A guide to your first carp fishing holiday

Every year thousands of carp anglers from the UK cross the English Channel to go fishing in Europe, but if you’ve never been before, arranging your first trip can seem quite a daunting prospect.

Whilst France has traditionally been the first choice of country to head to as it is close to the UK, has loads of different venues to choose from, and is home to some massive carp, there is plenty of fantastic carp fishing to be found in other countries as well.

Other locations that are popular these days for carp fishing include Belgium, Holland, Spain, Italy, Croatia, and Hungary, but your choice really is unlimited as pretty much every country in Europe is home to big carp, and often with a good chance of catching one.

Be realistic

Whilst there are a lot more big carp in Europe than we have in the UK, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they are going to be easy to catch and you need to be realistic with the targets you set.

The main purpose of a carp fishing holiday is to enjoy and to have a good time with your mates, catch some fish, and if you are a lucky a monster might come along.

So don’t set your sights too high and be realistic, as if you go expecting to catch a load of 60-pounders, then most of the time you are going to end up disappointed.

Choosing the right venue

The success or failure of your trip will largely hinge on the venue that you decide to fish on, combined with a slice of luck in terms of weather conditions, as most of us have to book these trips well in advance.

Whilst you can’t do anything about the weather, you can try to reduce the chances of it impacting on your trip. Try to avoid going around spawning time, as yes the fish are at their biggest just prior to then but you also run the risk of them starting to spawn whilst you are there.

The same goes with booking trips very early or late in the year, unless you are intentionally looking to do a winter trip, as unseasonably cold weather, and especially a sudden drop in temperature, can really switch some venues off.

You can also put the odds massively in your favour by choosing a venue that suits your angling ability and the style of fishing that you feel most comfortable doing.

There is no point turning up to a lake, however many big fish it might hold, if the vast majority of them are being caught by casting at very long range – on some of the popular Croatian waters for instance, a lot of the fishing is being done at 130 yards or more – and you don’t have the tackle or technique to not only get a rig out there but also to be able to bait up accurately enough.

The same goes for arriving on an inland sea where you need to use a boat both for placing your rigs and also playing fish, as not only do you need to have all the gear for that – a boat, engine, fish finder, spare batteries and the like – but you also need to be able to use it efficiently, and that takes practice, especially if it is windy, and it is easy to end up in a proper mess! 

By picking a lake that suits your style of angling and ability, you are able to fish as effectively as possible, and then it is just down to how well the carp are feeding whilst you are there.

It also means that you will have confidence in what you are doing, as it is similar to what you do in your normal fishing at home, and will be able to tweak your tactics as required.

Public waters

A lot of European countries have plenty of public waters, which can range from stretches of canals and rivers, right through to lakes of many thousands of acres in size, all of which can be fished via some kind of fishing licence.

These fishing licences sometimes cover the whole country and give you access to any of these lakes, or you might need to buy one that covers the region that you are fishing. You also may need to pay extra to be able to fish at night – restrictions on this vary greatly between different countries and even waters within that country – or to be able to use more than one rod.

Many of these waters will hold carp of varying sizes, and whilst some lakes are famous and well known, there are still plenty that are a bit more off the beaten track but finding and exploring them all takes time.

When it comes to public lakes, they are often massive by UK standards, in the hundreds or even thousands of acres, and can be a really daunting prospect unless you have some information – from other anglers who’ve fished there - on where to start. If you’ve only got a week then that isn’t long to find the fish and work out how to catch them, not to mention potentially getting used to using a boat for the first time.

So whilst these lakes can be home to some very big fish, unless you are already experienced in this type of fishing, or particularly want a bit of an adventure where you accept there is a chance you might not catch anything, then for your first trip abroad these types of venues are probably best avoided.

Commercial lakes

There are lots of commercial lakes that are set up specifically for anglers wanting a carp fishing holiday, and there is so much choice you should be able to find somewhere that is just right for you and your mates.

On some venues it is possible to book the whole lake for your group, whilst others will limit the number of anglers each week and you can book to go on your own or with some mates.

