Jurassic Park River Adventure (Islands of Adventure)



Jurassic Park River Adventure is a water-based amusement ride that is based on Steven Spielberg's hit film Jurassic Park and Michael Crichton's novel located at Universal's Islands of Adventure in Orlando, Florida. It opened on May 28, 1999. This ride is a duplicate of the original Jurassic Park: The Ride at Universal Studios Hollywood. Another duplicate exists at Universal Studios Japan. A river rapids duplicated version of the attraction, which is entitled the Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure, opened in Universal Studios Singapore in 2010, and will be opening soon in Universal Studios Dubailand. This version of the ride is located within an entire Jurassic Park themed section of the park. Other attractions include the Discovery Center located inside a re-creation of the Jurassic Park Visitors Center from the film, Pteranodon Flyers (a suspended kiddie coaster), and a kid-themed play area known as Camp Jurassic. Previously, a walk-through attraction known as Triceratops Encounter was also featured, but was later closed indefinitely due to its low capacity and high staffing requirements.

Queue and Pre-show
Guests enter the queue underneath a large, thatched roof. Here, the queue wraps around a 3D representation of "Jurassic Island," the island adventuers are currently on. This 3D model shows the island and the rides located there, including rides cut from the final opening of the park. Following the walkway through to the next, adventuers end up in another little thatch-roofed building. Televisions above have a video of two reporters sitting in front of the Discover Center located here at the park. They talk about the island and its history, speaking of Hammond, the incident on Isla Nublar, and then the eventual change of plan to create another park here in Orlando. Hammond is then seen inside the Visitor Center from the film talking about the park and welcoming guests to it. This video has footage shot on the sound-stage in all the different sets, genetics lab, Visitor Center rotunda, and the Control room–all new footage. Then adventurers go through another little area where they have a video talking about all the different dinosaurs. It also gives an ominous warning: "Due to technical difficulties, the tour will not include the carnivore enclosure. Thank you and enjoy your stay." Another video is shown of a guy talking about the safety specs (such as "don't lean forward to avoid the splash, don't put your hands up... and be warned "You will get wet! (a raft splashes down behind him soaking everyone in camera) And possibly soaked!") As the adventurers board the raft, the River Adventure Control room can be seen. The adventurers are reminded to enjoy the ride, and the raft departs.

