This study was performed to investigate the effect of various propeller tunnel shapes on the propulsion performance of a fishing boat. The propeller tunnel reduces the problem resulting from the open propeller accidentally catching the waste net and cable on the sea, as well as increasing the cruising speed. For 3 different tunnel geometries, the model test is conducted in the circular water channel, and the potential based panel method was applied to analyze the hydrodynamic characteristics of propeller. Also, both results are compared with each other to represent the difference between results of the model scale test and the potential theory. It is expected that these results could be referenced in the design of the propeller tunnel in consideration of the hydrodynamic interaction between the propeller and the tunnel.