Fishing in Hampshire

By Alex Clayton · Updated 23 October 2026

Fishing in Hampshire runs from chalk-stream trout on the Test and Itchen to coarse fishing on the Hampshire Avon, cheap council lakes, the Basingstoke Canal and sea fishing on the Solent. The catch is access: the county’s most famous rivers are mostly let as private beats.

There is still a public way onto the River Test. Test Valley Borough Council sells day tickets at Romsey, and the prices are in the chalk-stream section below.

This guide covers where each type of fishing is, how you get on it, and the rules that apply, from the EA rod licence to close seasons and bass limits. It links to the full river and canal guides as you go.

Hampshire Fishing at a Glance: Which Water Suits You

Find the fishing you want in the left-hand column, then go to the section that covers it.

Area	Type of water	Main species	How access works
Test valley (Andover to Romsey)	Chalk stream, plus council lakes	Brown trout on the river; tench, carp, roach, rudd, perch, bream and pike on the lakes	Mostly private beats; council day tickets on the river at Romsey and on lakes near Andover
Itchen and Winchester	Chalk stream, protected (SSSI and SAC)	Trout	Mostly private; check locally
Avon valley (towards Christchurch)	Coarse river and gravel pits	Barbel, chub and other coarse fish	Largely club and syndicate; check with the fishery
North Hampshire	Basingstoke Canal	Coarse fish	Check with the Basingstoke Canal Authority
Coast and Solent (Portsmouth, Southampton Water, Lymington)	Sea	Bass, black bream, flatfish, mullet, mackerel	Piers, harbours, shore and charter boats

The rivers that made fishing in Hampshire famous are mostly let privately. The cheapest, simplest fishing is on council-run stillwaters and the coast.

For a cheap first session, start with the council lakes. Fly anglers should start with the chalk streams. If you are planning further afield, compare Hampshire with other UK fishing regions.

Hampshire Chalk Streams: How to Fish the Test and Itchen

Search for a day on the Test and you will mostly find beats let by the season, corporate packages, or nothing advertised at all. That is how Hampshire chalk streams work, and it puts plenty of anglers off before they start.

Chalk streams are clear, spring-fed rivers with steady flows. The Test runs for about 40 miles (64km) from its source near Ashe and is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). Much of the Itchen is protected as both an SSSI and a Special Area of Conservation (SAC).

How access works

Most chalk-stream fishing in Hampshire is private. Estates and agents let it by the beat, by the day or by the season. Because so much of it sits on protected sites, expect rules on methods, wading and catch and release, and read them before you book.

The public route onto the Test

Test Valley Borough Council sells tickets for the River Test at War Memorial Park, Romsey. According to the council’s War Memorial Park page, prices per rod are:

Ticket	Resident	Non-resident
Full day	£18.55	£36.15
Half day	£11.35	£22.85

Residents under 18 and over 60 pay half price. Buy tickets at the Council Offices on Church Street, Romsey, and carry your EA rod licence. Check with the council before you travel.

The Itchen

No public day ticket on the Itchen could be verified for this guide. Access changes, so ask local tackle shops or beat owners what is available this season.

On both rivers, the Southern area river trout close season runs from 1 November to 2 April, and you must not take trout under 23cm. Salmon and sea trout need the separate salmon and sea trout licence. Full tables are in the licences section below.

For river detail, read the River Test fishing guide and our guide to fishing the River Itchen.

If you want one chalk-stream day without booking a private beat, start at Romsey.

Coarse Fishing on the Hampshire Avon

In 1934 a barbel of 14lb 6oz (6.5kg) came from the Royalty stretch of the Hampshire Avon at Christchurch and equalled the British record of the day. It is no longer on the books: the British Record (rod-caught) Fish Committee expunged the early barbel records in 1968.

The Royalty is a two-mile stretch at Christchurch. Ticket arrangements on stretches like this change, so confirm the current operator and ticket terms with the fishery before you travel.

Away from the Royalty, much of the Avon valley is club or syndicate water, both on the river and on the gravel pits beside it. For most coarse fishing in Hampshire’s Avon valley, joining a club is the realistic way in.

The river coarse close season runs from 15 March to 15 June inclusive. The Avon Valley (Bickton to Blashford) stillwater SSSI is closed for the same dates under the GOV.UK south east regional byelaws, so some valley lakes shut when the river does.

See the Hampshire Avon fishing guide for the river in depth and UK fishing seasons for the dates.

The verdict: the Avon is the county’s main coarse river, but treat any ticket details you find online as a lead until the fishery confirms them.

Hampshire Fishing Lakes: Cheap Council Waters and Day-Ticket Venues

An adult day ticket on the Test Valley council lakes costs £8.35 per rod. That buys you stocked coarse water with a species list published by the council.

Test Valley Borough Council runs three lakes on one ticket scheme:

Lake	What it is	Species	Note
Anton Lake (Andover)	River-fed lake of 3.8 ha (9.3 acres)	Tench, common carp, roach, rudd, perch, bream, pike	Six swims
Foxcotte Lake	Council lake	Tench, roach, rudd, perch, bream, pike, carp	25 swims; catch and release only
Rooksbury Mill	Council lake	See the council page	Same ticket scheme

The council quotes carp to 16lb (7.3kg) and pike to 20lb (9.1kg) as the top weights at Foxcotte. That makes it the pick of the three if you want a chance of a better fish on a cheap ticket.

