Town pier
The river hour
Lake, Kawarau and Shotover
- Length1 hour
- Height ruleNone
- TransferNot needed
Help with your choice
Jet boat tours in Queenstown, side by side
Jet boat ride on the lake, the Kawarau and the Shotover, 1 hour
★ 4.8 · 1,959 reviews total
Your jet ride in two taps
Which Queenstown jet boat suits you
Say how much time you have and what you want to see, and a matching ride appears with its starting price.
Best match for you
The town river ride
from $87
An hour from the Main Town Pier on Lake Wakatipu, the Kawarau and the Shotover, with no height limit.
Best match for you
The Shotover canyon ride
from $117
About 25 minutes between the canyon walls at Arthurs Point, for riders at least 1 metre tall.
Best match for you
Skippers Canyon by jet boat
from $123
A 3-hour trip from the Station Building into the old goldfields, for children from age 3.
Best match for you
A shorter lake jet ride
from $64
30 minutes to 1 hour on the lake, the lowest starting fare of the rides compared.
Best match for you
The shark boat
from $105
15 minutes in a semi-submersible that dives and leaps on the lake.
Jet boat tours in Queenstown run on very different water: an open lake, braided rivers, a narrow canyon or a wild valley. Below, each one is laid out with its water, its time and its fare.
Editorial team, queenstownjetboat.quest · Updated November 8, 2026 · Reading: 7 min
The essentials
- Most waterOur town ride covers the lake and both rivers in 1 hour.
- Rock wallsThe canyon ride has sole rights to the Shotover canyons.1
- BackcountrySkippers Canyon takes 3 hours, road and river together.
- MountainsThe Dart River trip leaves from Glenorchy and runs 2 to 4 hours.
- Short thrillThe shark boat lasts 15 minutes on the lake.
Five kinds of water, not one ride
Ask in town for the best jet boat in Queenstown and you will hear several confident answers, because the rides do not really compete with each other. They run on different water. The town ride crosses Lake Wakatipu and then turns into the Kawarau and the Shotover rivers. The canyon ride stays on the Shotover upstream at Arthurs Point, where a single company holds the rights to the gorge.1
Further out, a jet boat trip runs into Skippers Canyon, with the road in and out as part of a 3-hour outing. Another leaves from Glenorchy at the head of the lake and pushes up the Dart River. On the lake itself, smaller operators sell shorter rides, and a semi-submersible shark boat dives and leaps for 15 minutes.
So the first question is not which company is best, but what you want to see while the boat is moving. Open views of mountains and lake, river stones a hand below the hull, canyon walls close enough to touch, or a quiet valley with no road at all: each of those points to a different booking, and this page walks through them in that order.
Every ride, one table
Queenstown jet boat rides compared
| Ride | Water | Length | From | Boards at |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Our town ride | Lake and rivers | 1 hour | $87 | Main Town Pier |
| Canyon ride | Shotover canyons | About 25 min afloat8 | $117 | Arthurs Point |
| Skippers Canyon | Upper Shotover | 3 hours | $123 | Station Building |
| Dart River | Dart River | 2 - 4 hours | $187 | Glenorchy |
| Lake jet ride | Lake Wakatipu | 30 minutes - 1 hour | $64 | See listing |
| Shark boat | Lake Wakatipu | 15 minutes | $105 | Steamer Wharf |
Starting fares and lengths from each listing; boarding points from the listings and the operators.
The town ride: lake, Kawarau and Shotover in an hour
The ride sold on this site leaves from the pier in the middle of town and lasts 1 hour. It crosses the lake, enters the Kawarau and then runs up the shallow braids of the Shotover, a 45 km run that touches 95 km/h, broken up by 360-degree spins. That mix of still lake and moving river is the core of the ride, and it needs no transfer.
Its history is the longest in town too. KJet traces its rides to 1958, when the Melhop brothers took a Hamilton jet boat through the Kawarau Falls dam, and it has run from the Main Town Pier since moving there from the Frankton Jetty in 1960.2,3 Destination Queenstown, the regional tourism body, notes that by 1960 commercial jet boats were already carrying tourists on the Shotover and Kawarau.6
Guests have rated the listing behind this site 4.7 across 1,959 reviews, and its guides 4.9. It suits travellers who want scenery and speed in equal measure, families with young children, and anyone without a car. Its weakness is the one you would expect: the braided Shotover below the confluence is wide and open, so it gives skimming and spray rather than towering rock.
