TAKE YOUR CLASS BACK IN TIME!

Ignite your pupils’ imaginations

“The depth and detail is impressive… It’s impossible to come away without learning a great deal about the world of the dinosaurs.” Palaeontologist Dr Dave Hone’s review for The Guardian

“Superb! Entertaining and loads of brilliant science – the ‘must-see’ of the year!” Chris Packham, naturalist

Dinosaurs in the Wild is an exhilarating live-action adventure in which you and your class travel back in time to witness living dinosaurs and experience what life was really like 67 million years ago.

You’ll be transported back to our research station, TimeBase 67, to see scientists at work as they study dinosaurs. Pupils can ask questions as they explore the laboratories there, and the experience culminates with a 360-degree view of these majestic creatures in their natural environment.

This immersive and interactive voyage of discovery promises to enthral your pupils, firing up their imaginations as fascinating scientific insights are brought to life right before their very eyes.

If you can’t find the information you need below don’t hesitate to contact us on [email protected]

“It was the best day ever!”

Hear what some of our brave young visitors had to say about their recent journey to the deep past and their encounters with living dinosaurs. 

 

 

Teaching Resources

Our curriculum-linked resources are designed to support your English and Science lessons before and after the experience. Prepare pupils for this unique educational trip with Science resources on animal adaptation and classification. Follow up the visit with our English creative writing resources, which challenge pupils to bring their experience to life.

ENGLISH & SCIENCE RESOURCES

Booking

Enjoy a special ticket price of only £12 per pupil*, as well as free tickets for accompanying teachers (one per five pupils in primary; and one per 10 pupils in secondary). To book tickets now or reserve spaces for up to four weeks please call 0800 8527244.

*Please note that this special ticket price is valid for weekday visits only, and isn’t available for visits during weekends or school holidays.

 

Testimonials

“Totally interactive and there were many practical activities to take part in… The show is perfectly tailored to the new national curriculum and there were plenty of cross curricular links. In all we had a fantastic time… Can we come again please?”

The staff and children of Victoria Park Primary Academy, Smethwick, West Midlands

“The look of astonishment and amazement – my class still think it’s real, they really do!”

Teacher, Hazlehurst Primary School 

“Fantastic experience… It far exceeded my expectations”

Teacher, St Johns Primary Academy, Stafford

“WOW! What an adventure Year One had today. Travelling 67 million years back in time with . A little bit scary, but magical!”

Milbrook Primary

“It was superbly well organised – from the moment we got here we were greeted on the coach. Everyone has been just fantastic seeing us around, all very professionally done – I really believed they were real scientists, to be honest!” 

Teacher, Bryn Heydd Primary School

“I can’t recommend a visit to Dinosaurs in the Wild enough. From the offset the staff were brilliant and accommodating in making our visit an amazing spectacle for our children. Due to our school being for pupils with a range of special needs, the staff ensured that all allowances and adjustments were made to ensure the children were comfortable. This resulted in an outstanding experience for our school” 

Pupil Responses:

“I loved it!”

“Scary but enjoyable!”

“A great adventure”

“Was it really real?”

“The end was scary”

“Did we really go back in time?”

Deputy Head Teacher, Lakeside School Liverpool, Witherslack Group 

Essential Information for Schools

We’ve compiled some additional education-focused FAQs below that detail everything you need to know before, during and after your visit.

Please note that while the duration of the experience itself is approximately 70 minutes, we do recommend that you allow a minimum of 90 minutes in total for entry and exit into the building. We also request that educational groups arrive 30 minutes before their scheduled visits, to ensure timely entry.

In addition, you can view our ‘Essential risk assessment information for schools’ document via the link below, to help you complete your paperwork.

You’ll also find plenty of relevant information about the experience in our general FAQs, so be sure to take a look at those, too.

 

Essential risk assessment information for schools

Before your visit

  • Admission costs

    For educational groups, tickets cost £12.00 per person (this price applies to both teacher and pupil tickets). Primary school teachers accompanying groups are entitled to one free ticket for every five pupils and Secondary school teachers accompanying groups are entitled to one free ticket for every 10 pupils.

  • Time-slots

    When making your reservation, you’ll be asked to book a specific time-slot. Educational groups should arrive at the venue 30 minutes ahead of their allocated time-slots.

  • Age groups

    The experience is ideal for KS2 (upper Primary) pupils, and for this age group we will provide a full education pack for you to use before and after your visit.

    KS3 (lower Secondary) students will also enjoy and get a lot out of the experience.

    Groups of younger pupils – KS1 are always welcome, but we do recommend a higher adult to pupil ratio in these instances, in case some children find the experience unsettling.

    Please note that children aged 15 and under at the time of visiting the experience must be accompanied by an adult aged 18 years or above.

