We were invited to the press day of Jurassic Kingdom Cardiff in Bute Park before it officially opens on Saturday 11th August. Whilst it wasn’t quite ready when we visited we got to have a glimpse of what it would be like for visitors.
The Dinosaurs at Jurassic Kingdom Cardiff
We spotted at least 30 dinosaurs from across the Jurassic to Triassic periods with many a dinosaur that I wasn’t familiar with. The same could not be said for my sons who seemed to be able to name them all. But they really are a little dino obsessed.
Jurassic Kingdom Cardiff promises to enthral kids with the animatronic dinosaurs. To be fair, the ones we saw were very good. Obviously I can’t comment on how realistic they were, not ever having seen a real dinosaur before! But my kids were suitably impressed. There were also static ones there too, some reportedly life sized. The T-Rex at the entrance and the Brachiosaurus certainly seemed pretty big and toured over us.
There was nothing scary there, at least my 3, 6 and 10 year olds didn’t think so. But I guess it would depend on whether yours like dinosaurs or whether they are easily scared or not.
There were also some baby dinosaurs hatching out of eggs and flying pterodactyls which were yet to be put up. By the way did you know that a pterodactyl isn’t a dinosaur but a type of flying reptile. Also, they refer to the collective of flying reptiles and not a specific type. So my son told me anyway. But a tip if you’re going is to look up as these will be hiding in the trees.
The favourites are all there, we saw velociraptors almost escaping their cage, a stegosaurus, a triceratops, spinosaurus and of course the T-Rex.
There were placards giving some interesting information on the dinosaurs. For example, they had a spinosaurus and a tyrannosaurus in a fight. But the placard said that they were from different locations and different time periods meaning they would never have met. It left you debate which you thought would have won. My boys loved that and they were still debating it before they went to bed.
So what else can you expect at Jurassic Kingdom Cardiff
Well apart from the obvious, Dinosaurs, there is an education tent which will show a 30 minute film produced by the BBC on how dinosaurs lived. Unfortunately this wasn’t on as part of the press event so I can’t really comment but it sounded good.
In the centre of the park was a large sand pit with dinosaur bones where kiddies could be budding palaeontologists and dig for bones in the excavation area.
They were also putting up a large bouncy castle type slide and some other attractions and rides. There were a number of food stalls setting up and of course there was also the merchandise shop.
Our Verdict of Jurassic Kingdom Cardiff
We really enjoyed the whole experience. We followed the dinosaur trail in the park woodland setting spotting the dinosaurs which was pretty cool.
To make the most of your visit you could always take a picnic to eat in the park. Of course there is also the option of combining the day with a visit to the Cardiff National Museum to visit dinosaur bones to make it a full Dinotastic Day.
It is expensive for a family and I would definitely recommend booking online to save on the on the door prices. If you have dino mad kiddies then I think it is worth it, but if not I’m not sure you’ll get your monies worth. I was very lucky to be invited to the press event, but I would have definitely purchased tickets otherwise anyway. If you do go be sure to let us know what you thought of it.
Additional Information on Jurassic Kingdom Cardiff
Visit www.jurassickingdom.uk to purchase tickets.
Online prices start from £11.50 for adults, £10.50 concessions, £9.50 for children, and £38 for a family ticket. Children under two go free. use the code EARLYBIRD for 20% off
On the Door prices cost £13 for adults, £11 doe children and £44 for a family.
The outdoor experience will be open Wednesdays to Sundays from 10am till 6pm with final entry at 5pm. Once inside, the event visitors can stay as long as they like, but it will close at 6pm.
Location: Bute Park, North Rd, Cardiff CF10 3DX
When: 11-27 August, 10am-6pm daily with last entry at 5pm
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so great and fantastic
How did I miss this? I’m a little obsessed with dinosaurs so this would have been fun to see. Fingers crossed they bring it back again next year. Great review.
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Yes my son isn’t happy that it was a temporary visit, he keeps asking to go back!