Take a ride back in time on Dinosaur, or as it used to be called, Countdown to Extinction. Board a CTX Time Rover for a trip back in time to bring back a Iguanodon from the past to save it from extinction. But don’t worry, you’ll be back before the big meteor hits and kills all life off the face of the earth. Promise.
Your job if you choose to accept it is to bring back to the present a real-life Iguanodon. Don’t worry that there are just 60 seconds left until all life comes to an end. What could possibly go wrong?
Dino Institute
Photo by Express Monorail
The Preshow
Disney has great preshows and this has to be one of the more innovative. The line weaves through the Dino Institute which has a “planetarium” looking rotunda and features real dinosaur remains. Next guests go into the room where the preshow video is shown.
In the video guests are shown the Time Rover that will take them on a relaxing tour of the Cretaceous period. The relaxing tour gets hijacked and instead you are sent to back in time just before the meteor that kills all of the dinosaurs hits the earth. Your goal is to tag and bring back an Iguanodon.
The Attraction
After the film you enter a big room where you are loaded into your Time Rover. You proceed into the time travel tunnel and are launched back in time. (There might be a real old TV show in there somewhere.)
Your CTX Time Rover takes the roughest roads imaginable through the swamps. Along the way you run into a Styracosaurus, a Alioramus a Parasaurolophus and even a Raptor along with other both aggressive and non-aggressive dinosaurs. But no Iguanodon.
The CTX Time Rover speeds and jerks and finally just before the little rock hits the big rock you return to the present and everything is just fine.
The Postshow
Not much of a post show, just the requisite souvenir shop.
Fun Facts
Here are some interesting tidbits –
- The ride was sponsored by McDonald’s from 1998 to 2008.
- There are three pipes running through the loading area. One red, one yellow and one white. The chemical equations listed on the pipes are for ketchup, mustard and mayonnaise.
- Yes, Dr. Seeker is David Hodges (real name Wallace Langham) from CSI:Crime Scene Investigation.
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History
This attraction first opened when Disney Animal Kingdom first opened in April of 1998.
Dad’s Ride Information Table
Dinosaur – Countdown to Extinction |
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| Description: Dark ride to the past | ||||||||||||
| Height Requirement – 40 inches | FASTPASS:YES | Length of Ride: 3 minutes | ||||||||||
| Type of ride: Independent Vehicle | ||||||||||||
Dad’s Ratings
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Are You Tall Enough?
Who want to go on Dinosaur? Are they tall enough? There is a height requirement of 40 inches to ride.
Dad’s Disney World Height Requirements page
Dad also has a cool little tool to measure the kids as they grow and keep track of when they are tall enough to ride the rides. I call it Dad’s Are You Tall Enough To Ride?…
Every ride at WDW is on this chart. Mount it on the wall and keep track of the kids while they grow.
Get Dad’s Are You Tall Enough to Ride?…
The Fine Print
Here’s some small print information
- Closed Captioning and Assistive Listening devices are available at Guest Relations
- Guest must transfer from a wheelchair, motorized scooter or ECV to enjoy this attraction.
- If you have high blood pressure, heart, back or neck problems, if you are subject to motion sickness you probably should not ride this ride.
Dad’s Bottom Line
Until Expedition Everest opened this was the only thrill ride in Animal Kingdom. This is a bumpy ride. If you are physically able to ride, try it at least once.
