Dinosaur Ridge
Dinosaur Ridge
4
Historic SitesAmusement & Theme ParksPoints of Interest & Landmarks
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
This gem is the site of numerous dinosaur tracks and fossils from the Cretaceous and Jurassic periods. Explore the outdoor museum where fossils remain in situ, visit the indoor exhibition hall, and treat children to free fossil replica digging in two play areas at the Main Visitor Center. The guided bus tour is highly recommended; or walk and read interpretive signs, download an audio tour, or schedule an in-depth guided walking tour with a geologist. A well-stocked Gift Shop offers fun souvenirs for all ages. Plan for outdoor weather with comfortable walking shoes and drinking water.
Duration: 1-2 hours
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See what travelers are saying
- Heidi WPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania103 contributionsGreat walking tour if you are interested in dinosaursThis was a fascinating walking tour, with many dinosaur footprints visible. I downloaded the audio walking tour, which was enjoyable, but probably not essential as the signage was very good. If you are interested in dinosaurs, I highly recommend Dinosaur Ridge. If you aren’t, this may be boring to you because the majority of the sights are dinosaur related.Visited September 2023Traveled as a coupleWritten October 6, 2023
- 906UPEhDetroit, Michigan60 contributionsWorth a quick stop if you're already in the areaWe were already at Red Rocks, so we walked down the main parkway and stopped at Dinosaur Ridge before leaving. We Ubered otherwise we would have drove down and parked at the visitors center. It looks like a long, steep walk around the ridge, but it wasn't that bad even though we were tired from hiking Red Rocks. The path is paved and there are stops along the way with a couple of dinosaur tracks. However, if we'd drove, we likely would start at the Discovery Center and walk a short way up to the main wall of tracks and call it good. That's the main attraction which is on the back side of the hill from Red Rocks. I'm glad we stopped though. It was interesting and we were already so close.Visited October 2023Traveled as a coupleWritten October 24, 2023
- John MNew York City, New York738 contributionsWorth a visitWho doesn't love dinosaurs? This is a cool spot to observe preserved dinosaur tracks just outside of Denver. There is not much to it, so it is best done jointly with something else - maybe a trip to Red Rocks.Visited June 2024Traveled as a coupleWritten June 23, 2024
- desifotoAshland, Wisconsin1,042 contributionsSo coolIf you want to see dinosaur tracks this place is cool. It’s free if you walk the whole trail. It’s all on a road. You can take a shuttle tour of you wanted that you have to pay for. The have a visitor center and gift shop. There are picnic tables at the visitor center.Visited July 2024Traveled with familyWritten July 3, 2024
- muzique1960Woodridge, Illinois1,003 contributionsHistorical and amazing place to see! Lots to learn! Great tour guides!Amazing, historic place. Great for kids, adults, school groups - bring friends and have a birthday party, learning about the dinosaurs. There are picnic tables and great tour guides for a tour of Dinosaur Ridge and to explain what is in the Exhibition Hall. Fabulous place - I learned so much! The tours are not meant for young children - they need to be able to listen and learn.Visited August 2024Traveled soloWritten August 15, 2024
- dean oCastle Rock, Colorado14 contributionsInteresting for Dino lovers.This was a place we thought the grandkids would like as they are 2 & 4 YO and they are into dinosaurs in a big way. I would say they were a bit too young to appreciate this exhibit. They were expecting to see more dinosaurs, real or fake, and the real attraction is all the dinosaur footprints on the ground. I thought it was pretty interesting and I think older kids might like it more if they are into dinosaurs. It's free, so you can't complain too much about it and I think it is worth seeing once,, if you are into things like that. The girl at the desk, in the main building, was on her phone the whole time we were there and she didn't say a word to us about the exhibit or what things there were to see, so we just walked around and found our way to everything on our own. Things aren't very well maked so you have to snoop around to see things,Visited August 2024Traveled with familyWritten August 18, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.0
551 reviews
Excellent
266
Very good
190
Average
70
Poor
14
Terrible
11
Krishnatina
1 contribution
Nov 2020
It all started with ashleigh selling us tickets and demanding I wear those disposable masks that end up in landfills or the ocean instead of my scarf , making it a point to radio her friend to make sure I was harassed even more until we got off the bus and left . They’re super unprofessional and rude and don’t know how to speak to anyone. Meanwhile the guy at the museum is super professional and chill .
Written November 3, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
stijntailly
Waregem, Belgium299 contributions
Sep 2019
Nice little area near Denver with a couple of hiking and biking trails, and more importantly - and probably your main reason for coming here in the first place - lots of dinosaur history and dinosaur tracks for your enjoyment. There's a small, but rather uninteresting gift shop and possibly interesting (didn't visit) museum with a bunch of of fiberglass dinosaurs in the yard. The main drag along the ridgeline is an easy and paved path (it's actually a paved road for cars) along some plaques with info on what happened there a couple dozen million years ago. You can spy the Red Rocks area from this path. Locals that are into hiking can probably spend the better part of their day here, especially when connecting with the Red Rocks trails but occasional visitors should allot about one to two hours.
