Dinosaurs Unleashed – The Eden Project
The Eden Project is one of those attractions that I had heard that if I were in Cornwall was a must-visit place to go. So when we heard that there summer holiday fun was Dinosaurs Unleashed it seemed a sure thing. Of course I love dinosaurs and our 6 year old had been studying them at school too. The full exhibition is on until Tuesday 2nd September 2014.
Before we even got from the car park there were signs about telling us about the lost dinosaur. When we arrived the boys were given an adventure journal where they could record their adventures. It had activities and things to find in it; I was really impressed with my youngest’s ability to visually match the things we were looking for.
At Base Camp we discovered our explorer names, as well as tying knots and reading about inspirational explorers and their achievements. We learnt about plants and how fragile life is. How some plants are good to help sustain life and others are poisonous. We later returned to the base camp and helped to collect fire wood for a real fire. The staff encouraged the boys then to roll down the big hill (which is one the 50things list).
The Crater of the Tyrant King
Here there was a lot of information to read. I have to admit I had trouble slowing the boys down enough to let my husband try to absorb as much as possible. They did like finding things in their adventure journals, but even still there was a lot. Of course they could hear the T-Rex and were keen to find him. They were not at all scared but it is not the first time they have come face-to-face with a dinosaur having been to The Natural History Museum in London a couple of times before. The detail where it had started to eat the Triceratops is really quite incredible.
The Dig Pit
This was an amazing activity for the whole family (there was a smaller pit for the under 5s) – and my husband certainly had a good time. All the materials required were provided (a geological hammer, googles and brush).It is was a really great hands-on way of teaching the children about fossil hunting and how we discovered more about dinosaurs. There’s a webcam picture of how it is progressing each day, and my husband would love to go back again later on to see how it has progressed (as we went on day 2 of the exhibition). The clothes did get really dusty but nothing that didn’t just brush off (eventually).
The Core Building
In here there was the dinosaur exhibition. This had many interesting facts about what scientists think about dinosaurs. There were fossils of a real dinosaur eggs, a fossilised brain, a whole skeleton and a real T-Rex tooth. There was plenty to keep the children occupied here, such as the Design-a-saur where children could make their own dinosaur picture (from templates or their imagination) and pin it on the wall.
Other things we liked at The Eden Project
I have to admit the Biomes were really interesting for us adults but think they were a bit boring for the youngsters. Not to mention that they found them too hot. I think if we were to do it again we would leave The Rain Forest until last, and then go home, as it really did wipe them out. The Story-teller in the Mediterranean Biome was fantastic. We loved the Bare foot trail (especially our Sensory Seeker). The Core had some great inventions inside – I am particularly interested in one about Sensory Processing Disorder and was given a card to contact the inventor. The WEEE man – showing our children about what electrical and electronic equipment is just wasted. We also got some seeds to help teach the children how to grow their own food.
Also running is a chance to win an Asus Transformer Book T100 2-in-1, in the Twitter Photo Competition. Just tweet #EdenPhotoComp with your best photo.
Tips for visiting The Eden Project as a Family
In hind-sight we should have seen the dinosaurs in the middle of the day to help the youngest cope. He has Sensory Processing Disorder and it became a bit much. I advise that you take plenty of water with you – especially if you are intending on going in the Rain Forest Biome. It is cheapest to walk to The Eden Project (even cheaper than buying online). Do not be tempted to park by the houses nearby and walk as the residents are not happy about this. Do bear in mind that The Eden Project is a charity and that your entry price is going back into helping it grow and develop. Next time we would take a picnic, and there are plenty of places to eat. If you do not fancy carrying food around there are plenty of places to eat, and the food looked delicious. Our ticket allowed us to return for free for the next 12 months too. There was plenty to do and we were there for hours (it was open until 8pm when we went). Plan your day – there’s times of sightings of the Lost Dinosaur – we ended up missing this as we decided to go for the late night time but had to go as the youngest was no longer able to cope. Take a proper camera or battery pack – both our iPhones completely drained of battery before we were ready to stop taking photographs. We bought the adult guide book, but saw later that there was a children’s edition that we felt was much better to determine where best to go for the children.
The Eden Project is easily accessible from Coombe Mill – please read what we thought about our morning there.
This is not a sponsored post. We paid full-price to visit The Eden Project which allows free returns for 12 months. All words and opinions are my own.