Waiatoto River Safari: Explore UNESCO World Heritage Area with a Family Operated Jet Boat Tour

Embark on a thrilling jet boat tour with Waiatoto River Safari and explore the UNESCO World Heritage Area of South Westland, New Zealand. Discover the natural history, native wildlife, and stunning rainforest on this family-operated adventure.

Duration: 2 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Waiatoto River Safari - Discover one of Kiwi’s favourite tours on the West Coast NZ, taking a jet boat up a remote back country river into UNESCO South West New Zealand World Heritage Area. Nature, heritage and scenic tour for all ages.
What's Included
  • Life-jacket
  • Warm jacket and boots if required
  • Snacks
  • Post card souvenirs
  • Tea and coffee
What's Not Included
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
Additional Information

The jet boat is the mode of transport, the river safari is the attraction. The jet boat will take you safely up the river into remote back country. Touch and learn about the natural history of New Zealand’s remote World Heritage Area. Your tour is operated by a family business,
when you go on this tour, you arrive as
strangers
and leave as friends….

Location
1975 Haast-Jackson Bay Road
Haast-Jackson Bay Road
Important: Check in is 30 minutes before departure. Last house on left of Hannahs Clearing village, look for signs and park on main road.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.9
(133 Ratings)
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I9189uhamandac
Apr 9, 2026
Best ever experience - Wayne very knowledgeable, Ruth his wife very welcoming and so helpful. Really looked after us. Morning tea beautiful home made scones. Value for money.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
S485wfmaries
Apr 6, 2026
Great experience - An amazing tour with besutiful scenery and lots of information about the fauna and flora of the area. Ruth was a lovely guide and we highly recommend doing this when you’re in Haast.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Johnrn7314wr
Mar 25, 2026
Great river exploration - Great experience. Going up the river into the mountains was exhilarating. Ruth did an excellent job navigating through snags, riffles, rocks and small rapids at high speed. She provided lots of interesting information about the natural history and life on the remote west coast. Lots of opportunity to ask questions and take pictures.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Katew701
Feb 28, 2026
Just amazing. Well worth the money and definitely worth the time. - What an amazing day. Ruth was a great guide , her knowledge of the river and area was fabulous. Its an absolute must if you visit Haast. Loved every minute of the trip. My 80 year old inlaws loved it to. The river was just amazing. Ruth knew the river like the back of her hand. Got the power down in some parts and cruised along in others. What an adventure
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Keith_b
Feb 6, 2026
Exhilarating boat ride!! - Fabulous trip!! Very exciting and enjoyable. Our guide was very friendly and informative. We enjoyed the stops along the way. Highly recommend this trip.
Review provided by Viator
Jackiee607
Jan 22, 2026
10/10 a great river jet boat experience - Had a great couple of hours on the river with Wayne. Interesting commentary, beautiful scenery, even included a great cup of tea and home-made scones. Well worth doing this if you're in Haast.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kathryn6
Jan 16, 2026
Not to be missed - Exhilarating ride up this stunning river. Wayne gave insights as to the history & flora & fauna. Lovely little walk through the rain forest rounded off with coffee & scones. Don’t miss this experience of the Haast wilderness
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Oscardog16
Jan 16, 2026
Beautiful way to experience Waitoto River. - The scenery from the river is spectacular. Ruth was our driver and we left on time on a cool day, but it was fortunately not raining. We stopped several times and Ruth provided an excellent commentary of life in a remote community and of key points on the river’s history before and after settlement. We were able to go for a short walk into the rain forest and enjoyed a delicious home cooked scone with coffee on the banks of the Waitoto. And we tried whitebait in egg, a NZ delicacy. Highly recommend this tour if you’re in the Haast area.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Leanne
Jan 9, 2026
A Fabulous way to step back in time - We absolutely loved this tour. Such a breathtaking location with so much to see and learn about. Ruth was a fantastic host/driver. I highly recommend including this trip on your visit to the West Coast.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Laurawilzz
Mar 16, 2026
Not For Kids - We went on a few boat tours while we were in New Zealand I just wanted to add the perspective that it's not great for kids. There's some beautiful scenery at the end, but the "facts" on the tour were mostly about hunting and fishing, with some side rants about random unrelated topics. It was quite boring for the kids, and we thought there would be more of a "speed" element than there was to entertain them. It's also just wildly expensive, much more than other tours we went on and for the price I was surprised they didn't provide enough milk for everyone to have milk with their coffee/tea. It was a nice day out on the boat and the end part where you're near the mountains is truly beautiful but I think this tour survives on being the only game in town in the area. If you're traveling around the south island I would save your budget for other boat experiences.
Review provided by Tripadvisor