DinoLand U.S.A. is a themed land at Disney's Animal Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida and serves as the park's home to dinosaurs and other prehistoric life, as well as related modern animals.
Backstory[]
DinoLand U.S.A. originally started as a small highway town where an amateur fossil-hunter found some dinosaur bones in 1947. After contacting some scientist friends, they gathered their money together to purchase the site. Since then, scientists, volunteers, and grad students have been living there trying to find answers about dinosaurs. The Dino Institute was founded and opened the site as a "fossil discover park". An old fishing lodge of the property became the Restaurantosaurus. Meanwhile, the Dino Institute and their partners at a research facility called Chrono-Tech discovered how to warp vehicles through time, and thus started doing time tours.
Chester and Hester, two locals, were determined to make a quick buck and converted their gas station into a fossil souvenir shop. Not to be out done by the Dino Institute, they turned their parking lot into a small amusement park called "Chester and Hester's Dino-Rama", featuring their own version of DINOSAUR named Primeval Whirl. They also added TriceraTop Spin and the midway games.
Attractions[]
Current[]
- Dinosaur
- The Boneyard Playground
- Cretaceous Trail
- Dino-Sue
- Chester and Hester's Dino-Rama
Former[]
- Lucky the Dinosaur (2005)
- Dinosaur Jubilee (1998-2000)
- Fossil Prep Lab (1998-2000)
- Primeval Whirl (2002-2020)
Exhibited Animals[]
- Abdim's stork
- American crocodile
- Asian brown tortoise
Entertainment[]
Current[]
- Donald's Dino Bash!
- Theater in the Wild
- Finding Nemo: The Big Blue... and Beyond!
Former[]
- Theater in the Wild
- Journey into the Jungle Book (1998-1999)
- Tarzan Rocks! (1999-2006)
- Finding Nemo: The Musical (2007-2020)
- Disney KiteTails (2021-2022)
Restaurants[]
- Restaurantosaurus
- Dino-Bite Snacks
- Trilo-Bites
Former[]
- Dino-Diner
Shopping[]
- Chester & Hester's Dinosaur Treasures
- Dino Institute Shop
Future[]
DinoLand U.S.A. is currently being considered for replacement, with multiple blue sky proposals having been presented to the public, though nothing has been firmly set in stone. At the 2022 D23 Expo, this overhaul plan was first announced with attractions based on Moana and Zootopia being considered for the space. By the Destination D23 2023 event in September, these plans had shifted to a proposed Central/South America themed land (referred to as Tropical America) featuring Encanto and Indiana Jones. The land will begin construction in phases in the Fall of 2024 to give guests more time to experience Dinosaur before it closes.
Gallery[]
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