Our History
Alpine Jet Thrills has been safely operating on the Waimakariri for more than two decades evolving from a small one boat operation into the region's largest family owned jet boat operation in Canterbury.
In 2017 passionate jet boater Paul Mullan, joined the business with wife Robyn to develop the experience for local and overseas passengers. This included the introduction of New Zealand's only commercial AirBoat and the establishment of Jet Boat World at Springfield.
By late 2023 the JetBoat fleet was expanded with ALP 2, a new twin engined Rapid Runner C730 as well as full refurbishment of our other twin, ALP 6. 2025 saw the retirement of our first twin engined jetBoat (ALP 4), replaced with another new Rapid Runner C730WB (wide body) and in 2026 ALP3 our smaller 5 metre Rapid Runner C500 underwent a full rebuild and upgrade retro fit to bring her into line with the new fleet. She's already been nicknamed 'Mini Me'!
The entire fleet has been standardised with Lexus V8 vvti engines, upgraded and modernised under the watchful eye of Robyn's & Paul's ownership.
The focus is firmly anchored in providing JetBoat and AirBoat experiences for Kiwi and international tourists, corporate businesses and educational experiences for schools through the pioneering aspect of Jet Boat World.
Jet Boat World - History
While the jet boat was 'invented' by Bill Hamilton at Irishman Creek in South Canterbury's Mackenzie Basin, it's right here in on the Waimakariri River in Christchurch where much of the development happened that saw the jet boat introduced to the world.
Our base at Springfield overlooks Woodstock Beach where countless pioneer jet boaters launched to explore into the gorge that was otherwise the domain of trampers or those lucky enough to sneak a peak from their train as it plied its way through the alpine mountains to the West Coast.
The last jet boat owned by Bill Hamilton - Whio V is on display with several other early jet boats at Jet Boat World at our Springfield Adventure Park base, so allow time to wander through and check out the rich history, one of the unique features of New Zealand that placed it on the world stage.