Tourists face new hurdles buying Florida fishing licenses online

NAPLES, Fla. (WINK)— Tourists visiting Florida who want to spend their days fishing are finding that getting a simple three or seven-day fishing license is no longer as easy as pulling out their phone.

Captain Dylan Hubbard of Hubbard's Marina is frustrated with the Go Outdoors Florida website. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission leadership removed the option for people to get a three or seven-day out-of-state license on the website without engaging stakeholders or talking to anybody, according to Hubbard.

"Everything about this just screams ludicrous, and it's really frustrating. It hasn't been fixed yet," Hubbard said.

What used to take 30 seconds has become a complicated process. Captain Bill D'Antuono of Offshore Naples Fishing Charter demonstrated the new system, which immediately prompts users to make donations.

"Now it's this arduous, confusing process that's just laden with roadblocks, and it's creating a really, really big dissatisfaction among tourists who visit," Hubbard said.

The website no longer offers short-term options. Instead, it only displays the one-year license for about $70 instead of the short-term $17 option.

"You immediately click it, and then see it's already got you trying to donate," D'Antuono said. "Now I'm back to the page, and nothing's been added to my cart, so I'm being forced to add all this to my cart that I don't even need."

The system also includes automatic add-ons like snook permits and lobster permits. At the end of the process, the website tries to sell hats and other merchandise.

"Now they're trying to get me to add hats and stuff at the end, so it's just they're like just trying to get you to buy stuff here," D'Antuono said.

FWC says short-term licenses are still available, just not online like before. The agency points to Walmart, license agents and tax collector offices across the state as alternatives.

The commission says the change simplifies online sales, encourages responsible fishing and supports Florida's fisheries. Hubbard has started a petition with nearly 4,000 signatures to bring back the online option.

"They've made it inconvenient to get that cheap license. Now, the convenient option is a $70 license on their website, so instead of $17," Hubbard said.

For now, captains say tourists will have to jump through extra hoops before they can legally cast a line in Florida.

FWC license agent locator can be found here.