Some lakes are set up so that you book a particular peg and know exactly where you will be fishing all week, whilst others have a draw for swims at the start, which adds an element of luck to where you end up fishing.

There are English run venues that will literally pick you up with all your gear and bait in the UK and then drive you out there and back again at the end of the trip, providing everything that you need whilst you are there.

Whilst that means you don’t have to organise much, it also takes a lot of the adventure element out of it and you won’t get to experience much of whatever country you’re going to. But for those who don’t drive, or who won’t drive in Europe, it gives them the option of still going on a fishing holiday.

Most commercial waters though are either drive-and-survive, where you get yourself there and sort out all your own food and the like, and all that is laid on is the lake itself.

Others are somewhere inbetween, where you get yourself there but the lake does have some amenities, often including a food package where your meals are supplied and you don’t have to worry about cooking.

The stock and size of fish can vary massively, with anything from lakes where you would expect to catch lots of fish during a week, but the average size won’t necessarily be all that high, through to others where you aren’t expecting many bites but if you do get one there could be something massive on the other end – the current world record of over 112lb came from a small pay lake in Hungary, and the previous record was from a commercial lake in France.

For a first fishing trip abroad this type of venue is the perfect choice for most people, especially as they will usually have some sort of bailiff living on site who will know the venue inside out and will be able to give you some tips and advice on how to make the most of the swim you’re in and which spots produce.

Some of these lakes can involve fishing from a boat, and if you want to try that style of fishing they are the perfectly places to start as they tend not to be massive in size, meaning that the weather/wind is less of an issue, and usually the boat, engine and everything else you need for that is provided by the fishery.

Taking the right tackle

Ideally you don’t want to be having to buy a load of new tackle just for a one-off trip abroad, so it is worth bearing that in mind when choosing a venue.

The good news is that unless you are doing something pretty extreme – such as going on a huge lake or a venue that requires very long range casting – then the rods and reels that you already own and use will probably be up to the job, unless they are a particularly light test curve or small spool size. Certainly both the Korda Kaizen Platinum and Kaizen Green ranges are just as well suited to European fishing as they are for in the UK, depending on which model you have chosen of course.

You may need to consider using a stronger line, or even switching over to braid, if the venue is very weedy or snaggy, and the fish grow large, but in most situations the gear that you already use should be sufficient if you already have your reels loaded with 15lb mono.

The same goes for hooks and hook link materials and there is no need to completely change what you are confident in, you may just need to make it a little bit more robust. This can mean going for a slightly larger size of hook than you normally use, but given that size 4 hooks are popular with a lot of modern rigs anyway, it is more likely to mean stepping up the wire gauge – such as moving from a Wide Gape or Krank hook to a stronger ‘X’ version of these same patterns.

The same goes for hook link materials, and whilst 15lb Boom or N-Trap coated braid may be perfect for your local lake and the size of fish you’re expecting to catch, if there is the chance of some real monsters at whichever overseas lake you’ve chosen, then you might want to step the breaking strain up a bit, without going too crazy unless snags and weed dictate the need to do so.

What is the best bait to use

There is no reason at all why the bait you use for the rest of your fishing won’t work abroad as well.

But it is worth finding out if there is a particular ‘going bait’ on the venue you’ve chosen, and some even sell freezer bait onsite, so not only does this save you taking your own, but also means that this is what the fish are used to eating.

Whilst there are some lakes that are full of nuisance species such as small silver fish, poisson chat, and crayfish, and which make it necessary to use rock hard baits or gobstopper size boilies to get around them, this isn’t the case on most lakes and using a good quality freezer bait of the same sizes that you would use in the UK will work well.

When it comes to your hookbaits you made need to encase them in something to prevent them getting chewed so easily, such as the Korda Super Wrap, and it is well worth having some plastic baits with you as well just in case.

The same goes for using particle baits, where they are allowed, and all the usual baits such as tiger nuts and maize can be incredibly effective, and in the case of tigers are much more resilient than boilies as well.

