Dinosaurs Alive! was an

animatronic Animatronics refers to mechatronic puppets. They are a modern variant of the automaton and are often used for the portrayal of characters in films and in theme park attractions. It is a multidisciplinary field integrating puppetry, anatomy a ...

dinosaur Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is t ...

themed area which formerly operated at several amusement parks, but has since been closed. Woodbine Fantasy Fair was the first park to open the attraction in 2007. The version of this attraction at Kings Island was the world's largest animatronic dinosaur park. A $5–6.00 fee was charged to enter the attraction. At Carowinds, admission was free with a Gold or Platinum Pass. Each park also featured ''Dinostore'', a gift shop filled with dinosaur toys and souvenirs. On October 27, 2019, the two remaining Dinosaurs Alive! exhibits closed permanently. The exhibits were created by Dinosaurs Unearthed. Some markets, like Toronto, previously staged their touring exhibit at other venues. Some reviewers noted that seeing a roller coaster in the background was an "incongruity". A sand pit allowed children to "dig" for dinosaurs at an area near the end of the attraction.

Dinosaurs

The exhibits featured dinosaurs that were built to scale and depicted various habitats they would have likely encountered. Among the variety of species present throughout the attraction, the dinosaurs themselves could range from several feet in height and length to the much larger

Ruyangosaurus ''Ruyangosaurus'' (Ruyang County lizard) is a genus of titanosauriform sauropod dinosaur recovered from the Early Cretaceous Haoling Formation of China. The type species is ''R. giganteus'', described in 2009 by Lü Junchang ''et al''. Descri ...

, which stood more than tall. Each amusement park configuration was unique, with some featuring exhibits not present at the others: In addition to being life-sized, many of the dinosaurs were animatronic. Models featured moving skin, with no visible joints or seams. Some were interactive, that allowed visitors to press buttons on the exhibit's sign to control the movement of various body parts depending on where the button was located (e.g., button on snout opens jaws, button on throat thrashes neck and button on rear makes the tail sway). The non-interactive animatronic dinosaurs were activated when motion sensors detect movement by guests walking by. Sound effects from hidden speakers also accompanied the various movements including roaring, bellowing and/or shrieking.

Size

Dinosaurs Alive entrance at Canada's Wonderland

Movie

A dinosaur-related 3D movie was shown at Carowinds in their respective Action Theater with the motion seats removed. It was also shown at King Dominion and Canada's Wonderland as well. The film was included with park admission at most parks, while admission to both the attraction and film costed $6 at Canada's Wonderland. At Wonderland, the film shown in the theater is the 11-minute ''Monsters of the Deep'', while ''Dinosaurs: Monsters of Patagonia'' was shown at Carowinds and Kings Island. Kings Island, Cedar Point and Carowinds charged an additional $5 admission per person over the age of 2. However, Carowinds did offer special Dinosaurs Alive! endorsement stickers that could be attached to season passes for $15, granting the passholder unlimited trips through the exhibit for that season.

Reception

The added admission fee was the target of criticism. Cedar Point representatives have stated that the fee is to avoid overcrowding in the section. A writer for Wired.com suggested that, given the cost of admission, parking and food at Canada's Wonderland, the added cost of Dinosaurs Alive! was trivial. Some theme park enthusiasts suggested in advance of opening that the attraction would not be "repeatable", in advance of its Cedar Point opening. Many dinosaurs in the Canada's Wonderland attraction were juveniles, causing one reviewer to speculate this was "a cost-saving measure." The reviewer also noted that in some instances, the info panels didn't match the depiction in the exhibit. For example, the Canada's Wonderland

Eotyrannus ''Eotyrannus'' (meaning "dawn tyrant") is a genus of tyrannosauroid theropod dinosaur hailing from the Early Cretaceous Wessex Formation beds, included in Wealden Group, located in the southwest coast of the Isle of Wight, United Kingdom. The r ...

lacked feathers despite the nearby illustration suggesting otherwise.

Dinosaurs

Size

Movie

Reception

See also

References

External links