To effectively keep splash water out of the boat, white water decks are completely waterproof and consist of a fixed deck with coaming and a separate sprayskirt that seales the cockpit up until just below the armpits. Typical packrafts with a whitewater spraydeck are the MRS Alligator 2S Pro or the MRS Nomad S1. The coaming can be broken down into four parts for easier transport. Some packrafts allow the deck to be (partly) removed, such as the MRS Nomad S1 or MRS Barracuda R2 Pro. Although the deck can not always be removed completely it offers ample space to paddle comfortably.

In contrast to whitewater decks, removable decks (e.g. MRS Microraft or MRS Adventure X2) are a combination of deck and skirt. The spraydeck is attached to the packraft with waterproof zippers and Velcro. These decks can be completely removed when paddling in calm water or hot conditions. Entering and exiting is as easy as just closing/opening the Velcro on the left side. Although this is faster than pulling a sprayskirt over the coaming of a whitewater deck, removable decks are less waterproof as some water may leak in through the Velcro.

Packrafts of this category, such as the MRS Alligator SB, have self-bailing floors, meaning that water drains through the floor. A thick inflatable floor mat elevates the paddler off of the wet boat bottom. The mat might fully or partially fill the floor.

Self-bailing boats are easier to enter and exit at the shore and during wet re-entries. Das Gleiche gilt für den Ausstieg. Self-bailing floors also provide the luxury of not having to stop to dump water from the cockpit. As there is no deck wearing a drysuit or other protective clothing is recommended when paddling in whitewater or cold conditions.

The extra mass of water in the cockpit and the increased drag on the perforated floor make self-bailing packrafts feeling a bit more sluggish.