  • Audio/visual considerations

    There are flashing lights during the time travel sequence, and the experience features very loud noises from our living dinosaurs, which look and sound extremely real. At times, you’ll be surrounded by them, and like all dinosaurs, they occasionally engage in battle. Some younger pupils may find it loud and a little unsettling, so we do suggest that teachers exercise discretion.

    There’s also an autopsy on a huge Pachycephalosaurus in one of our laboratories.

  • Group size

    Groups of all types and sizes are more than welcome to experience Dinosaurs in the Wild.

    Please ensure your group meets the adult to pupil ratio for your school.

  • Supervision and code of conduct

    For health and safety reasons, you must supervise your pupils at all times. Pupils’ behaviour is the responsibility of the adult supervisors. Any school group which negatively affects the enjoyment or safety of other pupils or staff, may be asked to leave.

  • Booking and cancellation policy

    When contacting our dedicated ticket vendors to make your booking, please have the following information to hand:

    *your preferred date and time of visit (including alternatives, in case a time-slot is fully booked)

    *the number of children and accompanying adults visiting the experience

    *details of any special access requirements

    After you’ve made your reservation, you’ll have up to four weeks prior to the day you’re attending to either confirm the booking (via payment in full) or to cancel it. Sadly, we’re unable to hold reservations beyond this deadline.

    If you need to make an amendment to your booking after it’s been paid for and confirmed, please contact [email protected] with your reference number, your reasons for needing to change your reservation, and your preferred new date and time-slot.

    Wherever possible, we’ll try to accommodate your request. However, please note that this might not always be possible, especially during popular time-slots. Unfortunately, we’re unable to cancel and refund an existing booking.

  • Risk assessments

    Download our Essential risk assessment information for schools, which will help you complete your own risk assessment paperwork.

  • Accessibility

    Both the venue and the experience are suitable for wheelchair users and are fully accessible.

    Disabled and carer tickets within a school group can be purchased at the same time as the group ticket.

  • Is the experience suitable for autistic pupils?

    Given that each child is unique, we’re conscious that the show isn’t suitable for all children. 

    It does feature very loud noises from our dinosaurs, and there are flashing lights during the time travel element. The dinosaurs also look and sound very real, so the perception of danger may cause anxiety. Therefore, we strongly recommend that you exercise teacher and parental discretion according to your child’s individual sensitivities.

    Having said that, we’ve also had hundreds of children with autism visit the experience who have thoroughly enjoyed it.

    The Deputy Head Teacher from Lakeside School Liverpool – a Witherslack Group special needs school that visited recently – summed up the experience as follows:

    “I can’t recommend a visit to Dinosaurs in the Wild enough. From the offset, the staff were brilliant and accommodating in making our visit an amazing spectacle for our children. Due to our school being for pupils with a range of special needs, the staff ensured that all allowances and adjustments were made to ensure the children were comfortable. This resulted in an outstanding experience for our school.”

     Pupils’ responses included, “I loved it!”, “Scary but enjoyable!”, and “Did we really go back in time?”.

    Our venue staff are also experienced in helping children with special needs to enjoy the experience – and are always happy to talk to teachers in advance of entering the show. If you do decide to bring an autistic child to Dinosaurs in the Wild, please let a steward know when you arrive – a member of our management team will come and chat to you before you go through the experience, to help you get the most out of your visit.

    In addition, if the use of earphones usually helps your autistic pupil with loud noises, we do recommend that you bring a pair with you for them to use.

  • Pre-visit lessons

    Prepare your pupils for their prehistoric world experience with a pre-visit lesson.

    English and Science Teaching Resources

    They include teacher notes and activity sheets for a KS2 English and Science lesson.

    There are also post-visit lessons. Please see the ‘After your visit’ section of this page for details.

     

On the day of your visit

  • Getting there

    Our London venue is located on Greenwich Peninsula, which is easy to get to by coach, car, tube, train or boat.

    By tube/train – Jubilee line to North Greenwich station (2 minutes from Canary Wharf, 8 minutes from London Bridge 11 minutes from Waterloo Station, and 18 minutes from Bond Street). 
    By road – Easy access from North and South. A102 from both directions via the Blackwell Tunnel. 
    By boat – Regular service from Canary Wharf, Tower Bridge, the London Eye and other piers. Alight at North Greenwich pier.

    A map that shows where Greenwich Peninsula is located in London can be found here.

    We’re located on West Parkside (near junction with John Harrison Way), Greenwich Peninsula, London SE10 0BE. It is between a 4-to-10-minute walk from the various transport arrival points to the venue, which is located on West Parkside, close to The Pilot Greenwich pub – please refer to the map below, which shows where we are on Greenwich Peninsula in relation to other local landmarks, such as the O2:

    • Dinosaurs in the Wild is a 10-minute walk from North Greenwich tube station, which is on the Jubilee Line.

