Fishing spots in Victoria

Where to fish in Victoria, area by area from Mallacoota to Portland: 10 area guides with 75 spots. Each guide lists its spots with access, best tide and wind, safety and zone notes, its boat ramps, what is biting in October and the local rules.

Updated 9 Oct 2026

Every area guide lists each spot with the same details, so you can compare them: what it is and how you get there, what's good there this month, the best tide and wind we could confirm, safety and marine park notes, and a link to the forecast for that spot.

Gippsland coast

Mallacoota fishing spots

8 spots: Main wharf & town ramp (Coulls Point), Stingray Point & lakeside platforms and Rabbit, Goat & Horse island flats and more. Peak in October: black bream, silver trevally and yellowfin bream.
Lakes Entrance and the Gippsland Lakes fishing spots

8 spots: Eastern Beach, Main Beach & the bar end and Cunninghame Arm and more. Peak in October: black bream, silver trevally and snapper.
Corner Inlet and Port Albert fishing spots

6 spots: Port Welshpool long jetty, Lewis Channel and Port Albert wharf and more. Peak in October: snapper, sand flathead and southern calamari.

Port Phillip and Western Port

Phillip Island and San Remo fishing spots

6 spots: San Remo jetty, Newhaven jetty and Cleeland Bight and more. Peak in October: sand flathead, southern calamari and silver trevally.
Western Port fishing spots

9 spots: Flinders jetty, Merricks Beach and Stony Point pier and more. Peak in October: sand flathead, silver trevally and snapper.
Melbourne and northern Port Phillip fishing spots

9 spots: Altona Pier, Gem Pier & Ferguson Street Pier, Williamstown and The Warmies, Newport and more. Peak in October: snapper, sand flathead and black bream.
Mornington Peninsula (Port Phillip side) fishing spots

6 spots: Mornington Pier (Schnapper Point), Mount Martha rocks and Rosebud Pier and more. Peak in October: southern calamari, snapper and sand flathead.
Geelong, Corio Bay and the Bellarine fishing spots

10 spots: Cunningham Pier, Wangim Walk and Rippleside Pier and more. Peak in October: snapper, sand flathead and silver trevally.

West Coast

Warrnambool and Port Fairy fishing spots

7 spots: Warrnambool breakwater, Hopkins River mouth & Blue Hole and Killarney Beach and more. Peak in October: black bream, mulloway and sand flathead.
Portland and Nelson fishing spots

6 spots: Lee Breakwater, Henty Beach & Portland foreshore and Minerva Reef & the North Shore and more. Peak in October: southern calamari, sand flathead and black bream.

Rules, licence and safety in Victoria

Recreational Fishing Licence (RFL) needed for all fishing incl. bait, shellfish, prawns, spearfishing unless exempt. From 1 Jul 2026: 3-day $10.00, 28-day $24.70, 1-yr $40.80 online ($43.30 agent), 3-yr $111.20 ($117.40). Exempt: under 18, 70+, Seniors Card, some pension/DVA cards, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Licence details.

Rules for particular waters

Marine national parks and sanctuaries (no fishing) (checked 9 Oct 2026)
Port Phillip intertidal zone and statewide intertidal rules (checked 9 Oct 2026)
Gippsland Lakes black bream slot (checked 9 Oct 2026)
Lake Tyers and east: all flathead are dusky (checked 9 Oct 2026)
Central Victorian waters abalone open days (checked 9 Oct 2026)
Venus Bay pipi limit and testing (checked 9 Oct 2026)
Corner Inlet cockles and spear limits (checked 9 Oct 2026)
Hoop net and rock lobster spring closure (checked 9 Oct 2026)
Rays near piers (checked 9 Oct 2026)
Lower Yarra and Maribyrnong eating advice (checked 9 Oct 2026)
Wild shellfish safety (incl. Gippsland Lakes algal blooms) (checked 9 Oct 2026)
Where bait nets are allowed (checked 9 Oct 2026)
Spearfishing restrictions (checked 9 Oct 2026)
Historic shipwreck protected zones (checked 9 Oct 2026)
Aquaculture reserves in Port Phillip and Western Port (checked 9 Oct 2026)

Victoria: official links

Read the official forecast and warnings in the Bureau of Meteorology's own words: Vic coastal and local waters forecast map and current warnings.

Boating: Victoria boating safety, crossing coastal bars and lifejacket rules. Lifejackets: Wear on boats <=4.8m, and on boats up to 12m at heightened risk: crossing a bar, Port Phillip Heads, alone, at night, restricted visibility, or under a BOM gale/storm/severe weather warning.

Heading out on the water? Log on and off with Victoria Marine Search and Rescue (MSAR) network and Australian Volunteer Coast Guard (Victorian flotillas). Log on with TripWatch on the Coast Guard website, or with your local flotilla.

Marine parks and closed areas: Marine national parks and marine sanctuaries (VFA list with maps), Parks Victoria (park pages and boundary coordinates) and Australian Marine Parks (South-east network).

Rock fishing lifejacket zones: Lifejacket required at high-risk rock fishing zones incl. Cape Bridgewater, Lorne area, Point Nepean-West Head, Phillip Island sites, Bore Beach-Kilcunda, Point Roadknight. Fines apply. More.

Victoria's official rules: size and bag limits and freshwater rules (checked 9 Oct 2026).

Emergency: 000 (112 from mobiles) · VHF channel 16 for distress.

More fishing spot guides

All fishing spot guides, including South East Queensland's areas. Other states: Queensland, New South Wales, Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia and Northern Territory.

Sources and checked dates

Spot and ramp positions: Composite Gazetteer of Australia (Geoscience Australia and the state and territory naming authorities), CC BY 4.0, ABS Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) Edition 3 (2021) (Australian Bureau of Statistics), CC BY 4.0, Vicmap Hydro - Water Structure Line (State of Victoria (Department of Transport and Planning)), CC BY 4.0 and Piers and Jetties - City of Greater Geelong (City of Greater Geelong), CC BY 3.0 AU. Spot research checked 9 Oct 2026 and fact-checked 9 Oct 2026; rules checked 9 Oct 2026; safety links checked 9 Oct 2026. Every source and licence: Sources and disclaimers.