A trip 100 million years in the making
If it existed, adventurers and paleontologists alike would lap up a Jurassic World trip
Twenty-two years after actors Laura Dern and Sam Neill barely escaped certain death by Jurassic Park’s monstrous T. Rex, we’re heading back to that ill-fated theme park on Isla Nublar. Because it’s finally open, and this time it’ll be safe . . . right?
“To see Jurassic World come to life is almost like seeing Jurassic Park come true,” executive producer Steven Spielberg said of the $150-million remake, which opens Friday, June 12.
This is what it’d be like if Jurassic World were an actual place and you went to visit — a heart-stopping vacation spot for adventure seekers and paleontologists alike.
First, you must fly to Costa Rica, as the island is located 196 kilometres off its coast. The park’s partner, American Airlines, is more than happy to help you book flights.
After landing at San José airport, drive to the coast, hop on Isla Nublar’s yacht-style, double-decker ferry and speed across the sun-dappled pacific toward the dramatic tableau before you: Lush tropical rainforests teem with prehistoric life beneath a cloud-covered volcano, as the outstretched wings of Pteranodons circle above.
With the taste of sea salt on your lips, you’ll know you’ve arrived when the park’s iconic jungle gates open to a new world, which is bigger, louder and far more technologically advanced than the CD-ROM and night-vision goggles of the park you once knew.
“We’ve reinvented it for the next generation,” said production designer Edward Verreaux, who worked as an illustrator on the original Jurassic Park film.
“We did a lot of research on resorts all over the world, because we wanted to create an environment modern travellers would really want to visit.”
New, but familiar, Jurassic World’s restaurants, shops and high-end amenities resemble present-day theme parks such as Universal Studios Hollywood, which Verreaux’s team scouted for ideas.
“It was important to us to create a place that could exist now, not a sci-fi imagining set in the future,” Jurassic World’s director Colin Trevorrow commented in production notes.
Transportation on Isla Nublar has had a serious upgrade. Instead of Jurassic Park’s Jeeps, you’ll enter and circumnavigate Jurassic World on a high-speed, air-conditioned monorail, which stops at an attraction every 20 minutes.
If you don’t hop off, you’ll speed past some of the park’s most aweinspiring marvels, such as earthshaking flocks of 500-pound gallimimus galloping through Gallimimus Valley, the peaceful grace of Triceratops Territory or the bloody voracious appetite of the one and only T. Rex at her feeding time.
In some cases, transportation is the attraction. You’ll have to brave long lines to ride the futuristic gyrosphere. This two-person, glass-orb-like vehicle glides smoothly over the tropical terrain of Gyrosphere Valley, allowing 360-degree visibility of the dinosaurs.
After that you may need to cool off. Water lovers can strap themselves into a plastic kayak on the Cretaceous Cruise and paddle down a stegosaurus-infested river with nothing but a puffy life-vest for protection.
Then again if you don’t want your dino-spiked adrenalin levels to dip, hop on a Triumph Scrambler and daredevil moto around in muddy tough-guy jeans, just like Jurassic World’s dino-taming expert Owen Grady (Chris Pratt).
Many of the attractions on this island can simply be visited on foot as well, including your to-be-expected baby-dinosaur petting zoo and edutainment museum.
To top off your truly unforgettable afternoon, head to the seaside stadium for the Mosasaurus Feeding Show. Come time, this prehistoric predator leaps from the blue-green depths of a performance pool, flashes the terrifying teeth of its gaping jaw and, in an instant, swallows a dan- gling great white shark whole.
Still have a pulse? Stop and check in at the all-inclusive Hilton Isla Nublar Resort, where you can recharge with the spa’s signature Mesozoic stone massage, cool off in one of several kid-friendly swimming pools or get your game on in one of Jurassic Tennis Center’s 32 indoor/outdoor courts.
“Just because it’s an adventure doesn’t mean you have to rough it,” promises the park’s promotional website, and we couldn’t agree more — except for that corporate convention centre feel of the lobby and kitschy brown wicker furniture, which suggests it might not be fivestar material.
At this point, you’re probably ravenous — but unlike the park’s famous velociraptors, you won’t have to hunt to find food. This island’s eight cafés and 12 sit-down restaurants are equipped to serve 20,000 people per day. With a decidedly cafeteria-esque feel, most of these paper-cup spots are what you’d find at most any American theme park.