Included / Not Included –
Included: Accommodations, meals, non-alcoholic beverages, guided fly fishing, fishing license, guest taxes, and ground transfers to and from Merida airport.
Not Included: Air travel to and from Merida, gratuities, phone service, laundry service, and alcoholic beverages.
Arrival Information: To get to Isla del Sabalo you will need to make travel arrangements to Merida, Mexico (MID). Most travelers from the US fly to Merida on Continental Airlines (via Houston, Texas). Flights arrive in the late evening and, therefore, require anglers to arrive the day before the start of the trip and overnight in Merida. Please note that you are required to book your own hotel reservations and, upon arrival, secure your own transportation from the airport to your hotel in Merida. The lodge representative will NOT be at the airport to pick you up.
Getting to the Lodge: The following day, the lodge representative will pick you up at your hotel and transfer you to the lodge (day 1 of the trip). Your pick-up time will be confirmed and communicated prior to your arrival. Transfer days include Wednesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays.
From Merida, you will be driven 1.5 hours west in the lodge shuttle, a roomy, air-conditioned extended van. The ride is very comfortable, as all roads traveled are paved and well maintained. During the drive, you will venture through the beautiful Yucatan countryside and some very unique traditional Mexican towns.
Departure Information: After your last day of fishing at the lodge, you will be transferred to Merida and overnight at a hotel for the last night of your trip. This one night stay at the hotel is included in the package rate and will be arranged by the lodge host. The following morning, your host will transfer you to the Merida airport with ample time to clear check-in procedures.
Hotel Recommendations in Merida:
Fiesta Americana
+52 999.942.11.11
Paseo Montejo 451, esq. Av. Colón Col. Centro
97000, Mérida, México
Hyatt Regency
+52 999.942.1234
Ave. Colon esq Calle 60
Merida, Mexico 97000
Hotel Holly
+52 999.926.23.58
Calle 37 No. 480 x 54 y 56
Documentation Requirements:
You must have a valid US passport to enter Mexico. It is highly recommended that US citizens present a passport that is valid for at least six months after the last day of the trip. If your passport expires before then, please renew it prior to departing on your trip. If you hold citizenship in a country other than the United States, please check with your national consulate / passport center for citizenship documents required for travel to Mexico.
Currency:
The Mexican monetary system is based on the Peso. Isla del Sabalo will only accept US dollars (cash) or Pesos as payment for incidentals. All lodging, goods and service taxes (GST) are included in your package price. Credit cards are NOT accepted.
Travel Cash:
As a guideline we recommend that each guest travels with approximately $500 - $700 for staff and guide gratuities, alcohol, etc.
Gratuities:
This is simply a guideline, since many clients ask how to tip the guides and staff of Isla del Sabalo. Gratuities are encouraged, but the amount of the gratuity is solely up to you. We recommend guide gratuities of $40-60 per day / per boat (to be given at the end of each day of fishing) and lodge staff gratuities of $15-25 total per day (to be given at the end of your stay).
Fishing Licenses:
A fishing license is included in your package price.
Climate:
Temperatures typically range from the low 70’s to the mid 90’s. Isolated afternoon thunder-showers are a possibility year-round. Wind can be factor while fishing and the sun is very strong. The weather in the tropics is often quite warm and humid. Wearing specific types of clothing will help maintain a level of comfort in these conditions. Also, the intensity of the sun in the tropics influences the style of clothing that is recommended.
Medical Facilities:
The closest hospital is in Merida city located 1 hour 45 minutes from the lodge. There are a variety of medical clinics closer to the lodge as well in case of emergency.
Power and Communications:
Electricity at the lodge is 110V AC electrical (USA standard) – 24 hours a day.
The lodge only has a base cell phone guests can use with a charge of US $3 per minute. There is spotty cell phone coverage on in some areas but they are working on adding a satellite internet service very soon.
Water:
NOTE: Please DO NOT drink or brush teeth with tap water. Purified bottled water is provided.
