If you frequent big-city waterways like Sydney Harbour, the Broadwater or Port Phillip Bay, you will have noticed that the foreshores have become goldmines for developers. Nothing wrong with that, I say, providing there are top-notch eateries with berthing facilities thrown into the deal. We all like new destinations, right?

A taste for fine dining on the waterfront is what allegedly led the purchase of this gob-smackingly gorgeous DiVine 29. I am reliably informed that its owner sought a boat in which he and his guests could commute in style. His was a common demand: old-world styling but none of the maintenance of old wooden craft.

A blend of old and new, the DiVine 29 is made by the boutique boatbuilder DiVine Craft on the NSW Central Coast, who sought to put a fresh spin on a traditional theme. But the 29-footer meets the aforementioned requirements of its Sydney waterfront owner and then some.

Behind the wheel, the boat is a wolf in sheep's clothing. The experience is unique thanks to a Hamilton 274 waterjet drive. This boat, one of eight sold into waterways from the Gold Coast to Dubai and America, also boasted the biggest power option. The 440hp Yanmar turbodiesel motor gives 40kt-plus with jetboat handling.

One of very few boats available with a jet drive in Australia, the DiVine is a whole new experience. There is no complete neutral, for example - the boat creeps forward at about one knot when out of gear - and when parking, you need to think the opposite way to conventional propeller drives.

But once you reorientate your senses, the boat delivers some mighty thrills. The boat also has an exceptionally shallow draft of 0.45m, which makes it doubly useful for cruising around skinny waterways like those on the Gold Coast.

We edged along in less than a metre of water before nudging the bow on the beach. Add a concealed bow ladder and it would be possible to pick up dinner guests from places other than wharves.

With no propeller, you could also safely tow skiers if you attached a bridle to the transom. And once you master the controls, the added manoeuvrability of the jet becomes an attribute. All this plays into the hands of the would-be dayboat owner shopping for something with which to wow friends en route to a waterfront eatery with a visitor's berth. Right?

THE HARD YARDS
Terry Vine is the boatbuilder behind the aptly-named DiVine Craft. He uses semi-high-tech methods: composite balsa-cored lay-up, vinylester resin, 'glass-encapsulated marine-ply engine bearers, watertight bulkheads both sides of the engine bay, and a collision bulkhead in the bow and thwart in the cabin.

The hull is a monohedron shape, which is a specification of Hamilton - the New Zealand company who pioneered the jet drive in the '50s. The constant deadrise of 19#&176; ensures there are no unexpected spinouts, although new chums to jetboats will oversteer and spin the boat on the first few turns.

Despite its overall length of 8.80m or 29ft, the boat has a comparatively narrow beam of 2.40m. Displacement is only 2550kg, which makes for an easily-driven craft. The boat's sharp forefoot and long-but-slim footprint make light work of choppy water. But unlike a lot of classic boats, this one isn't wet (unless you spin the boat out).

Boatbuilder Vine doesn't appear to cut corners on the engineering front. The engine room was especially well insulated, and noise isn't an issue like it can be in other classic boats. The modest 250lt fuel tank is fashioned from aluminium, per survey requirements, although the test boat is not in survey. The 65lt watertank is stainless steel.

The windscreen felt nice and solid - as a windscreen should - with sweetly-curved safety-glass panels exhibiting very little distortion. The clever chromed frame is, I'm led to believe, founded on aluminium. The boat's rubbing strakes are stainless steel, as are the grabrails and old-world-styled deck fittings. 

DAY COMFORTS
The DiVine 29 presented itself to this judge of the Australian Boat of the Year awards twice before. I must say that not everyone could relate to it. Far from being a boat for the masses, it is more a craft for those who have owned boats before. Keen salts such as yachties with a waterfront home should try it on for size.

You are best coming aboard by the small tread steps mounted just aft of the windscreen on the gunwales. Two internal moulded steps with courtesy lights lead to the seats. Access to the boat is also great via the transom ? especially when you are coming from the water via the concealed swim ladder.

The boarding platform is part of a metre-long extension of the hull above the waterline. But the hull itself has plenty of buoyancy to support the weight of a couple of people on the boarding platform without wetting their feet. Stability at rest is aided by the engine's position - well forward of the transom.

Three recessed, moulded steps lead up the centre of the angled transom much like a staircase. The teak steps fold up for access to a freshwater handheld shower. They also lead to the upholstered top of the engine box.

A comfortable cushion is recessed about 10cm below the deck and traced by stainless grabrails. This way, the engine lid doubles as a sunpad.

The boat's moulded lunch table and smaller aperitif table with stainless-steel drinkholders can be assembled before the big wraparound lounge and swivel helm seats in the centre cockpit. The tables are stowed - very cleverly, I might add - under an infill cushion on the aforementioned sunlounge.

