Two licences, a few ski rules that bite near the ramp and the beach, and a one-on-one practical on the Noosa River.
Riding a jet ski at Rainbow Beach takes two licences. Queensland wants you to hold a recreational marine licence and a personal watercraft licence. Got a current boat licence already? Then the jet ski course on its own is all you book. Starting from scratch? The Boat and Jet Ski Combo covers both, and the regulator lets you do them together. There's no course at Rainbow Beach itself. The nearest ABC venue we're aware of is ours, on Gympie Terrace at Noosaville. Theory's online at home first. Then you come down for a theory recap, the assessment and a one-on-one practical on the ski.
A Rainbow Beach rider has two very different patches of water to choose from. Tin Can Inlet sits off the Carlo Point ramp, a four-lane ramp with a pontoon. The ocean sits off the beach out front. Queensland's jet ski rules don't care which one you picked. They care how close you are to people, boats, ramps and the shore. A handful of those rules catch new riders in their first week. Below they're set out the way the regulation writes them, so you know where the licence stops before the ski goes in.
The speed rule first. Section 82 of the Transport Operations (Marine Safety) Regulation 2016 sets a 6-knot limit on a personal watercraft within 60 m of any of these: a person in the water; a ship that's anchored, moored or aground; a jetty, wharf, boat ramp or pontoon; the boundary of a bathing reserve; or the shore. It also sets a 10-knot limit within 30 m of another moving ship. The maximum penalty is 200 penalty units.
Think about what that means at Carlo Point. The ramp and its pontoon both count, so you're at 6 knots until you're 60 m clear of them. Anchored boats nearby count too. So does anyone wading off the sand.
The shore part has three exceptions, and only three. It doesn't apply when the ski is towing for waterskiing. It doesn't apply in waters under 120 m wide when you keep to the centre, or to a marked channel, and head straight through. And it doesn't apply where sticking to it would put someone in danger. The regulation's definition of waterskiing includes towing a person on a toboggan or tube (Schedule 9).
That leads to towing. To tow anyone at all, a skier or a kid on a tube, you need your own valid marine licence. A licensed supervisor on board lets an unlicensed person ride, as long as they can take control straight away. Towing is the line that exemption doesn't cross.
Now the fun bit, and the rule most likely to catch a beach-town rider. Section 86 covers coastal waters, which includes tidal waters. There, you can't freestyle, surf or wave jump within 200 m of the shore if dwellings within 100 m of the shore can be seen. You work that out from where you are on the day. If you can see houses close to the beach, take the jumps out past 200 m.
Your training water is stricter again. The Noosa River is a declared marine zone. Recreational skis are banned upstream of the Noosa Waters inlet, and freestyling, surfing and wave jumping are banned on the river. So the practical is about control. You'll ride a Sea-Doo with braking, reversing and a learner mode, and it's super stable, which helps with docking and the figure 8 at assessment. The jet ski, lifejacket and gear are supplied.
Got a teenager keen on the ski? Age doesn't stop anyone sitting the course. The catch is timing. A student under 15 and a half can't be issued a licence, because the statement of competency they earn only stays valid for six months. Book their course no earlier than six months before they turn 16 and the paperwork lines up.
You need to be at least 16 to hold the licence, and it never needs renewing. If you need more time on the water to feel competent, we would rather you took it. Coming from Rainbow Beach, that's worth building into your plans.
The course itself is the same wherever you sit it: the theory online first, in your own time, then a day on the water with a trainer before the assessment. You need a licence for any boat with an engine over 4.5 kilowatts, which is nearly every tinny, runabout and cruiser. Pass, and the Queensland licence never expires. Pick the date that suits you and book online.
The inlet opens up right in front of the ramp, and the ski wants to go.
Under section 82 a personal watercraft must stay at 6 knots within 60 m of a boat ramp, pontoon or jetty. The maximum penalty is 200 penalty units.
We show you how to judge 60 m by eye and hold a slow, steady line at low speed, which is also where most new riders lose balance.
Surf and swell are right there at Rainbow Beach, and wave jumping is why plenty of people buy a ski.
Section 86 bans freestyling, surfing and wave jumping in coastal waters within 200 m of the shore if dwellings within 100 m of the shore are visible.
We go through how to check that on the day: look for houses near the beach, and if you can see them, head out past 200 m first.
A licensed friend is aboard, so it feels covered, and a tube doesn't feel like waterskiing.
The regulation counts towing a person on a tube or toboggan as waterskiing (Schedule 9), and towing a person needs a valid marine licence.
If towing is the plan, get licensed first. The supervisor exemption covers riding with a licensed person aboard, never the tow.
Lots of Rainbow Beach families already hold a boat licence for the tinny and assume it stretches.
Riding a personal watercraft needs a recreational marine licence and a personal watercraft licence as well.
With a current boat licence you book the jet ski course on its own. Without one, the Boat and Jet Ski Combo does both, as the rules allow.
At idle a ski feels harmless, so riders drift nearer than they would in a boat.
Section 82 caps a ski at 6 knots within 60 m of a person in the water or an anchored or moored ship, and 10 knots within 30 m of another moving ship.
