Hi Cherie!
Welcome to planDisney! We're so happy that you stopped by, and thank you so much for sending this Disneyland Resort vacation planning question to us hEAR!
Do you have a little dino guy or gal at home Cherie, or are you a big fan of Disney history that Walt himself oversaw? How about both? Because yes, Disneyland Resort has one of the most impressive Dinosaur displays I've ever seen, AND it's a ride. Better yet, the ride is technically what you can see while riding the
Disneyland Railroad in Disneyland Park, so you kind of know what to expect in that department. I actually didn't know about this
dinorama the first time I brought my then 4-year-old and it was kind of scary at first but also a welcome surprise!
The Primeval World display was first installed at the 1964 World's Fair. Walt brought these awesome animatronics back to sunny Southern California in 1966 where they've been delighting generations of dinosaur and/or train lovers ever since. To catch these life-size dinos you can either get on the train and ride its four full-circle stops (meaning get off where you got on), or you can
board at the Tomorrowland Train Station entrance just behind Autopia. The stop after the display is the Main Street U.S.A. Station.
Pro Tips:
~ On a busy Disneyland day, there are up to four different trains running on this route. There is one train with bench seats that face the front locomotive car, but the others have these fun 'circus animal' style cars where two rows of bench seats face outward, stadium-style. You're more than welcome to wait for this kind of train to pull up to the station by letting others in front of you, which you'll want to do because the first row of the outward-facing cars provides the best views of the displays.
~ This scene takes place in a very dark and noisy tunnel. If you or someone you're with has sensory issues, you'll want to make sure they're wEARing headphones. At the very least you might want to cover a child's ears during the first 90 seconds of being in the tunnel because there's a simulated lightning strike and the audio is played in every train car; not only will you hEAR it two or three times, when it's your car's turn to be right in front of the strike the noise is terribly loud.
~
The Primeval World scenes of the dinosaurs are very impressive, but they might be a little scary or at least cause a lot of questions. (Two dinosaurs are fighting, two dinosaurs have "expired" due to lack of water, there are at least 8 different species, etc) To better prepare yourself for what to expect, I recommend watching a video ride through on youtube. Simply sEARch 'Disneyland Primeval World' and click a video with the most recent date.
I hope this helped to plan your upcoming Disney Dino Day, Cherie! Be sure to follow the
official planDisney Instagram account for even more tips and tricks. And if you have any more
Disneyland Resort planning questions, We're All Ears!
~Kristen N.