Top commercial carp fishing lakes

Carplantis

This Embryo Angling lake in northern Holland is home to some very big fish for the country, with the best going nearly 70lb, and around half of the stock being in excess of 40lb.

There are four double swims on the lake, making it ideal to fish with a mate, and the unique layout, with a swim in each corner, gives every angler a margin to fish along on this deep water.

The fishing definitely isn’t easy, with 250 carp in 17 acres, but the rewards are there to be had and the fish themselves are stunning looking with plenty of variety.

Boats are allowed on the lake, and are supplied in each swim, and you can also use a bait boat.

The lake has an onsite bailiff but is on a ‘drive and survive’ basis, but does have a small tackle shop as well as selling bait onsite – pellets, prepared particles, and boilies. The swims all have power.

See here for more info on Carplantis.

Gigantica Main Lake

This renowned 35 acre lake is home to one of the biggest common carp in the world, the Immaculate at 98lb 8oz.

If that wasn’t enough, there are three others that top 80lb, plus another eight over 70lb, and the action can be a lot more prolific at times than it has been in the past, thanks to the new fish that have been grown on from spawn and stocked, and which are now packing on the weight.

The style of fishing here offers something for everyone, whether blasting rigs out into the middle and spodding, or fishing at shorter ranges over a spread of boilies from the throwing stick. Plus it is now possible to have your swim baited from the boat once per day, if you don’t fancy too much spodding.

It isn’t that much different to fishing a lake in the UK, except that the fish grow a lot bigger, and the tactics that you would use at home are well suited to this lake. It is far from easy, and blanking for a week is always possible, but the rewards are there to be had if you get it right.

A food package is available at the lake, plus freezer bait, and a fully stocked tackle shop is also on site.

See here for more info on Gigantica Main Lake.

Gigantica Road Lake

Although is a newer venue than the Main Lake and has always been seen as having smaller fish in it, this 26 acre lake is now home to two fish that top the 70lb mark, plus 13 others that go over 60lb.

As if that wasn’t enough to go at, out of the 850 odd carp in the lake, lots of them top 40lb, and even 50s aren’t that uncommon these days, with the fish growing at quite a rate.

This lake is definitely easier than the Main Lake, and if you get it right then multiple catches are on the cards.

A food package is available at the lake, plus freezer bait, and a fully stocked tackle shop is also on site. This lake is very popular and you can see the future availability via the online calendar.

See here for more info on Gigantica Road Lake.

Carp Arena

This Embryo Angling fishery in Belgium, just an hour or so from Calais, has four different lakes, with very different fishing on each of them.

Clover Mere is the most famous and has a long history of producing big carp, and is still home to some old ones up to 63lb, along with some younger stock amongst the 250 fish that live in it. There are three double swims which give access to plenty of features to fish to, and a lot of the fishing is done using the rowing boats which are supplied and allow rigs to be dropped on spots at longer range – if you want to use an engine you will need to bring your own.

If you are looking for a lake exclusive booking for five anglers, then Rose Mere is the perfect location, with 250 carp in just seven acres and fish to over 50lb, plus there is a BBQ area – all of the lakes on this venue are self-catering.

Orchid Pool is another lake on the complex that is booked on a lake exclusive basis, for up to four anglers, and with 150 carp which grow to over 40lb, along with lots of 30s, it is ideal for those looking for some action with a small group of mates, and at five acres in size is similar to fishing a UK lake, although like with all the lakes at Carp Arena, a rowing boat is supplied if you want to use it.

The final lake on the complex is Lilly Pool, another lake which is on an exclusive booking basis, with two double swims and very sociable as they are close together but with features for each angler to fish to.

This six acre lake is home to fish to over 50lb and is a bit of an unknown quantity as it has only recently started to be fished but was stocked years ago. Currently there are around 120 fish, following the stocking of some new ones to go with the 50 or so originals, and it is the sort of venue where you could get a real surprise.

See here for more info on Carp Arena.