We know the quandary: You can go on a cruise or you can go on a roller coaster.
Thrill seekers have had to make that choice _ or put one off for the other _ for, like forever.
Doral, Fla.-based Carnival Cruise Line has just come up with a way to please both cruise lovers and amusement park devotees.
In what Carnival calls "the first-ever roller coaster at sea," passengers will get to ride on the open-air BOLT: Ultimate Sea Coaster, when it goes into operation in 2020 on the new Mardi Gras ship.
The cruise line's Mardi Gras will be based in Port Canaveral.
Built by Munich-based Maurer Rides, BOLT's design will include 800 feet of twists, turns and drops on its track. Riders would hit speeds of 40 mph in a two-person, "motorcycle-like" vehicle along a track perched 187 feet above sea level.
According to Carnival, riders can select their own speed (up to the limit, of course) and the ride would provide passengers 360-degree views of the open sea.
The big thrill? Expect a hair pin turn around Carnival's funnel.
Unlike land-based roller coasters, which use gravity to send its riders careening down and around the tracks, Carnival's BOLT will be an all-electric coaster.
Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line, said in a statement last week: "Mardi Gras will be our most innovative ship ever with some truly special features and attractions, highlighted by BOLT, the first roller coaster at sea. We are so thrilled to introduce this one-of-a-kind, game-changing, exhilarating attraction _ our guests are going to love it!"
Itinerary information on Mardi Gras will be announced in early January.
Carnival plans to start construction on a second XL-class ship in 2020 that will be delivered in 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of the cruise line's founding.
