Of all the jet boat operations on the South Island, the Shotover Jet does the most dramatic course: a 30-minute run through a tight canyon between sheer rock walls, with 360-degree spins and missed-it-by-inches passes at the boulders. The driver throttles back when nothing exciting is happening and otherwise treats the river as a slalom course.
It is the only company licensed to operate in the Shotover Canyon itself, which is its main edge over the Kawarau River jet boats. Pickups run from Queenstown; the boats launch from Arthurs Point, about ten minutes from town.