the 14 days from that date; good hours are the hours at or above a B+.
Kona and the Big Island
Kona coast · Honokohau Harbor · Kawaihae
The leeward coast of the Big Island, where the sea floor drops away so steeply that blue water and big pelagic fish come within a few miles of Honokōhau Harbor, home of the state's best-known charter fleet: blue marlin, ahi, ono and mahimahi all year, in the shelter the mountains give from the trade winds.
Who reports here. No regular winter reporter could be found: the Kona paper's columns did not turn up after mid-2025, and the captains post their trips on booking sites that could not be read here.
Engine outlook
- Best: Sun, Nov 15, A+12 good hours81F measured Nov 3 at Kawaihae tide stationbest run 12h
Oʻahu
Oahu shore · Oahu nearshore · Oahu south shore flats · Waianae coast
The most fished island, from shore, pier and kayak: ulua and papio along the rocks, ʻōʻio, the bonefish, on the south shore flats, and boats out of Kewalo, Waiʻanae and Haleʻiwa trolling for ahi, aku and marlin, with the North Shore taking the big winter surf.
Who reports here. An angler's site posts a composite report a few times a year, the last before winter in September; it blocks automated reads, and no other dated report could be found.
Engine outlook
- Its best day in this outlook has passed.
Hilo and the windward Big Island
Hilo Bay · Wailoa River · Keaukaha shore · Hamakua coast
The wet, windward side of the Big Island, Hilo Bay with the Wailoa and Wailuku rivers running into it, the lava shore of Keaukaha east of town and the cliffs of the Hāmākua coast to the north, shore and small-boat water for ulua, pāpio and reef fish, open to the trade winds.
Who reports here. No dated winter report could be found: the town's paper turned up no fishing column, and the charters post their trips on booking sites.
Maui, Molokaʻi and Lānaʻi
Maalaea Harbor · Maui west side · Maui shore · Molokai · Lanai
Maui County's three islands: Maui, its charter boats out of Māʻalaea and the west side trolling for ono, mahimahi, ahi and marlin and its rocky shores fished for ulua, and Molokaʻi and Lānaʻi across the channels, quieter shores reached by boat or small plane.
Who reports here. No dated winter report could be found: the charters post their trips on booking sites, and no island paper's fishing column turned up.
Engine outlook
- Best: Thu, Nov 5, A12 good hours83F measured Nov 3 at Kahului, Kahului Harbor tide stationbest run 12h
Kauaʻi
Nawiliwili Harbor · Port Allen · Kauai shore · Puu Lua Reservoir · Wailua Reservoir
The northernmost of the main islands, with charter boats out of Nāwiliwili and Port Allen for ahi, ono and marlin, a long shoreline fished for ulua and pāpio, and in the mountains at Kōkeʻe the reservoir the state stocks with rainbow trout for a summer season.
Who reports here. The Division of Aquatic Resources posted on February 12 that 30,000 trout yearlings had been flown to Līhuʻe in January for Puʻu Lua, with that summer's season set for June 20 and low water a concern. No winter report on the salt water could be found.
Engine outlook
- Best: Mon, Nov 16, A+12 good hours80F measured Nov 3 at Nawiliwili tide stationbest run 12h
The rules from November to February
What changed this time
- The federal limit for Deep 7 bottomfish in the main Hawaiian Islands is 493,000 pounds for the fishing year that began on September 1, 2026, set by a NOAA rule published on April 21, 2026; the fishery closes for the rest of the year if the limit is reached, and the 2024-25 catch was about 31 percent of it. The state limit of five a day and the boat registration rule still apply.
Read on October 20, 2026, from the Department of Land and Natural Resources' Division of Aquatic Resources (its fishing regulations summary, its marine invertebrates page and its license pages), and on October 21 from NOAA's final rule on the Deep 7 bottomfish limit.
Licenses, and which state's rules apply
- Residents fish the ocean free, with no registration. Nonresidents 15 and older need the Nonresident Recreational Marine Fishing License, sold online only: $20 for a day, $40 for seven days, $70 for a year, plus a processing fee. Active-duty military in the state and their spouses and minor children are exempt, and nonresident passengers on a charter are advised to carry one even if they do not fish.
- Introduced freshwater game fish take a Freshwater Game Fishing License: $5 for residents and military 16 and older, $3 at 9 to 15, $25 for nonresidents, $10 for a 7-day tourist license and $20 for 30 days, free at 65 and older. The state's trout season, at Kōkeʻe on Kauaʻi, runs only from June to September, so there is no trout fishing there in winter.
