Best time to fish in Dover
Today, Wednesday, October 28, 2026 · local time (GMT) · Kent, United Kingdom Today, Wed, Oct 28 · GMT- High tides
- 11:50 am
- Major periods
- 12:16–2:16 am and 12:48–2:48 pm
- Solunar activity
- High
- Sun
- 6:40 am–4:36 pm
Today, Wednesday, October 28, the best time to fish in Dover is 6:10 am to 7:30 am, with the 7:12 am low tide, sunrise and some swell, though with rising pressure. It's a good day (7/10). Today is the best day this week.
Your day in Dover at a glance
The strip runs from midnight to midnight, local time. Night in gray, daylight in yellow; the blue curve is the tide; below, the solunar periods and the best windows.
Fishing forecast for the next 7 days
| Day | Rating | Best times | High tides | Moon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Today | 7good day | 6:10–7:30 am12:00–12:40 am | ▲ 11:50 am | Waning gibbous |
| Thu 29 | 6average day | 6:50–7:30 am7:10–9:10 pm | ▲ 12:12 am ▲ 12:29 pm | Waning gibbous |
| Fri 30 | 6average day | 3:40–5:00 pm12:10–2:10 pm | ▲ 12:54 am ▲ 1:14 pm | Waning gibbous |
| Sat 31 | 6average day | 4:00–5:10 pm8:40–9:30 pm | ▲ 1:45 am ▲ 2:11 pm | Waning gibbous |
| Sun 1 | 5average day | 3:40–4:20 pm9:50–10:50 pm | ▲ 2:48 am ▲ 3:22 pm | Last quarter |
| Mon 2 | 5average day | 6:10–7:20 am3:40–5:00 pm | ▲ 4:02 am ▲ 4:41 pm | Waning crescent |
| Tue 3 | 5average day | 6:30–7:10 pm6:20–7:40 am | ▲ 5:21 am ▲ 6:07 pm | Waning crescent |
Each day's rating comes from the tide, the solunar periods, the light and, when we have the forecast, the weather.
What can you catch in Dover?
Sport fishing species with the most records within about 19 mi of Dover: small-spotted catshark, European plaice, whiting, common sole and thornback ray. October is one of the months when these are seen most: small-spotted catshark.
- Small-spotted catshark Scyliorhinus canicula · shark · 4,366 records Photo: Hans Hillewaert · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- JanJ
- FebF
- MarM
- AprA
- MayM
- JunJ
- JulJ
- AugA
- SepS
- OctO
- NovN
- DecD
- European plaice Pleuronectes platessa · fish · 1,940 records Photo: Hans Hillewaert · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- JanJ
- FebF
- MarM
- AprA
- MayM
- JunJ
- JulJ
- AugA
- SepS
- OctO
- NovN
- DecD
- Whiting Merlangius merlangus · fish · 1,804 records Photo: Georges Jansoone ( JoJan ) - · CC BY 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- JanJ
- FebF
- MarM
- AprA
- MayM
- JunJ
- JulJ
- AugA
- SepS
- OctO
- NovN
- DecD
- Common sole Solea solea · fish · 1,632 records Photo: Hans Hillewaert · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- JanJ
- FebF
- MarM
- AprA
- MayM
- JunJ
- JulJ
- AugA
- SepS
- OctO
- NovN
- DecD
- Thornback ray Raja clavata · ray · 1,592 records Photo: Hans Hillewaert · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- JanJ
- FebF
- MarM
- AprA
- MayM
- JunJ
- JulJ
- AugA
- SepS
- OctO
- NovN
- DecD
- Atlantic horse mackerel Trachurus trachurus · fish · 699 records Photo: jujurenoult · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Too few sightings to tell the months
- European flounder Platichthys flesus · fish · 448 records Photo: Hans Hillewaert · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- JanJ
- FebF
- MarM
- AprA
- MayM
- JunJ
- JulJ
- AugA
- SepS
- OctO
- NovN
- DecD
- Atlantic cod Gadus morhua · fish · 362 records Photo: Wikimedia Commons · public domain
- JanJ
- FebF
- MarM
- AprA
- MayM
- JunJ
- JulJ
- AugA
- SepS
- OctO
- NovN
- DecD
These are sightings and catches recorded since 1970 (reports from divers and anglers, scientific surveys and museum collections), not a promise that you will catch them. The months come from sightings only, adjusted for how many there are each month; hatched months have too few to tell.
Source: GBIF.org, which also gathers OBIS data. Only records licensed CC0 or CC BY 4.0, from 1,130 datasets (retrieved October 24, 2026). Where the data comes from
Photos: each species' image on Wikidata (Wikimedia Commons) or, if there isn't one, one from GBIF; only licences that allow this use, each with its author and licence.
