Fly Fishing in
France 🇫🇷

Capital

Paris

Region

Europe

Sub-region

Western Europe

Currency

EUR (€)

The phrase "Fly Fishing"

Pêche à la mouche

With a diverse range of landscapes, countless rivers, and a strong angling culture, France is a dream destination for fly fishing enthusiasts at all skill levels. From the pristine mountain streams of the Pyrenees and the Alps to the serene rivers of Normandy and Brittany, this country offers an extraordinary variety of fishing opportunities, species, and picturesque locations.


Did you know?

In the Jura Mountains of eastern France, the River Doubs is famous for its "Zebra Trout," a unique and strikingly beautiful brown trout subspecies with a distinct black and white striped pattern.

Where to go fly fishing in France

Curated locations, both guided and non-guided:

L'Ellé de Barrégant

A stunning small stream with brown trout for the lower aftma classes

Stream

Brown Trout

La Saâne

Serenity and trout between the cows

Stream

Brown Trout

Sea Trout

Le Lot (Aveyron region)

A river with a wide variety of water in a majestic landscape

River

Brown Trout

Chub

Grayling

La Loue River

A beautiful river with many different spots to fish

River

Brown Trout

Grayling

Do you have a location you want to share? Let us know.

Fishing license in France

Saltwater

For fishing in saltwater in France you do not need a license.

Freshwater

For freshwater fishing you need to purchase a license from cartedepeche.fr. There are a few options: day permit (about €18), holiday permit (valid for one week, about €34) or a yearly permit (about €105). There are also licenses for women (€30 for a year), child/teenagers and under 12s.

When you buy a permit you need to choose an association. Choose the one closest to where you go fishing, but note that the permit is for waters across the country, not just the waters of the association you choose.

All permits are valid for first and second category water.

First category water
These are the rivers in which a population of salmonids dominates: trout, Arctic char, fountain salmon, salmon, sea trout. This type of river is commonly called "trout river". Fishing is subject to special regulations, with opening and closing dates. The size and number of fish that can be kept varies from region to region.

Second category water
In a second category river, the population consists mainly of white fish, carp and predators: pike, pike perch, perch, catfish, black bass. Water is often of a lower quality than the first category. Fishing in the second category is allowed all year round, with the exception of pike and pike perch, which have an opening and closing date (different from that of trout).

Choose a day, holiday or yearly permit
Easy to buy online
Access to a lot of water throughout the country
Make sure to double check if the license is valid for the water you want to go fishing
cartedepeche.fr

Species you can fly fish for in France

Asp

Atlantic Salmon

Brook trout

Brown Trout

Common Carp

Grayling

Perch

Pike

Pike-perch

All fish in France

Fly fishing guides in France

These are the guides in France that can help you exlore new waters and learn new skills.

Thierry Millot

Guiding

Workshops

Yves Faillenet

Guiding

Workshops

Fly tying

Made in River - Glenn Delporte

Guiding

Workshops

Globe Truiteur

Guiding

Country trips

Yoann Esquis

Guiding

Workshops

Daniel Souchet

Guiding

Workshops

Fly tying

View all guides

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Flyfish webshops in France

Webshops where you can find all your fly fishing gear.

1000 Mouches

1000mouches.fr

Fly fishing in other countries

🇦🇹 Austria

🇧🇪 Belgium

🇩🇰 Denmark

🇫🇮 Finland

🇩🇪 Germany

🇮🇸 Iceland

🇮🇹 Italy

🇳🇿 New Zealand

🇳🇴 Norway

🇸🇪 Sweden

🇨🇭 Switzerland

🇳🇱 The Netherlands

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🇺🇸 United States

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