Cool Change Charters is the veteran’s pick in Orange Beach, a 44 foot Henriques sportfisher run out of Zeke’s Landing by Captain Joe Nash, who has held a Coast Guard license since 1982 and fished charters full time since 1987. Few captains in the port have his hours on the water, and his record shows it: 257 reviews on FishingBooker at 4.8, with the captain and crew score the highest of the three categories. The boat is owner run, air conditioned, and set up for a steady reef or troll day, and it sits third in our ranking on the strength of the captain and a deep, honest review trail.
The verdict and where it ranks
At 7.9 Cool Change is a strong choice and the third boat in our Orange Beach ranking, just behind Getaway Charters. The case for it is the captain: Joe Nash is an owner operator with four decades on the water, so you book and fish with the same experienced hand, which the reviews reward season after season. The honest limit is the boat. The Cool Change is a comfortable, well kept hull, restored in 2024, but it dates to 1988 and cruises around 17 knots, slower than the newer boats, so the run out eats a little more of the day. Book it for a reef or combo day with one of the best captains in the port, and pick a faster boat if you are chasing time on a long run.
The boat
The Cool Change 2 is a 44 foot Henriques sportfisher with an air conditioned cabin, a full head, outriggers, and a Green Egg grill on the back deck, Coast Guard certified to carry up to 20 and fished comfortably with up to 8 anglers. It was restored in 2024, and the cabin and the size make it a comfortable platform for a family or a group on a longer day. The honest notes are its age and speed: the hull is from 1988 and the cruise is around 17 knots, so it is not the boat for beating weather or covering distance fast, and a few reviews flag a rough ride on a choppy day. The operator also runs a 24 foot inshore boat, the Miss Cindy, for bay trips.
The fishing and what you target
Cool Change fishes the Orange Beach artificial reef zone for bottom fish, red snapper, vermilion snapper, amberjack, and triggerfish in their seasons, with king and Spanish mackerel and the odd wahoo on the troll. Red snapper is the headline in season, fished on the federal for-hire window that runs June 1 to October 26 in 2026. The 5 hour combo splits the day between trolling closer in and bottom fishing the reefs, a good first trip, while the 8, 10, and 12 hour days run farther out for a bigger box. The captain fishes the trip for what is biting, and the reviews credit a high catch rate, with snapper limits common in season.
Trips and prices
Cool Change sells by the whole boat. The posted rates run $975 for 3 hours, $1,200 for 4 hours, $1,500 for a 5 hour combo, $1,800 for a 6 hour bottom trip, $2,400 for 8 hours, $3,000 for 10 hours, and $3,600 for 12 hours. Bait, tackle, the fishing license, and ice are included, which is more than some boats bundle. The frictions to know about are the extras and the deposit: fish cleaning runs about $0.30 per pound, a deckhand tip of 18 to 20 percent is customary, the operator notes prices can move with fuel, and a $500 deposit holds the date. The cost guide sets these whole boat numbers against a shared seat, and the party boat versus private charter guide weighs the boat against a walk on seat on the head boats.
The crew
Captain Joe Nash is the reason to book this boat. Licensed since 1982 and running charters full time since 1987, with several thousand trips behind him, he is among the most experienced captains in Orange Beach, and he owns and runs the boat himself. The FishingBooker record bears it out: 257 reviews at 4.8, with the captain and crew category the strongest at 4.9, and the mate Adam named often for hard work and patience with kids. The review distribution is honest, mostly five stars with a scatter of lower scores, which reads as a real record, not a polished sheet of five stars. The recurring praise is local knowledge, a high catch rate, and a family friendly deck.
Booking and what to know
Book through the operator’s own site, its FishingBooker listing, or the Zeke’s Landing marina, which lists the boat and its rates. The boat leaves from Zeke’s Landing Marina at 26619 Perdido Beach Blvd, reaching the Gulf through Perdido Pass. No fishing license is needed, the boat covers it for both Alabama and Florida waters, and ice is included. Bring food, drinks, sunscreen, and motion sickness medication, since the older hull rides a chop more than the newer boats. For a faster or newer private boat, Distraction and Getaway are the alternatives.
How we scored it
Cool Change scores 7.9: an owner operated boat run by one of the most experienced captains in Orange Beach, with a deep, honest FishingBooker record and bait, tackle, license, and ice included. Captain and crew is its top factor by a clear margin. It sits a notch below the boats above it because the hull is older and slower than the newest in the port, and a few extras and a deposit sit on top of the trip price. See how we scored this boat, and compare it against the rest of the Orange Beach fleet.