A trail of 50 life-sized animatronic dinosaurs has opened its doors to the Bristol public as planned today (Saturday, October 15) despite a fire on site earlier this week. Reminiscent of something out of Jurassic Park, visitors will walk a "perilous path" through the Ashton Court Estate, coming face-to-face with the noisy prehistoric beasts in and amongst the trees.
However, visitors have been advised to avoid driving to the event if they can help it, following reports of queues earlier today. Organisers posted on Facebook this afternoon: "PARKING NOTICE: Ashton Court Estate has limited parking for about 150 cars.
"We clearly state on our website that we are an environmentally friendly event and prefer that our visitors use public transport or get dropped off and picked up if possible. We run the event, we are not responsible for Ashton Court Estate or for parking.
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"If you must drive, then please plan ahead and find alternative parking options otherwise you will be stuck in traffic waiting to park. If you are late due to parking or traffic, don't worry, we will still allow you to enter. Thank you."
It advises on its website that people travelling by bus can take the X4 or number 8 buses from the city centre if they are happy to walk about 10 minutes at the other end. The exhibition runs from today until Sunday, October 30 - except for October 17 and 18 when it will not be open to the public.
Describing what people can expect, organisers say: "Each dinosaur has robotic movements which include arms moving up and down, tails swaying side-to-side, heads moving up and down, eyes blinking, jaws opening wide with realistic roaring sound effects.
"This mesmerising experience is as educational as it is entertaining and the perfect day out for children and adults. Visitors will walk a perilous path through grasslands and woodlands and come face-to-face with snarling, roaring and hissing dinosaurs amongst the trees, bushes and woods."
Ticket prices are listed below:
Online Prices
Adult ￡12.50
Child ￡10.50
Concession ￡10.50
Group Ticket ￡9.50
Family Ticket ￡42.00
On the door prices
Adult ￡14.00
Child ￡12.00
Concession ￡12.00
Group Ticket ￡11.00
Family Ticket ￡48.00
Children aged two or younger go free and do not need a ticket. There are no cloakroom facilities at the venue, so visitors will not be able to store bags, buggies or bikes, and organisers have also advised: "Children’s bikes, scooters and skates are not permitted inside the event. Only guide dogs are allowed, no other pets are permitted onsite."
The exhibition hit something of a bump in the road before its opening when one of its 50 dinosaurs went up in flames earlier this week. A spokesperson for Avon Fire and Rescue Service said: "Firefighters from Bedminster and Temple were called to reports of a fire at Ashton Court just before 11am.
"On arrival, crews found a diplodocus alight. A part of the dinosaur display at Ashton Court, the diplodocus was 10 metres long and six metres tall.
"Firefighters used one high-pressure hose reel to extinguish the dinosaur blaze. The cause of the fire is thought to have been accidental ignition."
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