How to fish in Genshin Impact & find every fishing spot

The new Genshin Impact fishing update means there's now more to it than just grabbing them. There are fishing spots to find, respawns to consider, and more in Genshin Impact 2.1 and, as long as you have a fishing rod and some bait, you can start catching some fresh Koi, Pufferfish, or a Tea-Colored Shirakodai.

Naturally, this fishing business comes with some neat rewards; once you unlock the Genshin Impact fishing feature, you may exchange your catch for a free four-star Polearm suitable named ‘The Catch’. It’s also possible to buy a fish pond for the Serenitea Pot.

If you need any help, here’s everything we know about the Genshin Impact fishing feature. From how to unlock it to crafting fishing bait and finding every fishing location in Teyvat.

How to unlock fishing in Genshin Impact

Before you can unlock the Genshin Impact fishing system you need to unlock the Serenitea Pot feature (and have some fun with the Genshin Impact Serenitea Pot blueprints when you do). This private realm feature will only be unlocked after reaching Adventure Rank 35 and completing Archon Quest Chapter I Act 3 ‘A New Star Approaches’.

If you meet all these requirements, you’ll find a new World Quest called ‘Exploding Population’ in the Journal. Just follow the story and complete the objectives to permanently unlock the Genshin Impact fishing system.

Exploding population quest walkthrough

First of all, you should activate the quest navigation in your Journal (under the ‘World Quest’ tab). Your first stop is in Mondstadt, where you’ll speak to Katheryne at the Adventurer’s Guild. Next, talk to the NPC just outside the gate, then go to the fishing pond north of Springvale (facing Mondstadt). You’ll have to catch your first fish here.

Next, go to the fishing location north of Starfell Valley to catch an ‘ornamental’ fish. You can recognize this special type of fish by its jumpiness (normal fish just stays in the water). Once this is done, the only remaining task is to go back to the NPC’s location just outside Mondstadt and complete the dialogue. Congratulations, you’ve unlocked the Genshin Impact fishing feature!

How to catch a fish in Genshin Impact

The Genshin Impact fishing feature is not too difficult once you get the hang of it. First, you need to get close to a fishing spot. Accept the fishing action, and then throw out your line (preferably not on a fish, as this will startle them). You can change the direction by moving your camera. If your line is too far from the fish, you can simply reel it in and try again without a penalty.

If a fish gets close enough to the bait, it will chew one or more times before it bites. When that happens, you’ll see the words ‘you’ve got a bite’ in the middle of the screen, along with a fishing bar. This is where the real challenge starts.

The fishing bar has a yellow box inside. This box will constantly change its position, shifting left to right and back again. Your task it to apply enough pressure to stay inside the yellow box until the little anchor icon below the fishing bar is fully charged. So it’s quite simply; if the yellow box moves to the right, you click the pressure button (left mouse button for PC players) to follow it. If it shifts to the left, you stop clicking the button to reduce the pressure on your line.

Genshin Impact fish respawn times

With all new features the community is scrambling to master every minutia of info and all the final details. With regards to Genshin Impact fish respawn times the current wisdom is that it takes a day for stocks to replenish. However, there are widely varying reports of how it all works - some people swear you can advance time to get more fish, others flat out state it doesn't work. With fish appearing on AM and PM cycles, and in varied groups, it seem like people are having trouble pinning down exactly how it all works. If you do want more fish then things you could also try, aside from waiting and clock changing, are travelling far and wide to all the locations below, or visiting friends in co-op.

How to make fishing bait in Genshin Impact

After a few successful catches, you might find yourself in need of more fishing bait. Luckily, you can easily craft some extra. You already have the recipe for Fruit Paste Bait, which you can make at a crafting station.

Every other fishing bait recipe in Genshin Impact can be bought at the Mondstadt Fishing Association, in return for three Medaka fishes each (the small red ones). Here’s an overview of the materials you need:

Fruit Paste Bait: Wheat and Sunsettia fruit. Used to catch all of the smaller fish species: Dawncatcher, Crystalfish, and every type of Medaka.
Redrot Bait: Fowl and Dendrobium. Used to catch the bigger, leaner types of fish: Akai Maou, Betta, Lunged Stickleback, Venomspine Fish, and Snowstrider.
False Worm Bait: Berry and Slime Condensate. This bait is used to catch Angelfish and Shirakodai.
Fake Fly Bait: Horsetail and Sakura Bloom. This bait is used to catch the rarest fish types, including the Koi and the Pufferfish species.

Every Genshin Impact Fishing Association: locations and items

Every region (Mondstadt, Liyue, and Inazuma) has its own Fishing Association. Here’s a list of their locations and the special items they’re offering:

Mondstadt Fishing Association. If you walk out the city gates, the Fishing Association is a little further to your left. Here, you can buy three new types of fishing bait and an upgraded fishing rod called the Windtangler.
Liyue Fishing Association. It’s located on the docks, on the far east side of Liyue Harbor. You can buy the Wishmaker fishing rod and the Pool of Sapphire Grace (a Serenitea Pot blueprint) here.
Inazuma Fishing Association. Next to the Teleport Waypoint northwest of Inazuma City. Go there to purchase the Narukawa Ukai fishing rod and a free four-star Genshin Impact weapon: The Catch. You can purchase The Catch itself as well as its refinement materials.

Every Genshin Impact fishing spot in Mondstadt

Not every type of fish is native to all of Teyvat. If you go fishing in Mondstadt, you’ll come across the following types of fish:

Medaka
Dawncatcher
Crystalfish
Aizen Medaka
Akai Maou
Golden Koi
Rusty Koi
Venomspine Fish
Snowstrider (only in Dragonspine)
Pufferfish
Bitter Pufferfish
Tea-Colored Shirakodai

Every Genshin Impact fishing spot in Liyue

As for Liyue, you’ll find the following types of fish:

Medaka
Dawncatcher
Crystalfish
Sweet-Flower Medaka
Akai Maou
Golden Koi
Rusty Koi
Betta
Pufferfish
Bitter Pufferfish
Brown Shirakodai
Abiding Angelfish

Every Genshin Impact fishing spot Inazuma

Finally, you’ll find plenty of fishing locations in Inazuma. Some of the fish species are the same as in Mondstadt and Liyue, and some are unique to the region:

Medaka
Dawncatcher
Crystalfish
Glaze Medaka
Akai Maou
Golden Koi
Rusty Koi
Lunged Stickleback
Pufferfish
Bitter Pufferfish
Purple Shirakodai
Raimei Angelfish

You’re all set to start your new fishing business in Genshin Impact. Don’t forget your false worms and fake flies, and have fun!