Commonly, surveillance activities on lake waters is mostly carried out by using a surface vehicle as special-designed vehicle, especially to conduct water quality measurements, underwater surveys, and bathymetry mapping. However, conventional survey and monitoring still involves humans on the site. If a survey is conducted during strong wind conditions, it could jeopardize surveyor’s safety. Therefore, a vehicle must have several criteria, e.g., it must be pretty spacious and comfortable to carry surveyors, free from engine vibrations, stabilized and easy to maneuver, and the surveyor's safety can be guaranteed. This paper discusses preliminary research aiming to develop an Autonomous Raft Vehicle (ARV), a type of autonomous unmanned surface vehicle.  The ARV is equipped with autonomous control based on multi-way-points with an A* algorithm. Thus, a user only requires giving a command once initially during path planning. A* algorithm over multi-way-point could improve ARV navigation when there are obstacles along the predetermined trajectory. Hence the predetermined trajectory will be maintained throughout the mission. It is a significant contribution to this paper.