    • We can also be found here using Google Maps. Alternatively, you can find us using the search term ‘Dinosaurs in the Wild’ if you have the Google Maps app on your smartphone.

    • When leaving the station, exit towards the O2 and then take a right down East Parkside when you see Wagamama.

    • If you’d rather take a bus instead of walking to the venue, leave North Greenwich Tube station using the bus station exit. The following bus routes leave from bus stops A-C: A (161, 472), B (108, 422, 486) and C (129, 132), and are all one stop to the Dinosaurs in the Wild location.

    The Emirates Air Line station is also only a few minutes away, and MBNA Thames Clipper boats arrive at North Greenwich Pier, which is about 10 minutes by foot away from the venue. Guests who use these services to get to Greenwich Peninsula are eligible for a 10% discount off their entry to Dinosaurs in the Wild if buying tickets on the day of their visit, by simply presenting their tickets at the Dinosaurs in the Wild box office. Joint Thames Clipper and Dinosaurs in the Wild tickets can also be purchased here.

  • Entrance

    Follow the signs for the main entrance and you’ll see the Dinosaurs in the Wild foyer as you arrive.

  • Parking

    Please note that there is no parking at our London venue, but there is an NCP car park nearby, in addition to parking at the O2.

  • Cloakrooms

    A cloakroom is available for storing coats and bags.

    We do recommend that pupils leave bags on your coach or in your classroom, where possible, so as to avoid possible queues at the cloakroom. Keeping bags outside of the venue will also help to avoid waiting in line for the bag searches that take place on arrival.

  • Lost property

    Should anything get lost during your trip, please contact a member of staff, who’ll be able to assist you.

  • How the experience is structured

    The Dinosaurs in the Wild experience is a combination of ride, show and tour – an exhilarating mix of theme park and theatre, combined with the very latest scientific knowledge about dinosaurs. The experience features Dinosaurs in the Wild personnel, who’ll be in character, circulating among students, providing extra information about specific parts of the experience. All our staff who have direct contact with children will have full Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks.

    You’ll travel back 67 million years by time machine, then ride across Cretaceous plains teeming with herds of dinosaurs to reach TimeBase 67, our incredible scientific research station. You’ll tour the laboratories with your expert guide, see the extraordinary work that our Chronotex scientists are undertaking, and experience thrilling views of the gigantic and noisy creatures that inhabit the environment surrounding TimeBase 67.

  • Eating areas

    Food and drink are not permitted inside the experience itself. However, there’s a stand in the foyer where visitors can buy light snacks, as well as hot and cold drinks.

    Please note that depending on the timing and the number of schools visiting on any given day, your group should be able to sit on the carpet in the Dinosaurs in the Wild foyer and eat their packed lunches there. However, if this is something that your school group will require, you’ll need to email us in advance at [email protected], stating the date/time of your attendance, so that we can confirm that we can accommodate your request.

    There are also plenty of places to buy food and drink near to our London venue, as it’s a short walk from the O2, where there’s a wide range of restaurants that cater for most diets, and vegetarian, vegan or gluten-free options.

  • Toilets

    There are no toilets within the experience itself, so we recommend that you visit the venue’s facilities prior to entry.

    If one of your pupils requires access to the facilities during the experience for medical reasons, speak to the guide escorting your tour, and they’ll be able to request that a member of our staff takes your pupil (escorted by one of your teachers) to the toilets. However, they may not be able to re-join your party again or complete the experience when they return, depending on the point at which they leave the tour.

  • Photography and filming

    We encourage visitors to take photos as mementos of their incredible journey to TimeBase 67. However, to avoid antagonising the dinosaurs, flash photography isn’t permitted!

    Please note that tripods aren’t allowed in the experience, and pre-approval is required for professional photography and recording, which will be at the discretion of on-site staff.

  • Running late?

    It’s important that you arrive in the Dinosaurs in the Wild foyer in advance of your time-slot. For larger school groups, we recommend arriving 30 minutes ahead of your ticket time.

    If you’re running late, we’ll do our absolute best to get you into the experience as soon as feasible, but this may not be the next time-slot if we’re very busy and therefore may require waiting quite some time.

    If you’ve booked the last time-slot of the day and you arrive late, you won’t have access to the experience or your time might be limited.

After your visit

  • Post-visit lesson

    Keep your pupils immersed in their prehistoric world experience with a post-visit lesson.

    English and Science Teaching Resources

    They include teacher notes and activity sheets for a KS2 English and Science lesson.

    There are also pre-visit lessons – please refer to the ‘Before your visit’ section above for details.