The one-on-one practical keeps coming back to low-speed handling near other craft, so the slow stuff feels normal by the end.
Where you train
Caloundra
Churchill Street, Golden Beach QLD 4551
Check us before you commit to the drive. The Queensland Government's BoatSafe register lists Australian Boating College at Noosa on 0427 110 025, the number you'll ring to book. Australian Boating College trades under ABC Licence Training Pty Ltd, the holder of RTO 3399. Michael Chapman's review reads: 'Learned a lot / Good coaching'. In Queensland a marine licence can only come from an approved BoatSafe provider, so that listing is the one that counts. The training organisation behind the courses, Australian Boating College, is current on the national training register. Every approved provider works to the same floor: trainers hold a commercial marine qualification and pass a criminal history check, the training vessel is commercially certified and carries sun protection, and the organisation running it has to carry public liability cover of at least 20 million dollars. Maritime Safety Queensland audits providers and can suspend one that cuts corners.
BoatSafe Approved
Approved by Maritime Safety Queensland to deliver the BoatSafe recreational marine and PWC licence courses.
VerifyNationally Accredited Training
Courses are delivered under the registration of Australian Boating College, RTO #3399, so the training is nationally accredited.
VerifyBacked by ABC Boating
Part of the Australian Boating College network, which delivers boat and PWC licence training across Australia.
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Rated 5 stars on Google by students across the Sunshine Coast. Read the reviews on our Google profile.
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From Rainbow Beach, near the coloured sand cliffs and Inskip Point, it is south via Gympie and the Bruce Highway to our Sunshine Coast bases. Rainbow Beach borders the sheltered Great Sandy Strait near Inskip Point alongside its open surf coast. We run the jet ski licence at the Caloundra base with all equipment provided, and the theory is done online before you travel, so Rainbow Beach students make the trip once.
Tell us the date that suits you near Rainbow Beach and our team will come back to you, usually within one business day. Prefer to talk it through? Give us a call.
No. There's no jet ski course at Rainbow Beach. The nearest ABC venue we're aware of is ours at Noosaville, on the Noosa River, roughly 55 km away in a straight line. Most of the learning happens online before you travel, so the trip is for the course day.
Just the jet ski course. Riding a ski needs both a recreational marine licence and a personal watercraft licence, and you already have the first. Make sure it's current. If you don't hold a boat licence yet, book the Boat and Jet Ski Combo, which covers both.
Six knots until you're 60 m clear. Section 82 sets that limit for a personal watercraft within 60 m of a boat ramp, pontoon or jetty, and Carlo Point has both a ramp and a pontoon. The same limit applies near swimmers and anchored or moored boats. The maximum penalty is 200 penalty units.
Only far enough out. Section 86 says that in coastal waters, including tidal waters, you can't freestyle, surf or wave jump within 200 m of the shore if dwellings within 100 m of the shore can be seen. Look back at the beach. If you can see houses close to the sand, head past 200 m first.
Yes, once you're licensed. Towing a person needs a valid marine licence, even with a licensed supervisor on board. The regulation counts a tube or toboggan as waterskiing (Schedule 9). That also means the 6-knot rule near the shore doesn't apply while you're towing for waterskiing, though the limits near people, boats and ramps still do.
A Sea-Doo. It has braking, reversing and a learner mode, so it suits a first-timer as well as an experienced rider. It's super stable, which makes the assessment tasks easier, especially docking and the figure 8. The ski and the lifejacket are supplied, so you don't need to tow yours down from Rainbow Beach.
No. The course runs on the Noosa River, a declared marine zone where freestyling, surfing and wave jumping are banned. Recreational skis are also barred upstream of the Noosa Waters inlet. The practical sticks to control, turns and docking, which are the skills you'll lean on back home near the Carlo Point pontoon.
No, they are separate classes in Queensland, and they are not independent: the jet ski (PWC) course assumes you already hold a current recreational boat licence. If you hold one, you can book the jet ski course on its own. If you do not, the Boat and Jet Ski Combo covers both licences in one day.
Pick whichever is most convenient, since the course and the qualification are identical at all three. Caloundra trains on the sheltered Pumicestone Passage, Maroochydore on the sheltered Maroochy River, and Noosa on the Noosa River. You can view dates for every location on our Course Dates page and book the one that suits you.
Yes. You do not need your own boat, jet ski or gear. We provide the vessels, lifejackets and all training equipment, plus the launch sites and sheltered water at all three locations. Just bring photo ID, sun protection and clothes you do not mind getting a little wet, and we take care of the rest.
What a personal watercraft licence covers in Queensland, how it differs from a boat licence, the age rules, and how to get your jet ski licence in a day on the Sunshine Coast.
A simple checklist for your boat or jet ski licence course day on the Sunshine Coast: ID, what to wear, sun protection, and what we provide so you can just turn up and learn.
Knock over the theory at home, then book a course day at Noosaville. If you're after a ski for the summer at Rainbow Beach, book early so there's room for extra practice. Call 0427 110 025 or book online.
