Animal Crossing: New Horizons – How to Get or Craft a Fishing Rod

If you’re like me, the first thing you want to do in any Animal Crossing game is to start fishing. Sure, talking to other islanders, organizing your house, and all that other stuff is fun, but reeling in a huge shark is even more so. And the Bells you earn make this one of the most important things you can do on the island. But while you may already know how it all works, you may not have the right tool for the job. Here’s how to get the fishing rod in Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

How to Get the Fishing Rod

At the beginning of your time on Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ island you won’t have any tools. There’s quick ways to get them though, even if they aren’t the best in the game. The first version of all the items you acquire will be “flimsy”, so starting out you’ll be getting the Flimsy Fishing Rod. This will work, but be sure to upgrade or get the better version when it is available much further into the game (meaning actual days spent playing).

To get the fishing rod you have two options. The quickest and easiest is to craft it while following Tom Nook’s advice early in the game (see below). However, later on you can always pick one up at Nook’s Cranny. This shop, run by Timmy and Tommy, offers many useful items, but sometimes not everything is available. Check in as much as you can and they should have the fishing rod pretty early on. Many important items are offered in the cabinet in the top left of the store. If they don’t have it then you’ll be stuck with option 2, which is crafting.

How to Craft the Fishing Rod

We’ve told you how to craft items before, so check that out if you aren’t sure. The recipe for the Flimsy Fishing Rod requires five tree branches to create. Shake or hit trees to get these if you need them then come back to create your new fishing rod. Alternatively there are some events that will reward a fishing rod, but by then you will have missed out on a lot of good fishing. So these are the best answers for how to get the fishing rod in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. If you’re really new to the series then you migh also want to check out our guide on how to fish.