After waiting hundreds of millions of years, Universal Studios Hollywood just couldn’t contain the dinosaurs any longer and they busted out without warning for the all-new Jurassic World—The Ride on Friday, July 12.
Theme park guests who showed up early were greeted with numerous large electronic construction signs warning that dinosaurs from the “Jurassic Park” and more recent “Jurassic World” films were loose in the park.
A family of four from Germany, who spoke via a translator, said they received a text alert as they were coming into the park that Jurassic World — The Ride was now open. They headed straight for the lower lot and though there were some opening day glitches, they waited out the brief technical difficulties by trying out the food in the adjacent and newly revamped Jurassic Café, as well as blended cocktails in tiki mugs from the new Isla Nu-Bar.
“We felt really strongly about making the land as integrated as possible,” said Jon Corfino, Universal creative project director and show producer. On top of the ride, there’s also an interactive Dino Play area for kids to explore the world of paleontology. Blue, the female Velociraptor from the “Jurassic World” films, is the star of the Raptor Encounter, though she’s got a bit of competition with the ginormous roaming Triceratops and the adorable baby Raptor, which is shown around via a handler.
Last September, the original attraction, Jurassic Park—The Ride, was shut down to undergo a transformation that would include updated technology, animatronics, a slew of new landscapes and appearances by characters from the films — Owen Grady (Chris Pratt), Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) and Dr. Henry Wu (B.D. Wong) — and, of course, the dinosaurs from the “Jurassic World” movies.
Surprise! @UniStudios opened the all-new Jurassic World-The Ride today without warning! Take a little look inside!!! pic.twitter.com/4asdBHszX3
— kelliskye (@kelliskye) July 12, 2019
Before boarding the all-new blue and gray rafts, guests wind through the revamped queue line, which includes information about the new dinosaurs from the characters on a number of TV screens. Just like in the film, things don’t go as planned for the dinosaur-filled theme park.
Once aboard the rafts, guests travel through dense vegetation and end up directly within the the Mosasaurus’ three million gallon glass aquarium and observatory tank. A large shark becomes the Mosasaurus’s snack and being on the raft, riders get a pretty exquisite and crisp view of the dinosaur as it swims about. Since it is summer, the water features are all turned up; the Monsasaurus is the first attraction to give patrons a big splash.
#jurassicworldtheride opens at #universalstudios Hollywood Friday with an updated ride, new store and food and new #dinosaurs roaming the area. pic.twitter.com/d1RYschb2O
— David Crane (@vidcrane) July 13, 2019
Corfino & Co. worked closely with “Jurassic World” director Colin Trevorrow to help bridge the gap between the two generations of films, which are all part of one big franchise. Steven Spielberg’s “Jurassic Park” was a summer blockbuster in 1993 and Jurassic Park—The Ride made its Universal Studios Hollywood debut in 1996. Trevorrow’s “Jurassic World” came out in 2015 and was followed by 2018’s “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.”
“The keywords for us were ‘awe’ and ‘wonder,’” Corfino said. “You have to start there because that cuts straight to the DNA of the whole thing. We took a look at the Indominus Rex and we have the iconic T-Rex in there and we felt strongly that was something we should explore. Of course, later, we thought how impossible it would be to recreate the Monsasaurus tank, but I think we did OK with that.”
Winding back through the ride, guests come face to face with a mellow baby and mother Stegosaurus and a playful Parasaurolophus. However, things take a turn quickly as the dinosaurs become more predatory with Velociraptors and the Dilophosaurus starting to stalk their prey. The ride still ends with an 84-foot waterfall drop, but not before the Indominus Rex and Tyrannosaurus Rex face off.
Though there were some memorable scenes from the original ride that are now gone, Corfino said that if guests look closely, there are plenty of Easter eggs hidden throughout the ride. The first three rows of the rafts seem to be the areas where the riders got the most wet, however, there’s no seat that stays completely dry amid the variety of water features.
“It’s like an adventure,” he said. “Just like life. You need to explore every seat and come back to see for yourself where you do and don’t get wet.”
Universal Studios Hollywood
When: Open daily; various hours
Where: 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City
Tickets: $99-$134 California resident single-day pass; $109-$139 for single-day passes; $169-$279 California resident Universal Express; $179-$279 Universal Express; $349 and up for the VIP Experience. All passes are available at UniversalStudiosHollywood.com.
