Rawwwwrrr says the dinosaur…or so I would assume.
Why are so many dinosaur experiences lame? When I think of dinosaurs I think of cheesy mini-putt golf course attractions and inflatable pool toys. Massive skeletons in museums with informative, but often boring, labels come to mind too.
Come on, these are dinosaurs, make it cool! Which brings me to Bolivia…
Huh? Yes, Bolivia is the first place that had me excited about dinosaurs since I was a little kid on the original Universe of Energy ride at EPCOT in Walt Disney World.
Bolivia made it fun at their Parque Cretácico. Plenty of well crafted, colourful dinosaur exhibits are scattered around the park, offering just enough of a interactive and educational mix. Certain dinosaurs are shown in water, others are amongst trees. There are cute turtle-looking dinosaurs, massive lizards (but small for dinosaurs) and scary, sharp-toothed dinosaurs.
It’s a simple, but well-maintained and manicured park on the outskirts of Sucre, which you can visit by taking a ride on the Dino Truck. The big draw here has historically been tracks of real dinosaur footprints, which can be seen in some rocks. While you once could get closer to them, they’re now smartly protected and must be viewed from a distance.
The park isn’t huge, but somehow the outdoor environment makes it all come alive, especially with some convincing sound recordings blasting out of various speakers. They do have a museum aspect too, if you need to brush up on your dino-skeleton knowledge. What I enjoyed most about the park was that they managed to keep it fun.
I was also happy that the kids growing up around Sucre in Bolivia have such a quality park to visit and learn a little but about the creatures that once roamed their country many many millions of years ago.
