The cruise operator Carnival has showcased the roller coaster on its newest and largest ship. The “BOLT™: Ultimate Sea Coaster™” is located on the upper deck of the Carnival Celebration, 57m (187ft) above sea level and will be the first coaster to operate during an Atlantic crossing.
BOLT is a roller coaster with a motorbike feeling on the top deck, and follows a track which drops, dips and curves with a view of the horizon. At the end, a hairpin bend around the Carnival funnel leads back to the start.
Behind its development is the think tank at Maurer Rides and Carnival Cruise Line. BOLT has a twin on Mardi Gras, which was launched in 2021 as the largest ship in the Carnival fleet at the time.
Carnival is set to install another roller coaster on their cruise ships. The 180,000grt Carnival Celebration is the largest ship in the Carnival fleet: an XL-class cruise ship, 345m long and carrying up to 6,600 passengers. She offers a varied entertainment and recreation programs and, as the crowning glory, the roller coaster.
Carnival Celebration was built by the Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland. She welcomed her first guests in Southampton on 6 November 2022 for her 14-day maiden voyage on the transatlantic passage. It will be the first time a roller coaster has crossed the Atlantic in operation.
On 20 November the ship will arrive in Miami as part of Carnival Cruise Line’s 50th anniversary celebrations, from where she will continue to the Caribbean.
Photo by Andrew McAlpine
