Overview
Grand Theft Auto VI has a wide selection of watercraft, reflecting the game's Florida-inspired coastal setting. The state of Leonida is surrounded by ocean on multiple sides and features extensive inland waterways, swamps, rivers, and a freshwater lake, making boats and watercraft essential for exploration and transportation. Watercraft types identified through trailers and official screenshots include personal watercraft (jet skis), speedboats, airboats (fan boats), yachts, dinghies, dive boats, and recreational motorboats, and the Extended Look's free-roam montage shows jet skiing, kayaking and boating through the swamp.
A new towing mechanic allows players to transport watercraft on trailers behind pickup trucks and SUVs. Trailer 2 shows a Bravado Bison towing a Speedophile Seashark jet ski on a road trailer, and Trailer 1 opens with a Vapid Bobcat XL pulling a recreational bow rider motorboat. This system ties watercraft into the broader vehicle ecosystem and allows players to bring boats to any body of water across the map.
Personal Watercraft
Speedophile Seashark
The Speedophile Seashark is a compact personal watercraft (jet ski) that appears in Grand Theft Auto VI. It was first shown in Trailer 1 at Vice Beach and appears again in Trailer 2, where Jason and Lucia ride a two-seater variant together. The Seashark is designed for high-speed coastal travel and recreation. It is based on real-world jet ski designs.
Sea-Doo RXT-X Inspired PWC
An unnamed personal watercraft based on the real-world Sea-Doo RXT-X RS 300 was first spotted in Trailer 1 in the ocean near Vice Beach. The design has a more aggressive, performance-oriented profile compared to the Seashark, suggesting it may be a higher-end or racing-class jet ski. The real Sea-Doo RXT-X 300 is a premium personal watercraft known for its 300-horsepower Rotax engine.
Airboats and Fan Boats
Airboats are purpose-built for navigating the shallow swamps and marshlands of the Grassrivers region, and at least two airboat models have been identified (see Airboats).
Panther-Style Airboat
The primary airboat was first revealed in Trailer 1, where it is shown traversing the Grassrivers with two passengers. The design is based on custom-built airboats by Panther Airboats, with the hull and propulsion layout closely resembling Panther's basic 16x8 model. The airboat has an elevated operator seat behind a large rear-mounted propeller fan, with passenger seating at the front. Airboats are critical for traversing the Everglades-inspired wetlands where conventional boats cannot operate due to shallow water and dense vegetation.
Airgator Airboat 09
The Airgator Airboat 09 is a second airboat model with a larger hull. It has a large hull with multiple floor storage areas, an elevated single seat for the operator, and a double passenger seat ahead of the operator's position. Official screenshots show it being used for alligator hunting and freshwater fishing in the Grassrivers.
Speedboats and Motorboats
Multiple speedboat and motorboat designs are visible across both trailers. The opening shot of Trailer 1 shows a Vapid Bobcat XL towing a recreational bow rider motorboat on a trailer, confirming that private motorboat ownership is part of the game. Additional speedboats are visible in harbor and marina scenes. These range from small fishing boats to larger center-console performance boats designed for offshore use.
The Ultimate Edition adds a Shitzu Squalo, which the storefront copy describes as a gradient pink and blue boat docked at Washington Beach, suited to fishing in Gambit Bay and made open-ocean-ready with an explosives-laden weapons crate. The same edition includes a Crest Kayak as one of Jason's safehouse vehicles (see Kayaking).
Yachts and Luxury Vessels
Yachts appear in trailer footage as part of Vice City's coastal scenery. Large multi-deck luxury vessels are visible in harbor and marina shots. Whether yachts are purchasable properties or simply appear as ambient vessels has not been confirmed.
Dinghies and Inflatable Boats
The Nagasaki Dinghy, a rigid inflatable boat (RIB), appears in Grand Theft Auto VI in a coastal scene in Trailer 2. It is a compact, versatile watercraft that can carry multiple passengers and is well-suited for approaching shorelines and shallow areas where larger boats cannot reach.
Other Confirmed Watercraft
Additional watercraft types spotted in trailers include hover boats (a new category featuring hovercraft-style vessels), dive boats associated with the scuba diving activity in the Leonida Keys, cargo ships and cruise liners visible in the VC Port area, and various NPC-operated fishing vessels and coast guard boats. The diversity of watercraft reflects the central role that water plays in Leonida's geography and culture.
Confirmed Watercraft Summary
Watercraft | Type | Region | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
Speedophile Seashark | Personal watercraft (jet ski) | Vice Beach, coast | Trailer 1 and 2 |
Sea-Doo RXT-X inspired PWC | Personal watercraft | Vice Beach | Trailer 1 |
Panther-style airboat | Airboat / fan boat | Grassrivers swamps | Trailer 1 |
Airgator Airboat 09 | Airboat / fan boat | Grassrivers swamps | Official screenshots |
Recreational bow rider | Motorboat | Rivers, coast | Trailer 1 (towed) |
Nagasaki Dinghy | Rigid inflatable boat | Coast, Keys | Trailer 2 |
Luxury yachts | Yacht | Vice City harbor | Trailer footage |
Hover boats | Hovercraft | Various | Trailer footage |
Dive boats | Utility boat | Official screenshots | |
Shitzu Squalo | Boat | Washington Beach | Ultimate Edition storefront copy |
Crest Kayak | Kayak | Jason's safehouse | Ultimate Edition storefront copy |
Water Physics
Trailer footage shows detailed water rendering from the RAGE engine, with realistic wave patterns, dynamic reflections, wake effects behind moving boats, and water that responds to weather conditions. The Grassrivers swamps feature murky, shallow water with vegetation, while the Leonida Keys show crystal-clear tropical water with visible coral and marine life beneath the surface. These details make watercraft gameplay more visually immersive.