With or without the table, the boat is accommodating of, say, four guests plus skipper and mate. Small side-storage shelves and map-pockets on the back of the helm seats offer somewhere to put your personals, mobile phone or small purse. A few grab handles here and there wouldn't go astray, though they would need to be in keeping with the boat's style.

Under the teak-topped centre cockpit floor, which isn't self-draining, is a hatch leading into a giant icebox. Loaded with ice, this hold can keep your lunch and drinks cold for those occasions when you go dayboating instead of fine dining. The hatch, which drains into the bilge, also makes a handy fender locker. A cockpit fridge is an option.

Further storage exists ahead of the skipper's mate in a padded and lined glovebox that may or may not be lockable. Mounted into the moulded internal liner are speakers and a marine CD player. The stacker resides in the cabin.

Under the foredeck, behind a teak roller door, is a small cabin with no accommodation or standing headroom. Instead, the area has been designed to service dayboating needs. It is lined and fitted with provision for a marine toilet. An electric Raritan model graced the test boat, along with a stainless sink with cold water. There is a big dry-storage area further forward.

The foredeck can be accessed reasonably easily around the sidedecks beside the windscreen. Moulded toerails and Flexi-teak decking help with your footing. A small flagstaff, cool twin-fluted stainless-steel horns, fairleads and a centre cleat are mounted up front.

The bow anchor locker is sufficiently deep to accommodate a useful length of soft rode, some chain and a plough. Turnbuckles make accessing the anchor a tad fiddly, but the hatch doesn't rattle. It would be nice to have some provision for a concealed windlass, however.

JET SET WILLY
I didn't take the DiVine 29 from its impossibly-tight berth; the dealer made light work of it. Turning the wheel and thereby redirecting the waterjet flow effectively shunts the boat sideways.

The steering wheel is a trendy timber-and-alloy number inspired by the BMW Z8, I am told. The steering system was hydraulic and fingertip light but not floaty.

To retain clear vision through the windscreen, the Heritage gauges with chrome bezels were above the companionway into the cabin. While offset, the gauges could still be read from the helm. I noted a tacho, speedo, volt meter, fuel gauge, oil-pressure gauge, engine water-temp gauge and running hours.

Anyway, this - my third drive of a DiVine 29 in almost as many years - was no less exciting than my first. I reached the Morse race-style separate throttle and gearshift alongside the helm seat, which is adjustable on a stainless-steel pedestal. Nearby was the DiVine Craft switch panel.

The Yanmar engine shifts smoothly into gear and, as touched on, this is a quiet boat that will appease commuters. It also has a nice, solid feel through the water, a predictable motion when cruising, and a dark side should you want to go there.

The transition to planing speed is nice and level with no loss of vision. The boat holds a tremendous low-speed cruise of 12.3kt, where it is planing, and 15.5kt at 2200rpm. The DiVine 29 is a fast commuter. The Yanmar delivers 30.4kt boat speed at 2800rpm and 35kt at 3000rpm. 

Top speed was 41.9kt, although drag-boating isn't half as much fun as slalom work. The jet drive has a controlled amount of slip that lets you put the boat through these wonderful, soul-satisfying, graceful arcs. After that you will inevitably turn the wheel a little tighter to see what gives.

Jet drives make for easy oversteering, and before you know it - unless you correct the boat the other way (but not too far as to oversteer) - you will spin out. Between a straight line and spinning the boat out is a realm of jet-boat driving fun and games. I'll hold Hamilton responsible for revealing the larrikin within.

At the end of the day, the DiVine 29 is a big-ticket dayboat that is difficult to compare with anything else on the market. Thankfully, it is more than a show pony, with performance and comfort (especially with a custom bimini top) for commuting in style.

Inspiration came from that famous 1930s runabout the Riva Aquarama, which has been variously described as the Rolls Royce of the sea and Stradivarius of boating. Some of the old-world traits such as touch of tumblehome in the topsides and a sloping stern are reminiscent of the Aquarama. Teak decks and stylish fittings such as the engine vent covers add distinctive class.

The only thing that wasn't delivered as promised was a free lunch at a top-notch eatery with water views. We had the boat for it. Sadly, Alan Jones and John Laws put a stop to any such largesse.

HIGHS

• Chic looks that will turn heads on the water and ashore.
• A hand-built hull that feels stiff.
• Commuter comforts and driver thrills - a ride designed to please everyone.
• Jet power means you can traverse skinny waterways, and there aren't props to hurt people on watertoys.
• A neat accessory for the waterfront homeowner.

LOWS

• No self-draining cockpit, no windlass and no accommodation for those rare occasions when you overindulge at dinner.
• Jet drive will take some getting used to when parking.
• Boat idles forward out of gear.
• Maintenance on the timber trim. Limited market for resale.
• Premium pricetag for a dayboat.