First choice: Costa Rica Second choice: Ecuador

In Costa Rica, the seamounts are hot this month, and big-game anglers are likely to enjoy 10 or more hookups a day, making the required long runs and overnighting worthwhile. The warm, fertile waters around the Galapagos Islands continue to attract good numbers of blues for another couple of months, but larger specimens this time of year are usually found off Salinas, Isla de la Plata and Manta.

First choice: Dominican Republic Second choice: Bahamas

April brings with it reliable blue marlin action off Dominican shores. The large swath from just north of Punta Cana, east to Isla de Mona and south to Isla Saona produces plenty of early arrivals and steadily better fishing as May approaches. In the Bahamas, the edge of the Gulf Stream, near Bimini, often yields the first blues of the season this month. Next, the bite spreads to waters off Treasure and Guana cays.

First choice: Ecuador Second choice: Costa Rica

Warm water temperatures and an abundance of forage have big black marlin—many exceeding 500 pounds—on the prowl off Ecuador at Esmeraldas and San Cristobal Island in the Galapagos. In Costa Rica, offshore pinnacles attract blue marlin and hold good numbers of blacks this time of year. Expect most fish to fall in the 150- to 300-pound range, ideal for light or stand-up tackle.

First choice: Dominican Republic Second choice: Portugal

The annual migration of whites in the Caribbean brings a seasonal influx of fish close to the Dominican Republic’s northeast coast, providing excellent fishing for the next couple of months. Expect that same billfish pilgrimage to extend northeast into the Atlantic late in the month, kick-starting a solid white marlin bite off Portugal at Madeira and the Azores islands.

First choice: Mexico Second choice: Florida

April is a peak month for sails in the Yucatan Channel, especially off Isla Mujeres and Cancun, where boats should have little trouble amassing double-digit releases most days. The fish here are notorious for keeping bankers’ hours, so plan to start at 9 a.m. and stay out till just before dark. In Florida, the spring run is in full swing. Spindlebeak chasers from Fort Pierce to Key West will all find their share of fish.

First choice: Guatemala Second choice: Costa Rica

Guatemala sailfish prospects remain superb because April historically produces some of the year’s best fishing. If catching sails on fly or light tackle is on your bucket list, the abundance of fish makes a trip to Iztapa hard to beat. In Costa Rica, the bite lights up off the northern towns of Flamingo and Tamarindo, while fishing remains reliable farther down the coast, off Los Sueños and Quepos.

First choice: Mexico Second choice: New Zealand

The fishing for stripes around Cabo San Lucas remains red-hot, and with water temperatures in the low to mid-70s, the local fleets should continue to find plenty of willing marlin for a while. In April, Golden Gate and San Jaime banks are usually among the hotspots. In Kiwi waters, the East Auckland Current brings solid numbers of striped marlin to the area. Expect boats to raise many off the northern end of the North Island.

First choice: Cayman Islands Second choice: Florida

In April, chunking tactics similar to those used for tuna pay off for wahoo along submerged banks near Grand Cayman and Cayman Brac. Northeast Florida becomes an unlikely wahoo hotspot this time of year as a well-known ledge located 50 miles off St. Augustine becomes a staging area for numerous striped torpedoes, including some large specimens in the 80-pound range.

First choice: Bahamas Second choice: Ecuador

Anglers fishing Bahamian waters this month find schools of 30- to 75-pound yellowfins as the seasonal tuna migration reaches the southern Out Islands. Spreads of Sea Witch-and-ballyhoo combos and small lures like trolling feathers and cedar plugs do the trick. In Ecuador, banks near the Galapagos teem with yellowfins, including some 100-pounders, but the bite often depends on water clarity.

First choice: Florida Second choice: Mexico

The end of the Bar near Key West and several seamounts off the upper and middle Keys stack up with blackfins during spring. For a better shot at a trophy, fish live baits with a removable weight above the leader to bypass the footballs feeding near the surface. Large aggregations of baitfish in the Yucatan Channel keep plenty of blackfins within range of boats out of Isla Mujeres, Cancun and Cozumel.