Ride
The raft heads up a hill and then splashes down in a little river surrounded by prehistoric trees with a small turn ahead. The solo horn beginning the "Theme from Jurassic Park" plays. "Time. The Ever Flowing River. Come with us now to a time before man, when the river flowed through a new-born world, and giants walked the Earth--" is then announced from the raft's onboard speakers. The raft turns, and approaches the gates. They begin to open. "Welcome... to Jurassic Park" is announced as the raft passes through. The raft passes a lagoon surrounded by trees. A large rock appears to the right and to the left, more rocks and some trees, but one of them turns out that it is not a tree. The mostly submerged body of an Ultrasaur comes to life, lifting its long neck out of the water, some food still stuck in its teeth, greeting adventurers. "The Ultrasaurs in this lagoon are among the largest creatures ever to walk the Earth. Yet, dispite their awesome size, these gentle giants pose no threat to us." is announced as the raft passes the Ultrasaur. The raft continues on through the lagoon towards an overhang of rocks. Next to them, is a little piece of earth with the large, exposed roots and partial trunk of a tree, with two animals moving in the shade. "Psittacoasaurs, with their curved, parrotlike beaks are the most primitive of the horned dinosaurs, a group of herbivores that includes Protoceratops and the mighty, Triceratops." is announced as the raft passes the Psittacoasaurs. The raft continues underneath a rock overhang where little streams of water can be seen rushing down like a waterfall off the rocks on the left. A rock wall appears on the opposite side. The raft turns a corner, and sitting on a stoop above the water is a baby stegosaurus. "Heavy armored dinosaurs can often be found among the Geo-thermal formations of Stegosaurus Springs. Heavy armored plating and spiked tails protect these herbivores from savage predators of their native period." is announced. As the raft gets closer, the baby rocks back and fourth, wailing. Then suddenly on the right, the head of the mother stegosaur appears. The raft turns left, circling around the mother stegosaur. She moves around, moving her tail back and fourth, exposing her spikes, lifting it in and out of the water. "Jurassic Park Scientists provide our herbivores with plenty of vegetation from their native periods. Ensuring long healthy lives for these magnificent creatures." is then announced. Among tall bamboo shoots, tiny geysers occasionally shoot water high into the air, raining down on guests. The raft passes them and again, the face of a parasaur lifts out of the water, spraying adventurers with water from her nostrils. The raft finishes making a complete U and continues on towards a small area. As the raft gets closer, the area begins to bubble. Up ahead, guests can see where the tour continues down the river, turning left. There is a sign that reads "Hadrosaur Cove." "Next up on our tour is Hadrosaur Cove. Here in Hadrosaur Cove..." is announced as the raft approaches it. Suddenly, from the bubbling water bursts a Parasaur. Startled by the raft, it inadvertently pushes the raft off course. The "Hadrosaur Cove" sign slowly fades from view as the raft turns left towards a wall where the river leads through an open gate, sirens wailing loudly. "This is Jurassic Park Animal Control. It looks like one of the Hadrosaurs has knocked your boat off course. You are entering the Raptor Containment area. Please, stay seated, we will grab your boat at the loading dock ahead. Do not get out of the boat, I repeat, do not get out of the boat!" is then announced. In the bushes, little snorts can be heard as the leaves shake and trees sway. Up ahead of the raft the raptor containment building from JP and the electric fence dangles, having been ripped apart,shooting off sparks. The boat turns left still, circling the building. Another boat: CP 25 can be seen. It has crashed onto the cement walkway surrounding the river. It had been carrying a little cargo float where two compys are fighting over a torn shirt. A radio can be heard from the boat "CP 25, there’s a tour boat off course in the raptor containment area. We've GOT to get those people out of there! Do you copy? CP 25! Grab the boat before they get too far! Come back CP25!" and then the radio fizzles into silence. The raft turns a corner where the beginnings of the warehouse can be seen. There is a metal arch that takes raptor containment boxes over the river from the left to the right, putting them into the raptor containment building. A box is stuck in place, hanging over the river. High walls with a gate from which the boxes connect and the raptors are extracted. Two boxes and Timmy’s goggles, and sometimes guns next to a high wall where the raptors are caged are also visible. The crate begins to wobble and cry out loudly. There is a sign on it that says "Danger! Live Raptor! Stand Clear!" The raft passes underneath the crate just as it drops, stopping just above guest's heads, with a raptor scream ensuing. The boat enters the warehouse, and passes a little control center where behind glass windows some TV sets can be seen. Some aren't working but one has the face of a man talking. "There's a boat off course. We need to catch those people." Another voice enters saying "Emergency, evacuate, catch that boat at the top of the hill." And the raft begins to climb a long lift hill. Crates, stacks of boxes and two fans can be seen. The raft climbs up into a dark corridor. Metal framed fences are around the guets. The silhouette of a raptor also runs by. To the left, the cry of a raptor can be heard as it bursts out towards the raft, and hitting the electrified fence, snarling and roaring. The raft continues to climb and passes another control room where the glass is broken. A raptor jumps out from the darkness onto the console and reaches for guets, snarling. There are roars, hisses, sirens all wailing. The boat continues into darkness and then drops down about 10 feet into another area where there is nothing, but silence. The familiar high pitched squeal and the purr of a dilophosaur is then heard. A roar and a crunch is heard as three large gashes are ripped into the wall with a JP symbol in a circle printed on it. Through the hole, woods can be seen. The raft continuse forward and around another bend. Many tanks are surrounding the raft. Then, dilophosaurs pop out from the tanks, one from each side, shaking their frills and squirting venom at guests. The raft continues on to a large area where more tanks and pipes all crushed and bursting with water can be seen. The raft continues on where a pounding can be heard ahead. From the darkness, the head of a T. Rex pops out, roaring. It walks out to the brink and roars some more. The raft continues forward up to the T-rex. The T-rex roars once more, lifting and lowering its head. The raft draws closer and closer. The T-rex rears its head back, and then reaches down at the boat just as it plunges nearly 90 degrees straight down into a full on splash into the lagoon. There is a flash here; which is when they take the guest's picture. The raft comes around another corner and returns to the exit, right behind the loading dock, where the guests exit. The exit leads to a wall of TV's in the building guests enter each showing different boats. This is where they can view or buy their ride photos. The exit leads to the gift shop with many Jurassic Park themed souvenirs. At the exit is a sign that says "and this completes your tranquil journey through the world of the dinosaurs." The guests then return back into the Jurassic Park area.