The spring and summer months (April – September) bring plenty of Florida Dolphin Fishing throughout the keys. Dolphin are also known as Florida Mahi Mahi. Typically the summer time is the most consistent for these bad boys!There is usually a mix of smaller ‘schoolie’ fish along with bigger ‘bulls.’ Bull dolphin are the male fish with a more square head, and the ‘cows’ are their female counter parts. Nothing compares to getting into a good school of dolphin with every rod on the boat screaming drag at once!
Dolphin in the Keys are often caught trolling baits and lures. While blind trolling in deeper water your always ‘in the game’ when trying to catch a big dolphin. However often times captains will run around and look for birds which are following schools of fish and bait, and are a good indicator of where to fish. This style of fishing can often put you on the fish faster than just blind trolling. Our captains know what to look for to find them.
When throwing baits to a school of dolphin, often times dead bait is used, though occasionally fish are picky and it helps to have some live pilchards or the like. The boats at Bud n Marys are always keeping up with where the live bait is to give you the best shot at getting nice fish!
One rule when in a big pack of dolphin is always leave one in the water (usually a schoolie, smaller fish) in order to keep the rest of the school following you. You often will see dolphin jumping when they know they are hooked, which is very impressive!
The captains at Bud N’ Mary’s are true professionals when it comes to catching big Islamorada Dolphin!
July 15, 2026
Early Summer Fishing in the Florida Keys June & Early July: Prime Time for Anglers If there is one time of year that truly showcases everything the Florida Keys fishery has to offer, it’s early summer. June and early July bring warm water, calm seas, abundant bait, and an incredible… Read More
If you want a lot of fish, this is the place! We have been on 3 fishing trips during our vacation here in the Keys, all at different times of the day and night and on different boats. Our most recent was on the Miss Islamorada and it was by far the best trip of all. We caught way more fish, which was due 100% to the mates help and professionalism in providing a wide variety of baits and techniques and it really paid off. There are other good trips you could take if you want to pay up to 10x as much money but for an all day fun adventure this is the best! We will be back asap.
I used Bud N Marry's marina to get on the Miss Islamorada Charter to do some reef fishing recently. It was a rainy day when we got there. I was excited we were still going to departure and be all day out. The rain shortly stopped. The ocean was calm and the fish were rambunctious. Captain Ben was true gentleman, so courteous, so nice and extremely caring. He was making sure that everyone hooked at least one good sized fish for dinner. Even though he is the captain he worked his tail off, even making bait ball for those of us in the back of the boat catching snappers.He took us to a great spot, even encountered some bull sharks. 
Great stop for food, bait, fishing gear and charters My husband and I visited Bud and Mary's to grab some bait for our 5th anniversary fishing day trip the beginning of the month. Super friendly and happy people, we're very helpful to point out a nice spot to go fishing, and supplied us with great shrimp bait. Food smelled great but it was early so we plan to come back and try it. The property was super clean, including the dock. There were a lot of charters out that morning and a few visitors milling around. They have a small school of tarpon and nurse sharks and some pelicans hanging around wait for scraps, and you can purchase food to feed them. Really want to jump on a charter next time we come down! They also have a dive shop that had a huge selection of gear, but was closed for lunch while we were there. Great place, we will be back.