Clothing:
Quick dry pants and shorts, long sleeved quick dry shirts, casual cotton pants, shorts and shirts, sandals, hat with wide brim, sun gloves, bandana, lightweight socks to protect your feet while in the boat, lightweight rain coat.
Laundry:
Laundry service is available to guests. The cost per load is US $10. You can request a plastic bag to give the clothes to the lodge staff. The next day the items will be cleaned and returned to you.
Beverages/Alcohol:
Alcoholic beverages are available, but not included (charged to the guest tab).
Tackle/Equipment List:
Saltwater Fly Rods - Baby Tarpon/Snook 8 – 9 weight rods (7 ½ - 9 foot length):
Single-handed rods should be 7 ½ to 9 feet in length. Many anglers prefer single-handed rods in the 8 to 9 weight class. You should bring at least two rods. The extra rod(s) will not only serve as a spare in the event of breakage, but will also allow you to set-up multiple rods with different flies.
Saltwater Fly Reels:
High quality machined aluminum reels with a smooth disk drag and a rim control feature are highly recommended. You will want to make sure that your reel’s drag system will operate well in the saltwater environment – warm and humid conditions.8 – 9 weight disk drag reels (minimum 150 yards of 20# backing)
Saltwater Fly Lines:
During your week at the Isla del Sabalo, you will be fishing a floating fly line most of the time. Floating lines are perfect for the variety of environs at Isla del Sabalo – shallow turtlegrass flats, mangrove lined channels, and draining creek/river mouths.
If you have a fast action saltwater fly rod, we recommend over-lining your
saltwater rod by one line weight (8 weight fly rod lined with a 9 weight fly line.) This enables the fly line to load the rod at shorter distances and, also, dig deeper into the power of today’s modern fly rods for longer distance casting.
Tarpon/Snook Leaders/Tippet:
Rio Striped Bass Leader - 7 foot, 22# + Jinkai Shock (recommended for baby tarpon): This is the simplest and highly effective baby Tarpon leader setup. Utilize this leader with an Albright knot to connect shock tippet (50-60# Jinkai hard mono). Total leader length is about 10 feet.
Simple Hard Mason Three Piece Leader + Jinkai Shock (baby tarpon): Here is the formula for building this simple, but effective leader system. The tapered butt section consists of 2 - 3 feet of Mason 30# blood knotted to 3 - 4 feet of Mason 25#. Blood knotted to this is a 2 foot section of Mason 20# as your breaking tippet. Lastly, you use an Albright knot to connect a 3 foot section of shock/bite tippet (30# Mason or 50-60# Jinkai hard mono.) NOTE: If you do not wish to tie your own leader systems, make sure to bring all of the leader materials and your guide will tie your leaders for you.
SHOCK TIPPET SIZING - Baby Tarpon/Snook: At Isla del Sabalo, 50 - 60# Jinkai is
recommended (the baby tarpon and snook can be large here).
Knots-Knots-Knots!!!:
Attaching the Fly: We recommend the Kreh Loop Knot (or Non-Slip Mono Loop Knot) for attaching your fly to the shock/bite tippet. We have many years of great success with this knot.
Essential Saltwater Flies:
A variety of flies are needed to fish the diverse environment at Isla Blanca and Isla del Sabalo. For a week of fishing, most anglers bring at least 3 dozen assorted flies.
Subsurface Tarpon/Snook Flies
• SeaDucers (red/white, red/yellow, “cockroach”) – size 1/0 and 2/0
• Puglisi Tarpon Streamer (Rat, Everglades Special, brown/tan, yellow/orange) – size 2/0
• Hanley’s Mayan Warrior (burnt orange, yellow, cockroach) – size 1/0
• Haskin’s FoxxyGriz Baitfish (tan or olive) – size 2/0
Topwater Tarpon/Snook Flies
• Puglisi Floating – size 2/0 (Everglades Special, chartreuse/white)
• Lee Haskin’s Slideballs (prawn pattern, tan/flesh, yellow, white) - 2/0
• Haskin’s Deep Cover Shrimp (weedless)
• Charlies AirHead (brown/white) size 2