Bait, gear and fish you cannot keep
- Spears may take any fish, within the size limits and closed seasons, but never a crustacean (introduced freshwater prawn aside), a turtle or a marine mammal. Firearms may not be used on any marine life, except on tuna and billfish already gaffed, and a drone may not be used to take aquatic life without a permit. Much of the shoreline is private property, and reaching it needs the landowner's permission.
Salt water
- Striped mullet (ʻamaʻama) is closed from December through March, with an 11-inch minimum the rest of the year. Bottomfish of the Deep 7 are limited to five a day in all for non-commercial fishing, close whenever a season closure is announced, and may be taken only from a boat registered with DAR. Sharks and rays may not be caught, entangled or killed. The summary is current only to its printing, so check DAR for later changes.
- Spiny lobster (ula) and slipper lobster (ula pāpapa) are closed May through August and Kona crab (pāpaʻi kualoa) May through September, so all three are open through the winter. A spiny lobster must measure at least 3 1/4 inches on the carapace, a slipper lobster at least 2 3/4 inches across the tail, and a Kona crab at least 4 inches on the carapace. None may be speared, lobsters are kept whole, a female spiny lobster may not be taken at all, and a slipper lobster carrying eggs may not be taken.
Read on these agency pages: DAR: Nonresident Recreational Marine Fishing License FAQ (PDF, July 14, 2025), DAR: Licenses and Permits, DLNR: Annual Rainbow Trout Season at Kōkeʻe, Kauaʻi (May 20, 2026), DAR: Hawaii Fishing Regulations (PDF, May 2025), DAR: Marine Invertebrates and Limu.
The season at a glance
The moon from November to February
| Month | New moon | Full moon |
|---|---|---|
| November 2026 | Sun, Nov 8 | Tue, Nov 24 |
| December 2026 | Tue, Dec 8 | Wed, Dec 23 |
| January 2027 | Thu, Jan 7 | Fri, Jan 22 |
| February 2027 | Sat, Feb 6 | Sat, Feb 20 |
The U.S. Naval Observatory's dates, on local time.
Daylight in each area from November to February
Worked out for one place in each area, on its own clock.
| Area | Shortest day | Earliest sunset | Latest sunrise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kona and the Big Islandat Kohala coast off Kawaihae | 10h 55m, Dec 21 | 5:44pm, around Nov 25 | 7:03am, around Jan 17 |
| Oʻahuat Oahu south shore off Honolulu | 10h 50m, Dec 21 | 5:50pm, around Nov 26 | 7:13am, around Jan 16 |
| Hilo and the windward Big Islandat Hilo | 10h 56m, Dec 21 | 5:41pm, around Nov 25 | 6:59am, around Jan 17 |
| Maui, Molokaʻi and Lānaʻiat Maalaea Bay | 10h 52m, Dec 21 | 5:45pm, around Nov 26 | 7:06am, around Jan 17 |
| Kauaʻiat Kauai off Nawiliwili | 10h 47m, Dec 21 | 5:55pm, around Nov 26 | 7:20am, around Jan 15 |
The lowest tides from November to February
| Station | Lowest, Nov | Lowest, Dec | Lowest, Jan | Lowest, Feb | Biggest range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kawaihae | -0.3 ftTue, Nov 24, 9:11pm | -0.5 ftWed, Dec 23, 8:58pm | -0.5 ftThu, Jan 21, 8:56pm | -0.4 ftFri, Feb 19, 8:56pm | 3.4 ftDec 24 |
| Honolulu | -0.3 ftTue, Nov 24, 9:01pm | -0.4 ftWed, Dec 23, 8:50pm | -0.4 ftWed, Jan 20, 8:00pm | -0.3 ftThu, Feb 18, 8:01pm | 3.0 ftDec 23 |
| Hilo | -0.6 ftTue, Nov 24, 8:30pm | -0.7 ftWed, Dec 23, 8:20pm | -0.7 ftThu, Jan 21, 8:16pm | -0.5 ftFri, Feb 19, 8:11pm | 3.9 ftDec 24 |
| Kihei, Maalaea Bay | -0.4 ftTue, Nov 24, 9:05pm | -0.4 ftWed, Dec 23, 8:58pm | -0.4 ftThu, Jan 21, 8:57pm | -0.3 ftFri, Feb 19, 8:52pm | 3.2 ftDec 24 |
| Nawiliwili | -0.3 ftTue, Nov 24, 8:41pm | -0.5 ftWed, Dec 23, 8:28pm | -0.5 ftThu, Jan 21, 8:25pm | -0.4 ftThu, Feb 18, 7:33pm | 3.0 ftDec 23 |
NOAA's predictions, in feet above the average of each day's lower low tide, so a minus tide falls below it. Wind and air pressure move the water off the prediction.