Spearfishing in Chile
Chile is thousands of kilometres of cold, rich coast under the Humboldt current: the desert north (Arica, Iquique, Antofagasta) with clear water year-round, the rocky centre (Valparaíso, Quintay, Algarrobo) of strong upwelling and trophy reef fish. Spearfishing is legal but breath-hold only (Ley 20.256), and a Sernapesca licence is mandatory for everyone — nationals and tourists. The catch may not be sold.
The water is cold almost everywhere — 7 mm is the norm. The key safety variable is the marejadas: strong ocean swells, for which SHOA issues warnings. This guide explains the law (licence, apnea, AMERB areas), walks the regions north to south, and links to a daily go / borderline / no-go forecast for every city.
Open the flagship — Iquique →The rules in brief
The law in force is Ley N° 20.256 «Pesca Recreativa». The essentials:
- Breath-hold only. The definition of pesca submarina (Art. 3 j) is «buceo deportivo apnea» with a speargun, rubber OR pneumatic (aire comprimido). Scuba, compressor and hookah with a gun are outside the recreational regime.
- A licence is mandatory for everyone (Art. 6): foreign tourist 1.5 UF/yr, resident 0.7 UF/yr. Issued at pescarecreativa.sernapesca.cl (ClaveÚnica) or Sernapesca offices; carry it + passport. Exempt from the fee (but not from carrying it): 65+ and children under 12.
- General daily cap — ≤ 10 individuals total per jornada, plus per-species sub-limits. Selling the catch is banned (Art. 5). There's no national night ban at sea (the 21:00–06:00 ban applies only near freshwater mouths). There's no national seasonal hardstop for reef fish — only targeted vedas.
Humboldt and marejadas
The Humboldt current carries cold, nutrient-rich water along the whole coast. Upside — exceptional clarity in the north and abundant fish; downside — the cold (7 mm year-round) and powerful swells. Before every session check the SHOA marejadas bulletin: heavy swell shuts the exposed spots and makes rock entries/exits dangerous. The best windows on the central and southern coast are in summer (December–March), when the upwelling eases.
AMERB — hundreds of polygons along the coast
AMERB (Áreas de Manejo y Explotación de Recursos Bentónicos) are areas with exclusive benthos rights for artisanal fishers' organisations; there are hundreds along the coast. Benthos (loco, lapa, erizo) inside an AMERB may NOT be taken by outsiders — it's harvesting a managed resource, an offence. Fish by speargun is not formally part of the AMERB resource, and Art. 36 of Ley 20.256 doesn't ban it automatically, but it's a grey zone and a source of conflict with fishers. Treat AMERB as caution zones: benthos never, fish at your own risk and by local rules. Boundaries on geoportal.cl / GeoHub Litoral.
Species and limits
The two main reef trophies — vieja/mulata (Graus nigra) and pejeperro (Semicossyphus darwini) — are tightly limited: 1 per day each. Vieja is heavily speared out; there's no official moratorium, but the 1-limit is de-facto protection, and it's best released. Sargo, rollizo, pintacha, lorna — 5; vidriola (yellowtail) — 4; sierra — 6. Corvina — 40 cm and closed 1 Oct–30 Nov. Loco (benthos) is under a permanent closure until 31 Dec 2028 — take it nowhere. Chimaeras and small sharks (pejegallo, tollo) — mandatory release.
| Species | Limit / status |
|---|---|
| Vieja / mulata | 1/day — vulnerable, best released |
| Pejeperro | 1/day |
| Sargo, rollizo, pintacha, lorna | 5/day |
| Yellowtail (vidriola) | 4/day |
| Corvina | 40 cm; closed 1 Oct–30 Nov |
| Loco (benthos) | closed to 31 Dec 2028 — banned |
No-take and Rapa Nui
Chile's Parques Marinos and Reservas Marinas are no-go zones; their boundaries exist as a single Subpesca ArcGIS dataset (SRMPUB_AMARINAS_PROT). Parque = full ban, Reserva = ban/spear:no, AMCP-MU = advisory. Special régime — Rapa Nui (Easter Island): in the AMCP-MU, fishing is reserved for the Rapa Nui people with traditional gear (incl. Ruku — breath-hold hunting). A tourist may not hunt alone; the lawful path is only through local guides. Don't treat Rapa Nui as a free-hunting zone.
Where to dive, by region
Norte Grande
Chile's far north (Arica, Iquique, Antofagasta) — cold, clear Humboldt water off a desert coast, fishable all year.
- Arica — Chile's far north: warm water by Humboldt standards (16–18 °C, near 20 °C in summer) and the best year-round visibility in the country.
- Iquique — The north's flagship and arguably Chile's best spearfishing: year-round, dives to 30 m over rock, sand and huiro (kelp) forests.
- Tocopilla — Deep-dropping rocky coast between Iquique and Antofagasta, reefs falling away fast with good rockfish density.
- Mejillones — The most protected bay in the far north: the Mejillones peninsula opens north and blocks the big SW marejada, so there are flat-sea windows here when the whole coast is blown out.
- Antofagasta — Host of the IX CMAS Pan-American spearfishing championship: strong culture and top-tier reefs.
- Taltal — Mining-fishing town on a remote, clean rocky coast with little hunting pressure.
Norte Chico
Chile's Norte Chico (La Serena, Coquimbo, Tongoy) — cold, clear Humboldt bays that calm down in summer.
- Chanaral — Rock and sand at the gateway to Pan de Azúcar National Park, with cold, very clear water.
- Caldera — Host of the 2025 National Spearfishing Championship, famed for the productivity and transparency of its water and the white sand of Bahía Inglesa.
- Huasco — Port at the mouth of the Huasco river, rock and sand with good rockfish action outside the river plume.
