Situated along the sprawling Parkway in Pigeon Forge, TN, the Jurassic Jungle Boat Ride is a standalone, indoor 700,000-cubic-foot animatronic dinosaur-filled boat ride. The slow-moving, 10-minute boat ride takes riders on a meandering journey through a rocky jungle filled with dinosaurs and other Cretaceous creatures. There are no drops or spray effects, so riders do not get wet.
As of this posting, the boat ride costs about $21 to ride (tax included). Lower-tiered pricing is available for kids under 12.
The boat ride’s show building has a respectable presence on the main strip. The building is adorned with a “Now Open” sign, which suggests the ride is new despite having opened in 2008. A cutout in the large show building gives passing motorists and pedestrians a look into the intricate rockwork and a few of the many animatronic dinosaurs.
I only had an hour before the ride closed for the day, and I was worried the line might be too long. When I pulled into the parking lot, I noticed what appeared to be a few people waiting in line.
But as I approached the loading dock, I realized that the people waiting in line were not people but mannequins.
I’ll admit that it’s a clever tactic — one that I don’t think I’ve ever seen before. In reality, there was only one other group on the ride (as far as I could tell).
The ride itself was surprisingly rough — the boats are fixed to a track rather than free-floating.
The ride begins with a jarring, siren-like sound as you travel back in time to the Jurassic era.
While the animatronics may not be of the same quality as those at Universal park, there are numerous of them scattered throughout the ride.
I didn’t keep count, but there were few moments on the ride when I couldn’t see at least one dino.
Even above me.
The lighting changes from scene to scene, changing to a blood-like red in this scene where a velociraptor comes face-to-face with a triceratops.
Although the quality may have been on the lower end of the spectrum, there were few moments where there were not at least two dinosaurs in plain sight.
The sound effects were…not great (see the video at the end of this review).
The dim, moody lighting worked better than the bright spotlights, which accentuated the lower-quality makeup of the animatronics.
As seen above, the golden lighting scheme made the animatronics look slightly more realistic and the show scene as a whole more cinematic.
Seen above is a Dilophosaurus dinosaur, popularized as the “spitting” dinosaur in the original Jurassic Park film.
It wouldn’t be a Jurassic-themed ride without multiple appearances from T-rex, so the ride met my expectations in that regard.
Ten minutes later, our boat inched back to the loading station. The ride certainly felt like it lasted for 10 minutes.
Watch an on-ride POV video of the Jurassic Jungle Boat Ride below:
Should you spend $20+ on the Jurassic Jungle Boat Ride? If you’re a fan of dinosaurs and low-budget, campy indoor boat rides, Jurassic Jungle Boat Ride may be worth the splurge. Young kids may find the loud noises and scarier dinosaurs unsettling, and older kids may find the ride boring. However, hardcore dinosaur fans will likely enjoy seeing all the dinosaur animatronics (I would have enjoyed it as a child).
Helpful information on the Jurassic Jungle Boat Ride website is sparse, but it does have a number to call (in my case, no one answered).
Have you ridden the Jurassic Jungle Boat Ride in Pigeon Forge? Let us know what you thought of the ride in the comments section below.