Cinque Terre fishing forecast
Cinque Terre is a saltwater fishing spot in Ligurian Sea, Italy. Anglers here target European Anchovy, European Pilchard, Gilthead Seabream. The most productive months are typically April, May, September, October.
Today’s verdict
Ranks #80 of 437 spots FishRadar scored worldwide today
Trending up — 11 points above this spot’s 7-day average
Score confidence ±4 points, from 8 live signals
The statistical model disagrees with the physics model here today — treat this score with extra caution.
Current conditions
| Sea surface temp | 27.6 °C |
|---|---|
| Wind | 5 km/h from NNE, gusting 9 km/h |
| Wave height | 0.1 m at 3 s |
| Current | 0.09 m/s toward ESE |
| Pressure | 1018 hPa |
| Depth | 34 m |
| Cloud cover | 5% |
| Chlorophyll | 0.14 mg/m³ |
| Salinity | 38.2 PSU |
| Mixed-layer depth | 10 m |
| UV index | 0 |
| Wind sea | 0.0 m at 0 s |
| Ground swell | 0.0 m at 3 s from SW |
| Current shear (surface vs 50 m) | 0.09 → 0.00 m/s |
The water here is 8.7 °C warmer than the September average of 18.9 °C. Warmer-than-normal water pushes cool-water species deeper and brings warm-water species in earlier than the calendar suggests. The water is mixed to about 26.7 m, with the thermocline below that.
Updated 1 h ago.
What the score means at Cinque Terre
Cinque Terre currently scores 83 out of 100 (Fair). Water temperature is 27.6 °C. 8 forecast signals are active in this score.
- Water temperature +16.1
- how close the water is to this species mix’s comfort band
- Current +10.0
- moving water concentrates bait
- Waves +9.0
- swell energy stirring the water column
- Chlorophyll +8.6
- plankton density — the base of the food chain
- Wind +8.0
- surface chop, oxygen and bait drift
- Pre-storm bite +5.0
- the classic feed before heavy weather
What’s biting now
The model expects today: european-pilchard, european-seabass, atlantic-bonito, atlantic-mackerel, gilthead-seabream, black-seabream, conger-eel, common-sole
Bite windows
Best months for Cinque Terre:
Score history at this spot
30 days tracked at this exact location
Best recent day: 2026-08-12, 83/100
18 day(s) at 70+ in the tracked period
About this spot
Open coastal saltwater — conditions and safety depend heavily on the live wind, wave, and tide forecast, so check them before you head out.
Approximate bottom depth: 34 m
Access & shore
Fishable from shore · rocky shore
On-site: parking
What you can catch
-
Engraulis encrasicolus
-
European PilchardSardina pilchardus
-
Sparus aurata
Best months by species at Cinque Terre
| European AnchovyEngraulis encrasicolus | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| European PilchardSardina pilchardus | ||||||||||||
| Gilthead SeabreamSparus aurata |
Typical months; local seasons and closures apply.
Local regulations
| Species | Bag limit | Min size | Open season |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gilthead SeabreamRegulation (EU) 2019/1241, Annex IX, Part A | — | min 20 cm | — |
| EU minimum conservation reference size for the Mediterranean is 20 cm (Regulation (EU) 2019/1241, Annex IX, Part A). | |||
All species combined
- maximum 2 kg or 10 fish total per day — TWO CAPS RUN AT ONCE and they do not add up the way per-species rows suggest: at most 10 salmonids a day of which no more than 5 brown trout, PLUS at most 2 kg in total of everything else that may be kept, of which no more than 5 barbi comuni and 20 vairone. Provincial variations bind over the regional figure: in the Genoa Aveto and Trebbia basins the SEASON is capped at 50 brown trout and no non-salmonid may be taken at all; in La Spezia Category A water and Percorsi Naturalistici the daily salmonid allowance is 5 fish with only one over 30 cm, the season is capped at 30 fish of 20–25 cm plus 10 over 30 cm, and Category B, C and brackish water allow 5 fish of not less than 25 cm; La Spezia raises the other-species cap to 3 kg including sea species, with sub-caps of 0.5 kg of vairone, 10 barbel and 10 mullet. Gear is capped too: one rod with a single hook in salmonid water, two rods no more than 5 m apart in lakes, reservoirs and cyprinid water, spinning with a single lure, fly fishing with at most three imitations, a landing net only to lift an already-hooked fish. Spearfishing, hand fishing, fishing by touch ("a strappo"), fishing with a light, blood-based baits and groundbait of any kind in Category A or salmonid water are all prohibited, as is fishing when the water is mostly iced over.
