Santa test drives Mardi Gras' BOLT roller-coaster

The ship is nearing completion at Meyer Turku for delivery later this week.

Speeds up to 40 mph

With hearty 'ho-ho-ho’s' echoing throughout the shipyard, Santa zipped along the 800-foot track featuring a hairpin curve around Mardi Gras' funnel, while achieving speeds of up to 40 miles per hour. The all-electric coaster can accommodate two riders — or one Santa Claus and his bag of toys, perhaps — in motorcycle-like vehicles that race 187 feet above the water line.

'Never in my wildest dreams would I think a roller-coaster could be on a cruise ship. It’s something we’ll be talking about at the North Pole for a long time,' St. Nick reportedly said.

BOLT was built in partnership with Munich-based Mauer Rides.

Mardi Gras is scheduled to debut April 24 at Florida's Port Canaveral.