Moab Giants Dinosaur Park & Museum in Moab, Utah, in the USA

Utah in the USA is rich with discoveries of dinosaurs who roamed the area extensively in prehistoric times, and for dinosaur lovers, Moab Giants, located on the outskirts of the town of Moab, is a thrilling discovery! Deceptively larger than it looks from the passing highway, this theme park is set amongst the incredible rocky entrances to some of Utah’s most famous national parks (check out those red mountains behind!), and features enough activities to fill several hours, if not an entire day.

3D Theatre

The perfect place to start your visit to Moab Giants, the 3D Theatre explores the Earth’s history with a selection of 3D films. Taking a look at what it was like when dinosaurs ruled the Earth, or how the universe was created via the Big Bang Theory, guests put on their 3D glasses and step inside the story. We found the theatre to be a great introduction to the park, reminding us about our world’s extensive history long before man set foot on this planet. It was a wonderful stepping stone to discovering even more exciting facts throughout the rest of our visit.

Walk with the dinosaurs on the Dinosaur Trail

The 800m Dinosaur Trail at Moab Giants brings the dinosaurs back to the present, with an outdoor desert hike in the midst of life-sized giants and the footprints they have left behind. Unlike most museums, guests are invited to get up close to these prehistoric creatures and pose with them along their walk. Not only does this make for some hilarious photo opportunities, but it gives you a real sense of just how awe-inspiring the dinosaurs were when they were alive. Standing below a towering T-Rex is a sobering experience, and to think that he was just one of the giants who called this area of the world home is truly fascinating!

5D Prehistoric Aquarium

Definitely our favourite attraction at Moab Giants, we were left speechless by the 5D Prehistoric Aquarium that brings Paleolithic aquatic creatures back to life in an incredible (and slightly daunting) series of exhibits! Not for the easily-scared, this guided tour takes visitors through an aquarium housing aquatic dinosaurs brought to life in full 3D. Walking from tank to tank and hearing about each of the creatures ‘living’ inside feels like a real walk through any other aquarium you’ve visited; with the major difference being these animals are HUGE and no longer swim our oceans (we hope!). This is an amazing dinosaur encounter that you’ll be hard-pressed to top anywhere else!

Moab Giants Dinosaur Museum

The fully interactive dinosaur museum at Moab Giants is a dinosaur enthusiast’s paradise. Bringing dinosaurs to life with cutting-edge technology, the museum is an opportunity to explore actual found dinosaur footprints up close and learn more about prehistoric remains found in the state of Utah. We spent close to an hour in this section of the park alone, as the kids were just fascinated by the short films, interactive displays, and games (many rounds of dinosaur tic tac toe were played!).

Mini Dig Site and Dino Playground

Perhaps the cutest section of the Moab Giants park, the Mini Dig Site and Dino Playground provides some down time for parents whilst the kids have a play. The kids had a ball uncovering dinosaur fossils in the sand with the excavating tools found in the dig site areas (there are two within the park), and loved the themed play equipment of the playground. A highlight was posing for a pic inside the spiky mouth of a T-Rex. Keep an eye out for little desert lizards sunning themselves in this area – they are well camouflaged and easy to step on, but oh so adorable!

Moab Giants’ Dinosaur Shop and Café

Even in the cooler months, this area of the USA is dry and can get quite warm in the sun. Visiting in early May (late Spring), a visit to the Giants Café was well needed after a trek along the Dinosaur Trail and we found that it offered a wide selection of snacks and drinks. This was the perfect opportunity for us to take a break before we continued our 4 hour drive on to Salt Lake City.

Of course, no visit to Moab Giants would be complete without a stop at the dinosaur shop, where we browsed the dinosaur books and prehistoric products in air conditioned comfort, and grabbed our obligatory postcards to commemorate our visit before leaving.

Moab Giants is located just off the US 191, at 112 West SR-313, in Moab, Utah. The park is open 11 months of the year (closed in January), and is only open weekends and holidays in November and February. Admission fees do apply, however children are admitted free on their birthdays! To find out more, and to plan your visit, check out http://moabgiants.com/.

*The writer was a guest of Moab Area Travel Council. Visit: www.discovermoab.com*

We think the whole of Utah rates a special mention for your family travel bucketlist! Utah is home to 5 incredible National Parks (plus many state parks) that feature an awe-inspiring collection of canyons, rock formations and wildlife that must be seen to be believed. Take a read of our full review of Moab for more things to do in this impressive area of the USA, including exploring two National Parks (Canyonlands and Arches), as well as Dead Horse Point State Park.

While you are here, check out our full Salt Lake City, Utah, review to find out why you should add this stunning city to your Family Travel Bucketlist.