- maximum 2 kg total per day — THIS CAP APPLIES ONLY INSIDE THE AMP "CINQUE TERRE", and it is stricter than the 5 kg Italian national limit. Inside that perimeter, from the shore or from a boat, an authorised recreational angler may take at most 2 kg per person or 3 kg per boat per day. Zone A is closed to all recreational and sport fishing. Zone B is reserved to residents of the AMP comuni, with authorisation. In Zone C non-residents may fish only FROM THE SHORE, with at most two rods or lines and two hooks — a non-resident may not recreationally fish from a boat anywhere in this AMP. Spearfishing on breath-hold is banned throughout; so are deep trolling with a downrigger or monel line, vertical jigging, non-Mediterranean baits (Korean, Spanish and Japanese worms) and all fishing competitions. A catch booklet must be kept and returned by 30 November or next year's permit is refused, and selling recreational catch costs the permit for three years. THE AMP PORTOFINO, 25 km west, runs a different set: no spearfishing anywhere in it, no fishing at all in zone A, zones B and C reserved to residents of Camogli, Portofino and Santa Margherita Ligure as at the date the AMP was created (non-residents may be authorised in zone C, shore rods and boat handline only), at most 120 concurrent authorisations for longline, trolling and float fishing, and a 3 kg per person per day ceiling. Outside both perimeters the Italian national 5 kg applies.
- maximum 5 kg total per day — FIVE KILOGRAMS A DAY, ACROSS EVERYTHING — fish, molluscs and crustaceans combined, not per species. One single fish heavier than the cap is excluded, so a 6 kg amberjack is lawful on its own but nothing else may be added to it. SEPARATELY AND ON TOP: no more than ONE GROUPER PER DAY, of any Epinephelus or Polyprion species, whatever its size — the national minimum for cernia is 45 cm (art. 87) and the EU Mediterranean MCRS is 45 cm, but the one-fish rule bites first. Competition anglers taking part in an authorised manifestazione sportiva are exempt from the 5 kg cap and the one-grouper rule under article 144. These are NATIONAL rules and they apply in every Italian sea, including inside the regions that publish their own rulebooks: in Liguria, Sicilia and Sardegna they stack with the regional and marine-protected-area caps, and the stricter one governs — the AMP Cinque Terre allows 2 kg per person, the AMP Portofino and the AMP Isole Egadi 3 kg per person, all well below this 5 kg. Permitted recreational gear is fixed by article 138 (coppo, giacchio, rods of at most 3 hooks, correntine of at most 6 hooks, traina, parangali, nasse) and article 140 caps it at 5 rods per angler, 200 longline hooks per boat and 2 pots per boat.
Licensing:
- freshwater-recreational — residents Four classes of dilettantistic title, all paid through pagoPA and all evidenced by the payment receipt itself rather than a card: Tipo B (rod WITH reel) €45.45/year, €22.72 for over-65s; Tipo C (rod WITHOUT reel) €26.34/year, €13.17 for over-65s; Tipo E temporary permit €5.00 for one day, €8.00 for three days, €13.00 for a week, valid only inside tourist reserves and, for organised events, in free waters. On top of the title every angler must carry a "tesserino segna catture" (catch card) issued by the regional territorial office, and must mark the date, province and basin on it BEFORE starting and tick each retained fish BEFORE resuming fishing. Fishing catch-and-release means writing "no kill" in the catch boxes at the start of the day., non-residents Tipo D, for foreigners: three months, €17.04. Non-residents of Liguria pay a further €10.00 via pagoPA for the tesserino segna catture. The tesserino is valid in all Ligurian free waters except stretches run as tourist reserves and during competitions.