Piers, ramps and tackle shops nearby
Map: OpenFreeMap · © OpenMapTiles · © OpenStreetMap contributors
- Dover Pier 0.5 mi
- Castle Jetty 0.6 mi
- Southern Breakwater 1.2 mi
- Eastern Arm 1.3 mi
- Boat ramp 0.3 mi
- Boat ramp 3.6 mi
- Boat ramp 6.3 mi
- Folkestone Harbour 6.3 mi
- Channel Angling (dover) 0.2 mi
- Rapid Tackle Ltd 0.3 mi
- Bills Bait Shop 0.4 mi
- Fuel dock 6.3 mi
Within 9.3 mi. A spot may be missing or closed. Open the map on OpenStreetMap · Missing one? Add it to OpenStreetMap
Spots: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) and Overture Maps.
Artificial reefs and wrecks to fish from a boat
Artificial reefs and wrecks draw fish, so they make good spots to fish from a boat. The nearest ones, within 16 mi.
Check the rules before you go: some have closed seasons, protected zones or banned gear. Wreck and reef positions are approximate and not for navigation; a wreck’s depth runs from the top of the hull to the seabed.
Wrecks: EMODnet Human Activities (AND-International), from UK Hydrographic Office data, CC BY 4.0. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
How we work out the best time
We score every moment of the day, every 10 minutes, with simple rules anglers have used for decades:
- Tide: 2 to 3.5 points in the hour before and the hour after each high and low tide. Spring tides (high coefficient) score more, because the water moves faster.
- Solunar: 2.5 points in the major periods (moon overhead or underfoot) and 1.5 in the minor ones (moonrise and moonset).
- Light: 2 points at dawn and dusk, from first light to the end of the morning golden hour and from the evening golden hour to the end of twilight.
- Weather: falling pressure adds 1 point and rising pressure takes 1 away; wind takes points away from force 4 (about 12 mph), up to 5 points in a gale; waves of 1.6 ft to 4.9 ft add half a point (they stir up the water) and from 8.2 ft they take points away (up to 4).
- Best windows: the stretches of 40 minutes to 3 hours with the most points, at least an hour apart.
- Day's rating out of 10: the best window (up to 5), the moon (up to 2, near new or full moon), the tide coefficient (up to 2) and whether a solunar period lines up with sunrise or sunset (1). Without a tide, we score out of 8 and scale it to 10. Good weather adds up to 1 point and bad weather pulls it down.
Today: best window 3.8 of 5, moon 1 of 2, coefficient 2 of 2 and lineup 1 of 1; the weather multiplies the rating by 0.92.
It's a guide, not a guarantee: fish don't read tide tables. Always check the sea conditions and local fishing rules before you go.
Learn more
Fishing rules in Dover
Licenses, size limits, bag limits and closed seasons are set by the authorities and change often. We don't copy them here: check the official website before you go.
Questions about fishing in Dover
What's the best time to fish in Dover today?
6:10 am to 7:30 am, with the 7:12 am low tide, sunrise and some swell, though with rising pressure. Also 12:00 am to 12:40 am. Today's rating: 7/10 (good day).
What about tomorrow? When's the best time to fish in Dover?
Tomorrow, Thursday, October 29: 6:50 am to 7:30 am, with a rating of 6/10.
Which day this week is best for fishing in Dover?
Wednesday, October 28, at 7/10. Its best window is 6:10 am to 7:30 am.
What can you catch in Dover?
Sport fishing species with the most records within about 19 mi of Dover: small-spotted catshark, European plaice, whiting, common sole and thornback ray. October is one of the months when these are seen most: small-spotted catshark. These are sightings and catches recorded in GBIF and OBIS, not a promise that you will catch them.
When are the solunar periods in Dover today?
Major: 12:16–2:16 am and 12:48–2:48 pm. Minor: 9:37–10:37 am and 4:53–5:53 pm. Solunar activity today: high.
Does the tide affect fishing in Dover?
Yes. Today high tide is at 11:50 am and low tide at 7:12 am and 7:36 pm, with a tide coefficient of 90 (spring tides). The hours around each tide change tend to fish best, because moving water carries food.
How is the rating worked out?
From the tide, the solunar periods, the light at dawn and dusk, the moon phase and, when we have the forecast, the pressure, the wind and the waves. Each factor gives a fixed number of points and the rating sums them up out of 10.
Does it take the weather into account?
Yes. During today's best window: rising pressure (+0.54 inHg in 24 h), light offshore wind (10 mph) and some swell (1.8 ft waves) to stir the water. Strong wind and big waves lower the rating; falling pressure raises it a little.
What are the fishing rules in Dover?
Recreational fishing rules in Dover (licenses, size limits, bag limits and closed seasons) are set by the authorities: Marine Management Organisation. They change often: check the official website before you go.
More about Dover today
Our own calculation: tide from Dover (Environment Agency), sun and moon with astronomy-engine and, when available, weather and sea from Open-Meteo (ECMWF, NOAA GFS and Copernicus Marine, CC BY 4.0). This uses Environment Agency tide gauge data from the real-time data API (Beta): Dover (E71624), https://environment.data.gov.uk/flood-monitoring/id/stations/E71624. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/). Modified: harmonic constants fitted by TidePlanet from the 15-minute sea levels of 2025-10-29 to 2026-10-22 (269 days; without 2026-05-28 to 2026-08-25, when the gauge was faulty).