Bongos Sportfishing is the private six pack option in Newport Beach, two 38 foot Tiara Express cabin cruisers run out of the Balboa Pavilion for more than 25 years under owner Captain Mike Mongold. Where the landings a few steps away sell seats by the person on big party boats, Bongos books the whole boat for your group of up to six, with a cabin, a head, and bunks for the overnight runs. The operation carries a clean, long record and an A rating with the Better Business Bureau, and the two main marks against it are a modest review volume and rates it quotes by phone rather than posting.
The verdict and where it ranks
At 7.1 Bongos is a strong choice and the second boat we rank in Newport Beach, behind the Sealutions four pack and ahead of the Newport Landing and Davey’s Locker party boats. It sits there because it gives a group its own boat with more room and comfort than the four pack, a 38 foot cabin against a 25 foot pilothouse, while carrying a thinner review record and less pricing transparency than the top boat. Book it for a group of up to six that wants a private day or an overnight bunk without the squeeze of a smaller hull. See the rest of the field on our Newport Beach rankings.
The boats
Bongos runs two 38 foot Tiara Express cruisers, Bongos II and Bongos III, each licensed for six anglers. The III is powered by twin Cummins turbo diesels that cruise around 22 knots, with a cabin, a private head, a berth with extra bunks for the overnight trips, full electronics, and the safety gear the Coast Guard requires. They are comfortable cabin boats rather than fast open consoles, so they trade some speed to the offshore grounds for shelter and room on a long day, which is the right call for a family or a mixed group. Running two hulls is a quiet advantage: the operation can usually cover your date and keep a backup, which a one boat operator cannot.
The fishing and what you target
Bongos fishes the Newport range, from the local bass and bottom grounds to the offshore tuna in season. A half day works the coastline and the reefs for calico and sand bass, barracuda, bonito, halibut, and rockfish when the groundfish season is open. A full day reaches Catalina and the nearer banks for yellowtail and white seabass, and the overnight trips run to San Clemente Island and the offshore waters for bluefin and yellowfin tuna when the warm water arrives from summer into fall. The reviews that mention the fishing tend to describe steady action for a beginner, kids catching their first fish, and full coolers of bass on the local trips, rather than a long range big game reputation, which fits the cabin boat and the trips it runs.
Trips and prices
Bongos sells the whole boat, private, for up to six anglers across a half day, a full day, and an overnight. The catch for a price conscious booker is that the operation quotes its rates by phone rather than posting them, so you confirm the number when you call, which is the one place it trails the Sealutions boat next to it on this list. Tackle is provided, and the California fishing license that every angler 16 and older must carry is the add on to confirm. Split among six, a private day on a 38 foot boat can land close to an open party seat once you account for the room and the lack of a crowd, which is the case the party boat versus private charter guide lays out, and the cost guide sets the tiers side by side.
The crew
The boat is owner run, with Captain Mike Mongold behind it and a small roster of regular captains, Chase and Ryan among those named in the reviews, so you can draw a different skipper than the owner on a given day. The sentiment is consistently warm across Yelp, Facebook, and TripAdvisor: clean, spacious boats, professional and patient captains, and a beginner friendly trip, backed by an A rating and a record that runs back to 1999. The honest qualifier is volume. The review count is modest, a few dozen on Yelp and a similar base on Facebook, rather than the hundreds the four pack or the thousands the landings carry, so the strong impression rests on a smaller sample. The pattern is good as far as it goes; there is just less of it to read.
Booking and what to know
Book direct by phone, since Bongos runs its own bookings rather than living on a marketplace. The boats leave from the Balboa Pavilion at 400 Main Street, the same Newport Harbor landing as Davey’s Locker, so arrive 30 to 45 minutes early to park on the peninsula and check in. Buy a California one day license, about $21, onboard or in advance, since the boat does not cover it. Bring food, drinks, layers for the cool offshore air, and motion sickness medication for the longer runs, and a cooler for your fillets.
How we scored it
Bongos scores 7.1, second in Newport Beach. Boat and equipment is its strongest factor at 7.5, two comfortable 38 foot cabin cruisers with a head and bunks, more boat than the top ranked four pack. Captain and crew and track record both sit at 7.0, strong sentiment and a 25 year A rated record held to a modest review volume and a rotating captain roster. Value and transparency at 6.5 is the soft spot, not because the boat is dear but because the rates are not posted. See how we scored this boat for the full rubric, and compare it with the rest of our Newport Beach rankings.