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Jurassic World: 10 best dinosaur attractions

As Jurassic World hits cinema screens across the UK, we've compiled the best dinosaur attractions from around the world.

Friday 12 June 2015 11:48 BST
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A scene from 'Jurassic World', released this week
A scene from 'Jurassic World', released this week (Universal Pictures)

Get ready to feel old. It has been 13 years since we last saw a Jurassic Park film on the big screen and Steven Spielberg’s original adaptation of Michael Crichton’s book recently celebrated its 21st anniversary.

The long wait has finally come to an end, however, with the fourth installment of the successful franchise - Jurassic World - opening in cinemas today.

Whether you’re a dinosaur fanatic, a passionate palaeontologist like Ross Gellar or just your average person whose dinosaur interests have been tickled by the latest film, there are plenty of places to visit around the world to experience the pre-historic beasts.

Dinosaur Adventure in Norfolk gives you the opportunity to meet a life-sized Tyrannosaurus Rex, Triceratops and a Stegosaurus. Or you could release your inner palaeontologist and participate in a dig in the Hell Creek formation in Montanna where multiple fossils have recently been found.

If that’s not what you’re after, and instead you want to experience a real life Jurassic park, Dinosaurs Alive at King Island in Ohio is the world’s largest animatronic dinosaur park and has 65-life-sized moving dinosaurs.

Scroll through our list to find out which other attractions could do with a visit.

Jurassic Park Discovery Centre, Universal Studios, Orlando, USA

If the Jurassic World trailer has really got you in the mood for dinosaurs, why not experience the ‘real’ Jurassic Park. Universal Studios in Orlando is the home of the towering fossilized remains of a massive T-rex and other dinosaurs. You can also test your DNA and see what kind of dinosaur you would be. Are you a ferocious predator or a peaceful herbivore?

Jurassic Park Discovery Centre, Orlando

Dinosaur Park, Münchehagen, Germany

This dinosaur park is built around real dinosaur trails. The 2.5-mile track leads you through history with life-sized dinosaurs inhabiting. Not only does the park have more than 220 life-sized model dinosaurs, (including one of the world’s largest models, the 148 foot Seismosaurus), but also roughly 37,600 square feet of genuine dinosaur tracks.

Dinosaur Park, Münchehagen

Dinosaurs Alive At King Island, Ohio, USA

Dinosaurs Alive is located in the largest amusement and water park in the Midwest. The World's biggest animatronic dinosaur park has more than 65 life-sized dinosaurs spread across 12 acres. You can also experience life as a palaeontologist at the dig site.

Dinosaurs Alive, Ohio

Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom

The gallery covers 160 million years, hundreds of specimens and even has four moving dinosaurs. Located in Kensington, it’s the ideal place to round off a romantic date and show off your expert dinosaur knowledge.

Be sure to visit soon if you want to get a last look at Dippy the dinosaur in the main hall. The 26-metre long plaster skeleton is to be moved out of the museum's main hall to make way for a blue whale.

Natural History Museum, London

Jurassic Land, Istanbul, Turkey

The Jurassic Land theme park has over 70 animatronic dinosaurs. Kids can earn their own palaeontologist certificates after discovering eggs and bones in the digging cave, and come face to face with predators during a ride in the Juracopter, Turkey’s biggest 4-D simulator.

Jurassic Land, Istanbul

Dinosaur Adventure, Norfolk, United Kingdom

It’ll cost you £9.45 for an adult and £12.30 for a child to have the opportunity to meet the life-sized Tyrannosaurus Rex, Triceratops or the Stegosaurus who call Dinosaur Adventure in Norfolk their home. You can also jump on a go-kart for the “raptor races” and have a quick game of dinosaur crazy golf.

Dinosaur Adventure, Norfolk

PaleoWorld Research Foundation, Montana, USA

The non-profit PaleoWorld Research Foundation, organise real fossil digs for adults and children. Have the opportunity to join palaeontologists in the Hell Creek formation, where fossils of Triceratops and Tyrannosaurus Rex have been found.

PaleoWorld Research Foundation, Montana

Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology, Alberta, Canada

Famous for its collection of over 130,000 fossils, the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology in Canada also has over 40 mounted dinosaur skeletons in its ‘Dinosaur Hall’.

Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology, Canada

The Museum of Natural Sciences, Brussels, Belgium

The Musée des Sciences Naturelles has the biggest dinosaur gallery in Europe. Interactive exhibits and over 35 skeletons on display make this a must visit for any dinosaur fan.

Musée des Sciences Naturelles, Brussels

The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, Indiana, USA

The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis is famous for its rare specimens of dinosaur. There is a Gorgosaur with a brain tumour and also the Dracorex hogwartsia, the ‘Dragon King of Hogwarts’. The museum also has one of only four mummified dinosaurs in the world on display.

The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, Indiana

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