- saltwater-recreational — residents Liguria issues NO sea-fishing licence, and that is a statement about the boundary of regional competence rather than a gap. The regional rules stop at the line joining the outermost points of river mouths and other outlets to the sea; seaward of it Italian national law applies (free MASAF registration, no paid licence). Landward of it — the lower Entella, Magra, Boate, Petronio and every other brackish reach — a Ligurian freshwater title and a tesserino segna catture ARE required, even for sea fish., non-residents Same boundary. A visitor fishing the brackish mouth of a Ligurian river needs the regional Tipo D title plus a tesserino; the same visitor 200 m offshore needs neither.
- saltwater-recreational — residents No paid licence for recreational sea fishing, but a free annual registration with MASAF (the "comunicazione di esercizio della pesca sportiva/ricreativa in mare", or census) is mandatory. From May 2026 anglers aged 16+ must complete the census and use the RecFishing app., non-residents Same free MASAF registration applies to non-residents fishing recreationally in Italian waters.
- freshwater-recreational — residents Inland/freshwater fishing licences are issued by each Region (Regione), not nationally; fees and rules vary by region., non-residents Non-residents need the relevant regional freshwater licence for lakes and rivers.
In Italy the SEA is regulated nationally and INLAND AND BRACKISH WATER is regulated by the Region, and Liguria draws that line at the imaginary line joining the outermost points of river mouths. Landward of it you need a Ligurian licence and a catch card and the sizes, seasons and 10-salmonid / 2 kg daily caps below apply; seaward of it you need neither and Italian national rules apply instead. The figures shown are the STATEWIDE minimum: Genova, Imperia, La Spezia and Savona each publish stricter exceptions — different trout sizes, slot limits, season caps, closed weekdays and a later opening in the Aveto and Trebbia basins — and the provincial annex for the water you are standing on is the one that binds. The season dates float: fishing for trout closes at sunset on the first Sunday of October and reopens an hour before dawn on the last Sunday of February. Two national marine protected areas, Cinque Terre and Portofino, overlay the coast with far stricter rules including a total ban on grouper and on breath-hold spearfishing; FishRadar shows the grouper ban region-wide because the schema cannot express a zone, so outside those two areas the app is stricter than the law. Always check the current decreto del dirigente on regione.liguria.it before you fish.
Check Cinque Terre before you go
Live scores update through the day. Get the full forecast, bite windows, and your own saved spots in the FishRadar app.
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Frequently asked questions
What fish can you catch at Cinque Terre?
Anglers at Cinque Terre target European Anchovy, European Pilchard and Gilthead Seabream.
When is the best time to fish Cinque Terre?
The most productive months at Cinque Terre are typically April, May, September, October.
What is the fishing forecast for Cinque Terre right now?
Cinque Terre currently scores 83 out of 100, based on live ocean and weather conditions — see the full breakdown on this page.
Can you fish Cinque Terre from shore?
Yes — Cinque Terre is fishable from shore (rocky shore).
Is the thermocline set up at Cinque Terre right now?
Not strongly right now — the water column is fairly mixed, so fish are less depth-locked.
Is there a combined bag limit at Cinque Terre?
Yes — on top of per-species rules, the local regulation caps your total take: maximum 2 kg or 10 fish total per day. Check the official source before keeping fish.
Fishing guides for this spot
- How to Read Tides for FishingHow to Read a Fishing ForecastBest Moon Phase for Fishing
Forecasts, not guarantees — check local rules before you fish.