With the release of Jurassic World: Dominion, fans have been taken back on a nostalgic ride with terrifying T-rexes and clever raptors running around terrorizing humans. Ever since the first Jurassic Park dropped, audiences were introduced to the fear-inducing dense forests, large rivers, and vast ranches where dinos run free. And most of those Jurassic Park filming locations are all too real.

For adventure enthusiasts, nature lovers, and fans of Spielberg’s dino movies, grab your backpack and sunhats because these Jurassic Park locations are open to tourists from all corners of the world.

You might not find deadly, man-eating dinosaurs behind electrical fences but the green areas offer stunning views, thrills, and props used in the set. So check out these dino-thrilling places to visit that should be on your Hawaii Jurassic Park travel list.

Hanapepe Valley, Kauai

The iconic scene of Hammond flying with his crew of paleontologists into the dinosaur islands in the first Jurassic Park was shot in the Hanapepe Valley. This is the scene that fans vividly remember as the spectacular green hills grace the screen, introducing the audience to the thrilling island of Isla Nublar.

Today, you can take a helicopter ride that will charter the same course and fly you around the exact dense forest hills and the famous Manawaiopuna Falls, known as the Jurassic Park Falls, of the famed island. Though scenes for the fictional dinosaur island were also shot in Costa Rica, Hanapepe Valley is known as the Isla Nublar in real life.

There are multiple Kauai island helicopter tours that takes you through the same route of the Jurassic Falls as shown in the first Jurassic Park film. So if you’re planning for a thrilling aerial experience, we recommend these helicopter rides to give you the adrenaline of a life time.
Private open helicopter tour kauai
Doors off Kauai helicopter tour

 

Allerton Garden, Kauai

Allerton Garden is known for its flora and fauna that is native to Hawaii but what it is the most famous for is its tall, towering Mortan Bey Fig trees that were shown in Jurassic Park – the same trees where Alan Grant discover dinosaur eggs (after escaping the T-rex from the car) broken and hatched between the sprawling, huge tree roots.

The garden and center are open to visitors and you can go around these trees with their humongous roots encircled around you just as it did with Alan and the kids. You can also have an amazing experience with this Allerton Garden tour that also includes a magical sunset dinner. 

Kualoa Ranch, Oahu

It’s safe to say that Oahu is the probably most famous Jurassic Park islands due to multiple scenes from the first movie to Jurassic world taking place in its ranches. So no matter what movie your favorite is out of all the dino runs, you will probably find a Jurassic Park shooting location here.

Dino Stampeded

Kuaoloa Ranch grazed the screen with tons of thrilling dino scenes in the Jurassic movies. The most notable one is of Alan Grant and the kids running from a stampede of Gallimimuses, only to duck and hide behind a fallen branch.

Although you won’t be running along with any vegetarian dinosaurs, you can explore the gorgeous, vast ranch with an adventurous four-wheel ride that makes all the filming location stops, including the tree branch where you can hop out of your vehicle without fearing for dinosaurs and snap a pic or two behind the log.

You can get a full ride of the Kualoa Ranch movie tour focusing on Jurassic Park that takes you on a 2.5-hour roar-worthy adventure through the ranches and the rainforest. It also includes Hakipu’u and Ka’a’awa Valleys. And yes! You can see the iconic fallen tree branch too.

Jurassic World T-rex Cage & Bunker

Ever wondered what a T-rex cage would look like? Well, now you can have the answer to that by visiting the actual T-rex cage that was used in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom when Owen and Claire go inside the cage to get a blood transfusion from the killer animal.

The actual cage has a T-rex missing but that won’t stop you from exploring one of this Jurassic World filming locations and wondering what it would be like to have a real T-rex in there.

The Kualoa Ranch is also the place where some of Fallen Kingdom’s island-destruction scenes were shot.

The bunker scene where Owen, Claire, and the gang go for locating Blue, has lava flowing in and a man-eating dinosaur snarling in the same room was shot here.

Not all tours include a stop at the T-rex cage and the Jurassic Park bunker but this tour takes you to the set of Jurassic World! Make sure you stop at these thrilling sites on your way around the Kualoa. 

Indominus Rex paddock

A must-visit Jurassic World movie location for all the dino fans, the Indominus Rex paddock stays alive and well in the thick jungles of Kualoa Ranch. In the movie, this paddock is where Claire introduces the hybrid dinosaur to Owen as they both look towards the cage while standing behind floor-to-ceiling windows in the control panel room.

The real-life I-rex paddock is exactly the same. Visitors are taken through the gates, nudged along the control panel room with the same floor-to-ceiling glass walls and then into the paddock itself. Experience the I-rex paddock and its terror with this tour!

The 60m cage walls are made with styrofoam and a deep claw mark where the Indominous rex “scratched” to lure out the humans are etched into the set. It’s a heart-pumping experience as if the carnivorous dino is hiding somewhere in the cage with you, almost like experiencing Jurassic World in real life.

You can see it all for yourself and stand in the same place as Owen Grady when he ran for his life by booking this experience.

 

 

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