First choice: Bahamas Second choice: Belize

Despite windy conditions, bonefish return to the Bahamas flats. Rising water temperatures and increasing forage keep the fish active; however, protected bays and coves, and flats along shorelines sheltered from the wind are bound to hold more fish. In Belize, bones are plentiful and likely to accept a well-presented fly or light jig over shallow shoals and the expansive grass flats along the coast.

First choice: Florida Second choice: Costa Rica

Florida linesiders put on their feed bags and take full advantage of the spring baitfish migration. Look for fish lurking around mangrove island points, in troughs, and behind dock pilings and bridge abutments. In Costa Rica, coastal rivers between Quepos and Drake Bay host significant numbers of large snook this time of year. Both bottomfishing with live baits and jigging produce their share.

First choice: Florida Second choice: Mexico

The big spring migration that silver king addicts await anxiously every year finally gets underway this month. Tarpon, in large schools and small pods, begin to travel along both coasts of Florida, presenting anglers with a wide range of options to get in on the action. In Mexico’s Yucatan, the mangrove-lagoon systems to the north and the bays to the south experience marked increases in the number and size of fish.

First choice: Belize Second choice: Mexico

Belizean shallows, from Ambergris to the border with Honduras, afford visiting anglers excellent chances for success this month. Angling pressure lessens in the southern region, between Hopkins and Punta Gorda. April is a transition month for permit in South Florida as lots of fish remain schooled up over shallow wrecks, but an increasing number make the move back to the flats.

First choice: Louisiana Second choice: Texas

In Cajun waters, bull reds play hide-and-seek as schools of these mature fish start leaving the shallows. Luckily, there’s no shortage of 4- to 12-pounders to keep inshore anglers busy in the marshes and passes. In Texas, redfish are widespread and feeding aggressively this month. Fish topwaters over grass early, then switch to jigs with soft plastics or spinnerbaits along grass lines, oyster bars and riprap.

First choice: New Jersey Second choice: California

April is when stripers leave their wintering grounds in Chesapeake Bay and neighboring coastal rivers and head toward New Jersey’s Raritan Bay to fatten up in preparation for spawning. Look for schools of big bass moving up the coast in search of baitfish concentrations. Bass are also active in San Francisco Bay and the Sacramento Delta, where the best fishing occurs over reefs and around structure.

First choice: Florida Second choice: New Zealand

South Florida’s swordfishing is excellent this month, but with stiff winds prevailing, small-boat anglers will need to pick their window of opportunity to venture out to deep water. It’s now autumn in New Zealand. That’s broadbill time, when boats intent on bagging swords drift deep baits off the Far North, or along the trenches surrounding the Garden Patch and the back of the Great Barrier Reef.

First choice: Louisiana Second choice: Florida

Smoker kings patrol the mouths of major Louisiana passes to feast on schooling baitfish this time of year. Live baits, free-lined or suspended under a float, are surefire options, but casting swimming plugs and even surface walkers also pays off. Once water temps remain above 72 degrees, the large groups of kings staging west of Key West and moving up Florida’s Gulf coast start feeding near the surface.

First choice: Texas Second choice: Florida

Now is a great time to target speckled trout in the Lone Star State. With temperatures on the rise, expect a hot bite on the grass flats of bays, from Matagorda to Laguna Madre. Walk the dog with topwaters for explosive action. In Florida, April produces some of the largest trout of the year as many females weighing 6 pounds or better venture into shallow water to cash in on the baitfish migration.

First choice: Hawaii Second choice: Florida

April marks the beginning of peak mahi mahi season in Hawaii, when slammers, big bulls and cows are taken every spring in close proximity to the islands, much to the delight of small-boat anglers. The first waves of springtime dolphin start showing up off South Florida shores, along the western edge of the Gulf Stream. With April winds, you won’t find many weed lines, so rely on run-and-gun tactics.