- La Serena — Long sandy beach turning rocky toward Coquimbo, in the heart of the region's pescasub culture.
- Coquimbo — The core of Chilean spearfishing: La Herradura bay opens north and shelters from the big SW, with ADESUCO (60+ years) running regional tournaments.
- Guanaqueros — A fishing bay opening northwest with good SW shelter, a regular spot for the Coquimbo clubs.
- Tongoy — A peninsula with two bays: Tongoy bay opens north and gives one of the region's best SW shelters, classic ADESUCO ground.
- Los Vilos — A coastal town with islets and reefs, host of the Los Vilos spearfishing meet and a gathering point for the Papudo, Coquimbo and Valparaíso clubs.
- Pichidangui — A bay protected behind the island, one of the area's best SW shelters and a spearfishing-meet venue.
Central Chile
Central Chile (Valparaíso, Quintay, Algarrobo) — cold, strongly upwelled water for experienced spearos, calmest in summer.
- Papudo — A central-zone bay with an active spearfishing club, rock and sand and good rockfish action.
- Zapallar — A genteel rocky cove with clean water, scenic and with good rocky bottom.
- Maitencillo — A rock-and-sand resort on the central circuit, with reefs accessible from shore.
- Concon — Reefs (the Concón roqueríos) at the mouth of the Aconcagua, well-known rocky ground in the central zone.
- Vina del Mar — A resort city next to Valparaíso: lots of sand and moles, with usable rock toward Reñaca and Concón.
- Valparaiso — A big port with active spearfishing clubs but heavy shipping: the real hunting is on the reefs to the west and south — Torpederas, Punta Curaumilla, Laguna Verde.
- Laguna Verde — A rocky cove south of Valparaíso, with little traffic and good rock-and-kelp bottom — the best quiet option near the port.
- Quintay — The central zone's flagship: a quiet cove out of the heavy traffic, with rock and huiro forests dropping to 30 m and the coast's highest concentration of dive schools.
- Tunquen — A wild, little-developed coast between Quintay and Algarrobo, rock and sand with a wetland behind.
- Algarrobo — A protected bay opening north, with good SW shelter and easy entries — one of the friendliest options in the central zone.
- El Quisco — A rock-and-sand resort on the central littoral, with a fishing cove and usable reefs.
- Isla Negra — A scenic rocky coast (Neruda's house-museum), rock and sand with good kelp bottom.
- San Antonio — A major port near the Maipo mouth: turbid estuary water and heavy shipping, so the real hunting is on the rock toward Cartagena and south, outside the port and the river plume.
Maule · Biobío
Chile's Maule–Biobío south (Constitución, Dichato, Talcahuano) — cold, rough water with a short summer window.
- Pichilemu — The capital of Chilean surf: extreme marejada almost year-round, so hunting windows are rare and short.
- Bucalemu — A rock-and-sand cove by an estuary, with occasional spearfishing activity.
- Constitucion — A city at the Maule mouth, with iconic rock formations (Piedra de la Iglesia) but a strong river plume and extreme marejada.
- Curanipe — A rock-and-sand cove in the southern Maule, quiet atmosphere and clean reefs when the sea allows.
- Cobquecura — A rocky coast with the Iglesia de Piedra and sea lions, and sectors like Buchupureo and Caleta Rinconada where Sernapesca records spearfishing.
- Dichato — The Coliumo/Dichato bay opens north and offers the best sea window in Biobío — the local shelter from the extreme SW marejada.
- Tome — A bay and reefs by the Coliumo cove, with Playa Blanca and good rocky bottom sheltered from the SW.
- Talcahuano — A port and naval base with the rocky Tumbes peninsula to the west, on one of the highest-upwelling coasts (Punta Lavapié nearby): very cold, productive, sometimes turbid water.
- Lebu — A fishing port south of the Biobío, rock and sand at the Lebu river mouth, marginal and very exposed.
Frequently asked questions
Rules current as of 2026 — always confirm with Sernapesca and the local authority before you go. Recreational spearfishing on breath-hold only (no scuba + speargun); observe the size limits and the closed reserves and management areas along the Humboldt coast.
Do I need a licence, and how much is it?
Yes, for everyone. A foreign tourist pays 1.5 UF/yr, a resident 0.7 UF. The sea licence is always annual and covers both pesca recreativa and pesca submarina. Get it at pescarecreativa.sernapesca.cl (ClaveÚnica needed) or Sernapesca offices and carry it with your passport. 65+ and under-12s are fee-exempt.
Can I spearfish on scuba?
No. The law defines pesca submarina as «buceo deportivo apnea» — breath-hold only. The speargun may be rubber or pneumatic (aire comprimido), but scuba, compressor and hookah with a gun are outside the recreational regime.
What is an AMERB, and can I hunt there?
An AMERB is an area with exclusive benthos rights for a fishers' organisation. Benthos (loco, lapa, erizo) may not be taken there by outsiders. Fish by speargun is not formally part of the AMERB resource, but it's a grey zone under the regulation and a frequent source of conflict. In practice: benthos never, fish at your own risk and check with locals. Boundaries on geoportal.cl.
How many vieja can I take?
Only 1 per day (like pejeperro). There's no formal moratorium on vieja/mulata, but the species is heavily speared out and locally almost gone, so the 1-limit acts as protection. Our honest advice — take at most one, and better to release the big breeders.
Can I spearfish on Rapa Nui?
Not on your own. Rapa Nui (Easter Island) is an AMCP-MU where fishing is reserved for the Rapa Nui people with traditional gear (including Ruku — breath-hold hunting). A foreigner may not hunt freely; the lawful path is apnea courses and hunting with local guides. It's a special régime, not a free-hunting zone.