---
title: Hawaii Thrill Craft and Personal Watercraft (PWC) Requirements
description: PWCs must adhere to the same rules and regulations as any other powerboat, including registration with the state and a B-1 class fire extinguisher aboard.
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![Hawaii Thrill Craft and Personal Watercraft (PWC) Requirements](https://21118949.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hub/21118949/hubfs/courses/usa/pwc.jpg?width=1000&height=756&name=pwc.jpg)

![Hawaii Boating License](https://21118949.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hub/21118949/hubfs/courses/usa2024/agencies/hawaii-card.png?width=500&height=500&name=hawaii-card.png)

### Hawaii Boating License

All recreational thrill craft operators (including PWC operators) must possess and make available upon demand of enforcement personnel** a certificate of completion from a State of Hawaii approved [boating safety course](https://aceboater.com/en-us/hawaii)** on the safe use and operation of a thrill craft.

**DISCLAIMER:** The content of this module is only a portion of what is required for thrill craft certification in the State of Hawaii. It does not certify you to operate a thrill craft. For more information, visit the Hawaii Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation web site.  

### Regulations

Thrill craft (aka Personal Watercraft or PWCs) must adhere to the same rules and regulations as any other powerboat, including registration with the state and a B-1 class fire extinguisher aboard.

 

PWC additional requirements:

- Each person riding on a thrill craft must wear a U.S. Coast Guard approved PFD.
- It is illegal to exceed the capacity recommendations of a craft.
- Thrill craft operators may not exceed slow-no-wake speed when within 300 feet of the shoreline.
- No person shall operate a thrill craft within a marine life conservation district or marine natural area reserve.
- Thrill craft operation is restricted in certain designated areas as necessary, in order to:
- Thrill craft operation may be restricted during whale season (December 15 to May 15 of the following year).

In non-designated ocean recreation management areas (ORMA), thrill craft are only permitted to operate in state waters from **500 feet** from the shoreline or the outer edge of the fringing reef, and seaward.

 

In designated ORMA, thrill craft are only permitted to operate within** locations designated for recreational thrill craft use.**

 

Although thrill craft are exempt from carrying a USCG approved Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (406 MHz) or a VHF radio, this equipment is **highly recommended.**

The Hawaii DLNR recommends that an operator of a thrill craft equipped with a **lanyard-type ignition safety switch attach the lanyard to the operator’s wrist or life jacket**.

In Hawaii, there are no restrictions on when a thrill craft may be operated. However, if **operating a thrill craft at night or during times of limited visibility, navigational lights are mandatory** as specified in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR).

 

**No person under the age of 15 may operate a thrill craft.** Additionally, it is **illegal for anyone to permit, or mislead another person into permitting, a person under fifteen years of age to operate a thrill craft.**

 

### Out-of-State Visitors

 Out-of-state visitors **can attend the thrill craft/tow-in certification classes offered in Hawaii **during their visit or rent a thrill craft from a commercial vendor to ride in the commercial thrill craft zones. This rental **must be preceded by a five-minute safety demonstration conducted by the vendor** and the operator must remain in the designated riding area.

 

Commercial thrill craft may only be ridden in a commercial thrill craft zone **(a 200-foot radius circle) in an ORMA.**

 

A person who is** certified to operate a thrill craft in another state may legally operate a thrill craft in Hawaii **provided that certification was issued through a National Association of Boating Law Administrators approved course, and the operator completed the portions of a certificate course for Hawaii that includes, but is not limited to:

1. Local ocean safety principles and practices;
2. The historical, cultural, and customary practices of Hawaii's ocean users; and
3. Any rules or laws regarding protected species and thrill craft operation in the state.

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