Tickets

According to the council’s Rooksbury Mill fishing page, prices are:

Day ticket: £8.35 per rod for adults, £4.18 for under 18s and over 60s
Season ticket: £53.65 for adults, £26.83 concession

Tickets are not sold on the bank. Buy them in advance from Challis Tackle or OJ’s Fishing Tackle and Bait in Andover, and carry your rod licence. Check with the council before you travel.

Other Hampshire lakes

Beyond the council waters, Hampshire fishing lakes fall into three broad types:

Avon valley gravel pits: mostly club or syndicate, and where many of the bigger fish live.
Estate lakes in the Test and Itchen valleys: few carp, but the ones there tend to be well fed.
Commercial day-ticket lakes: usually well stocked, so the easiest place for a first session.

Commercial prices and rules vary, so check them with the fishery before you travel. When you compare venues online, remember that star ratings tell you how a venue is run, not what is in the water.

Best for: beginners and families on a budget. Skip if: you are after big carp, where club and syndicate pits are the better bet.

The Basingstoke Canal

North Hampshire anglers do not need to drive to the Avon for coarse fishing. The Basingstoke Canal runs through their side of the county.

The canal is jointly owned by Hampshire and Surrey County Councils and managed by the Basingstoke Canal Authority. Its western end is no longer navigable, so that stretch is free of through boat traffic.

Permit arrangements, clubs and prices change, so check the current fishing permit rules with the Basingstoke Canal Authority before you fish. Under the national byelaws most canals have no coarse close season, but confirm this locally, and carry your EA rod licence.

The Basingstoke Canal fishing guide covers the water in more detail.

If you live in the north of the county, check the canal first.

Sea Fishing in Hampshire: Solent Species and the 2026 Bass Rules

On the Hampshire coast, the bass rules are where anglers most often go wrong. Keep a bass in the wrong month, or one a centimetre under 42cm, and you have broken them.

The Solent and Southampton Water hold a wide mix of species:

Bass and black bream
Flatfish: plaice, flounder, sole and dab
Mullet, mackerel, pollock and dogfish

You can fish from piers and harbours around Portsmouth and Lymington, along the Southampton Water estuary, or from charter boats out of the coastal towns. Access and parking rules differ from mark to mark, so check them locally before you set up.

Bass rules for 2026

The GOV.UK bass fishing guidance sets the recreational rules that apply from 1 January 2026:

Period	What you can keep
1 February to 31 March	Nothing. Catch and release only on rod and line
Rest of the year	Up to 3 bass per angler per day, each 42cm or over

Some estuaries and harbours are bass nursery areas with extra restrictions, so check the nursery-area orders on GOV.UK before you fish one. Our page on bass fishing regulations explains them in full.

Return any bass under 42cm quickly, with as little handling as possible. The EA rod licence covers freshwater fishing; sea fishing has its own rules, set out in the guidance above.

For a short hop across the Solent, see our Isle of Wight sea fishing marks.

Shore fishing from piers and harbours is the cheap, flexible option. A charter boat reaches marks you cannot fish from the shore, at the cost of a booked trip.

Licences and Close Seasons for Hampshire Waters

Two checks keep every water on this page legal: the right licence and the right dates. All figures below come from GOV.UK, checked on 23 October 2026.

Rod licence prices

Licence	Price
Trout and coarse, 2 rods	£7.30 (1 day), £14.70 (8 days), £36.80 (12 months)
Trout and coarse, 3 rods	£55.30 (12 months)
Trout and coarse concession	£24.50 (12 months)
Salmon and sea trout	£13.50 (1 day), £30.50 (8 days), £93.10 (12 months)

Juniors aged 13 to 16 need a licence, but it is free. Prices can change, so check GOV.UK before you buy, and see our fishing licence guide for which one you need.

Close seasons and size limits

Water or species	Close season
Coarse fish on rivers, streams and drains	15 March to 15 June inclusive
Most stillwaters and canals	None
Hampshire stillwater SSSIs, including Lower Test Valley and Avon Valley (Bickton to Blashford)	15 March to 15 June
Brown and rainbow trout in rivers	1 November to 2 April
Migratory trout	1 November to 30 April
Salmon	3 October to 16 January

Do not take trout under 23cm or migratory trout under 38cm. The dates come from the national byelaws and the south east regional byelaws, and our fishing seasons guide explains them. Fisheries add their own rules on top, so check with the fishery before you travel.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a licence to fish in Hampshire?

Yes. You need an Environment Agency rod licence to fish for freshwater fish in Hampshire from age 13. A 12-month trout and coarse licence for 2 rods costs £36.80, and juniors aged 13 to 16 get theirs free. Buy it on GOV.UK.

Can you fish the River Test without a private beat?

Yes. Test Valley Borough Council sells tickets for the Test at War Memorial Park, Romsey, with a non-resident full day at £36.15 per rod. Most other Test water is private. Check with the council before you travel.

Where are the cheapest fishing lakes in Hampshire?

The Test Valley council lakes (Anton, Foxcotte and Rooksbury Mill) cost £8.35 per rod per day for adults. Buy tickets in advance from Challis Tackle or OJ's Fishing Tackle and Bait in Andover. Check with the council before you travel.

When can I keep bass in Hampshire?

Outside 1 February to 31 March you can keep up to 3 bass per angler per day, each at least 42cm. From 1 February to 31 March it is catch and release only. Check the GOV.UK nursery-area orders before fishing estuaries and harbours.