Top speed
How fast each kind of boat goes
- Town river ride95
- Canyon ride90
- Shark boat, surface80
- Shark boat, dived40
Top speeds as the listing or the operator states them; a top speed is reached on open water, not through the whole ride.7
The canyon ride at Arthurs Point
The red boats of Shotover Jet run upstream of town at Arthurs Point, a 7 km drive from the centre.11 The listing starts from $117 and holds 4.8 from 1,605 reviews. Its operator says the boat is on the water for approximately 25 minutes, at up to 90 km/h.8,7 The base has free parking, lockers, toilets and a viewing area, and anyone may come and watch the boats from the bank without riding.12,13
What sets it apart is access. In 1987 the Shotover River Empowering Act gave Shotover Jet sole rights to run boats on the canyon stretch of the river, primarily for safety, so no other jet boat runs between those walls.1 The company has operated there since 1965 and says more than 4.6 million people had ridden by its 60th anniversary in 2025.4,14 It is owned today by Ngāi Tahu, the iwi whose ties to the river reach back centuries.15
Choose it if the canyon itself is the image you came for. Expect a shorter ride, a strict height line of 1 metre for children and a camera rule that only allows head-mounted action cameras.10,16 Self-drivers should set aside roughly 1 hour; shuttle riders about 1 hour 45 minutes from check-in to drop-off.17 Book a time that leaves room for the drive back, since the shuttle and the morning traffic on Gorge Road both take a little longer than the map suggests.
Three characters
Open river, narrow canyon or wild valley
Arthurs Point
The canyon run
Walls on both sides
- AfloatAbout 25 min
- Height rule1 m or more
- TransferFree shuttle
Glenorchy
The valley trip
Mountains beyond Glenorchy
- Length2 to 4 hours
- Height rule1 m or more
- TransferOptional
Skippers Canyon and the Dart River: the long trips
The Skippers Canyon jet boat ride starts from $123 and lasts 3 hours from the Station Building in town. Much of that time is the drive along the narrow road into the old goldfields, and the boat runs a quieter, remote stretch of the upper Shotover. Children must be 3 or older, and the listing warns that there is no toilet stop once you leave Queenstown.
The Dart River trip is the wilderness end of the range. It departs from Glenorchy, at the head of the lake, and the listing offers either return transport from town in a 4-hour round trip or a 2-hour version if you drive yourself. It starts from $187 and needs a minimum of 8 passengers to run.
A longer version pairs the jet boat with inflatable canoes and lunch, over 6.5 to 8.5 hours, from $293. These are day trips rather than rides, and they suit travellers who would rather spend a single long day deep in the mountains than a single hour of thrills near town. Our separate guides to Skippers and the Dart River go into each in detail.
Price your ride
Compare the fares for your group
Choose your group size and see the starting fare of each jet boat ride.
Compare 4 alternatives
Compare the fares for your group
Choose your group size and see the starting fare of each jet boat ride.
- Our town rideLake and rivers · per person, from $87
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View - Canyon rideArthurs Point · per person, from $117
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View - Skippers CanyonHalf a day · per person, from $123
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View - Lake jet rideLake only · per person, from $64
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View
Currency conversion uses the ECB reference rate on GetYourGuide from-prices. The exact price is displayed when you book.
How it grew
Queenstown jet boating through the decades
The beginning
A boat through the dam
In 1958 a Hamilton jet boat ran through the Kawarau Falls dam.2
A move to town
The Main Town Pier
In 1960 the rides moved from the Frankton Jetty to the town pier.3
The canyon
Arthurs Point opens
In 1965 Shotover Jet began running the canyons from Arthurs Point.4
Sole rights
An act for the canyon
In 1987 a law gave Shotover Jet sole rights to the canyon section.1
More power
Twin-engine boats
KJet dates its first twin-engine boats to 1995.5
Lake thrills: shorter rides and the shark boat
If time is short, the lake has quicker options. A jet boat ride with Thunder Jet starts from $64 and lasts 30 minutes to 1 hour, with no height restriction for children. That is the lowest starting fare in the table on this page, and a sensible pick when you want speed and lake views without committing a whole morning.
The Hydro Attack shark boat is a different machine altogether: a semi-submersible that reaches 80 km/h on the water and 40 km/h underwater, for 15 minutes, from $105. You check in at a kiosk on Steamer Wharf. Treat it as a thrill ride rather than a sightseeing trip: the appeal is the dive and the leap, not the view of the mountains.
Further out of town, a jet sprint session at Oxbow Adventure lasts 15 minutes, from $88, with a minimum height of 1.2 metres. These short rides suit adrenaline collectors who already have a river trip planned, or anyone who wants the speed without a long morning. Check the age and height rules on each listing before you promise a ride to a child, as the small boats set their own limits.
