Rhein

River

Rhine

The Rhine is Germany's largest river by discharge and a key migration corridor for salmon, sea trout and twaite shad.

River system: Rhein
Length: 1233 km
Species: 40
Threatened (Red List): 8

Federal states

Baden-Württemberg Rhineland-Palatinate Hesse North Rhine-Westphalia

Source: www.bafg.de

Map: Natural Earth (public domain); © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL)

Fishing here

Besides a fishing licence (Fischereischein) you need a permit (Angelkarte) from whoever holds the fishing rights for the water.

Baden-Württemberg

Guest licence for non-residents

Without the exam for people staying in Germany for up to one month; issued by the municipality.

Fishing licence FischG LFischVO

Rhineland-Palatinate

Guest licence for non-residents

Guest licence without the exam for people not resident in Germany, twice a year for up to 30 days.

Fishing licence LFischG Landesfischereiordnung

Hesse

Guest licence for non-residents

Visitor licence without the exam for people not resident in Germany, one month per year.

Fishing licence HFischG HFischV

North Rhine-Westphalia

Guest licence for non-residents

Licence without the exam for people registered in Germany for no more than a year; available online.

Fishing licence LFischG LFischVO

Species	Baden-Württemberg	Rhineland-Palatinate	Hesse	North Rhine-Westphalia
Common Carp	35 cm	35 cm	45–60 cm · 15 Mar – 31 May	35 cm
European Eel	50 cm · 15 Sep – 1 Mar	50 cm	50–70 cm · 15 Sep – 1 Mar	50 cm
Grayling	30 cm · 1 Feb – 30 Apr	30 cm · 15 Feb – 30 Apr	30–45 cm · 1 Mar – 15 May	30 cm · 1 Mar – 30 Apr
Northern Pike	50 cm · 15 Feb – 15 May	50 cm · 1 Feb – 31 May	50–90 cm · 1 Feb – 15 Apr	45 cm · 15 Feb – 30 Apr
Pike-perch (Zander)	45 cm · 1 Apr – 15 May	45 cm · 15 Mar – 15 May	50 cm	40 cm · 1 Apr – 31 May

Minimum size · closed season, per state; a range is a harvest slot. Statewide rules for anglers as of 24 Oct 2026, without guarantee. Clubs and waters can set stricter rules; the ordinance text is binding.

Fish species in this water body

Expected occurrence, modelled from the fish zones of this water (grayling zone, barbel zone, and bream zone), habitat type and the federal states a species lives in, and checked against GBIF records — not a record of observations here.