Video
A jet boat ride through the Shotover River canyon
Atthudawe on YouTube · Until you tap play, no video is loaded.
Primarily for reasons of safety, in 1987 the Shotover River Empowering Act granted Shotover Jet the sole operating concession for the Canyon section of the Shotover River
Before you choose
Check these lines on any listing
The ride3
Your party3
Which jet boat is the best in Queenstown for you
Which jet boat is the best in Queenstown depends on three things: your time, your party and the picture in your head. With an hour to spare and no car, the town ride from the pier is the easy answer: 45 km and both rivers, no transfer. With children under a metre tall, it also avoids the height rule, since KJet sets no height restriction at all.9
If the canyon walls are the point, nothing else replaces the Shotover canyon ride, since no other company may operate there.24 If you want to leave the crowds behind, pick Skippers or the Dart River and give it half a day or more. If you have already done a river ride, the shark boat or a jet sprint session adds a different kind of speed.
Reviews will not settle it for you: the main listings all score between 4.7 and 4.8, which is a narrow band for such different products. Read the minutes on the water, the minimum height and the meeting point instead. Those three lines decide whether a ride fits your day far more often than the star rating does.
Practical differences that decide the booking
Boarding points differ widely. The town ride leaves from the Main Town Pier, the canyon ride from Arthurs Point, Skippers from the Station Building by road, the Dart River from Glenorchy and the shark boat from Steamer Wharf.11 If you have no car, the rides that start in town save the most effort, and the Skippers trip includes the road journey in its 3 hours.
Weather rules differ too. The town ride goes out in any weather, 365 days a year. Shotover Jet runs in light rain but may postpone or cancel in heavy rain or flood, and it can change its route for safety without notice while keeping the full-length ride.19,25 The longer trips depend on roads as well as rivers, so leave slack in your plans.
Busy months matter. Shotover Jet recommends booking ahead, especially from October to March.22 Every big listing on this page allows cancellation without charge until 24 hours before the start, so booking early carries little risk. Hold your favourite early in your stay and keep a back-up day free. If the river is high or the wind is up, a ride moved by a day costs nothing, while a ride squeezed into your last afternoon has no room to move.
FAQ
Brief questions, brief answers.
What is the best jet boat ride in Queenstown?
It depends on the water you want.
The town ride covers the lake and both rivers in 1 hour; the canyon ride has sole rights to the Shotover canyons.1
Is the canyon ride better than the town ride?
Which jet boat ride is the fastest?
The town ride on paper.
It runs at up to 95 km/h; the canyon boats reach up to 90 km/h.7
Which ride suits small children?
Do I need a car for jet boating?
Not for most rides.
The town ride boards in the centre, and Shotover Jet runs a free shuttle from the Station Building for selected rides.18
How long does the Skippers Canyon trip take?
About half a day.
The listing lasts 3 hours, starting from the Station Building in Queenstown.
Can I ride a jet boat on the Dart River?
Yes, from Glenorchy.
The trip runs 2 to 4 hours depending on transport and needs at least 8 passengers.
Sources
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · History of Shotover Jet ↩
- KJet (Kawarau Jet), kjet.co.nz · 60 years of Jet boating ↩
- KJet (Kawarau Jet), kjet.co.nz · 60 years of Jet boating ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · History of Shotover Jet ↩
- KJet (Kawarau Jet), kjet.co.nz · 60 years of Jet boating ↩
- Destination Queenstown (queenstownnz.co.nz) · How Queenstown Became the Adventure Capital of the World ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · What to Expect During a Jet Boat Ride ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · What to Expect During a Jet Boat Ride ↩
- KJet (Kawarau Jet), kjet.co.nz · Queenstown Jet Boat Ride ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · Everything you need to know before your visit ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · Jet Boat Ride FAQs ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · Everything you need to know before your visit ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · Everything you need to know before your visit ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · History of Shotover Jet ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · What to Expect During a Jet Boat Ride ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · Everything you need to know before your visit ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · Jet Boat Ride FAQs ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · Jet Boat Ride FAQs ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · Jet Boat Ride FAQs ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · Everything you need to know before your visit ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · Everything you need to know before your visit ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · Jet Boat Ride FAQs ↩
- KJet (Kawarau Jet), kjet.co.nz · Queenstown Jet Boat Ride ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · What to Expect During a Jet Boat Ride ↩
- Shotover Jet, shotoverjet.com · Terms and Conditions ↩
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