Written January 21, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ruthk191
Westlake, FL122 contributions
Sep 2022
What a hidden gem that is actually part of the National Park system. While there is no fee to walk around the ridge there is a fee for a guided tour which we opted to do. Ptaero-Don, our guide (they make everything about dinosaurs!) was a retired high school teacher, was very knowledgeable and informative. There were six (6) of us in our group and we had him all to ourselves.
As we drove up the ridge, Don pointed things out and kept up a steady stream of how the are was formed millions of years ago. We made various stops along the way starting with the largest amount of dino footprints in one area in the USA. What was even more interesting was the fact that decades ago people had carved out some of the footprints and fairly recently they had recovered one of them!
As we continued around the ridge, we learned that the first part was 100 million years old while the other side was even older. That was because of the way the ground was pushed up as the Rockies were forming. I could get into it more but you really should hear it for yourself.
There is an exhibit hall that we did not have time to explore since we had spent time at nearby Red Rocks amphitheater (see separate review) earlier in the day.
I hope to someday go back and take more time to explore.
As we drove up the ridge, Don pointed things out and kept up a steady stream of how the are was formed millions of years ago. We made various stops along the way starting with the largest amount of dino footprints in one area in the USA. What was even more interesting was the fact that decades ago people had carved out some of the footprints and fairly recently they had recovered one of them!
As we continued around the ridge, we learned that the first part was 100 million years old while the other side was even older. That was because of the way the ground was pushed up as the Rockies were forming. I could get into it more but you really should hear it for yourself.
There is an exhibit hall that we did not have time to explore since we had spent time at nearby Red Rocks amphitheater (see separate review) earlier in the day.
I hope to someday go back and take more time to explore.
Written October 5, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
chicag009
Chicago141 contributions
Jun 2021
This was a great spot to do some self exploring into the world of dinosaurs! The discovery center is very small and although it doesn't have much it does have some interesting items. Fascinating place! Great for families/kids. You can walk around for free. Tours are paid for (bus and walking tours) but are reasonably priced. You can also download a self guided tour (for a price) on your phone.
Written June 29, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mike_in_CO
Lakewood, CO212 contributions
Jul 2023 • Family
We had a great time, especially the kids. We live near by and have been here many times, but went on the bus tour as a special field trip with grandkids. The seven-month-old didn’t learn much, but both of the three year olds and the five year old were fascinated. Alice the tour guide was great with the kids, listened and answered patiently to all their questions (including “when do we get back on the bus?”). Toward the end the five year told told me “this was a great idea!” All three stops had something interesting. The small museum display was worth a few minutes, with a large fossilized bone kids can touch.
Written July 18, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
126Robert
Park Ridge, NJ132 contributions
May 2021
Pack up some bottled water, apply sunscreen and head over to Dinosaur Ridge for a fascinating experience. Located next to Red Rocks state park and only 20 minutes from downtown Denver, you can explore these dinosaur tracks and fossils by foot for a $15 guided bus tour. I took the bus tour and my tour guide was Michelle. Her enthusiasm and conversational nature kept young and old engaged. Her knowledge of dinosaurs and geology was impressive. After the tour, visit the Discovery Center to see more artifacts. BONUS: there is a colony of Prairie Dogs on the premises that the kids will enjoy watching and you may see some Elk passing through.
Written May 28, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Rosie G
Colorado Springs, CO13 contributions
Sep 2020 • Family
We did a bus tour with our 3yo and had a great time. Diane was a very knowledgeable guide. It was very hot the day we came so the bus tour was perfect as it’s a long walk for little ones up the ridge in hot weather. You can see more and at your pace walking but the bus tour afforded us comfort and kept our kid’s attention. Also fits in great if your kid is obsessed with Disney’s Dinosaur the movie as the tracks are Iguanadon like the key dino’s in that movie.
Written September 7, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Tour324036
12 contributions
Jun 2023 • Family
Can’t hear your guide in the bus partially because audio equipment did not work correctly plus it was under-powered.
Tour guide needs to talk louder at stops when you get off tour bus for closer look. The guide was nice but needed better equipment and a louder voice.
The buildings and grounds need to be cleaned up and better maintained. Bathrooms needed to be cleaned and upgraded. Porta potty needed to be serviced. Flood mitigation sandbags at bathrooms needed to be removed because there was no longer a flooding issue and they are a tripping hazard.
It’s an interesting place but various portions of the tour and facilities need attention especially for the amount they charge.
Tour guide needs to talk louder at stops when you get off tour bus for closer look. The guide was nice but needed better equipment and a louder voice.
The buildings and grounds need to be cleaned up and better maintained. Bathrooms needed to be cleaned and upgraded. Porta potty needed to be serviced. Flood mitigation sandbags at bathrooms needed to be removed because there was no longer a flooding issue and they are a tripping hazard.
It’s an interesting place but various portions of the tour and facilities need attention especially for the amount they charge.
Written July 1, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Redtigress79
Orlando, FL260 contributions
Jun 2023 • Couples
We went to a concert at Red Rocks and a fellow concert goer recommended us to visit this place. It was a fun and fascinating stop that only took 2 hours of our day. We took the van tour so that the guide could tell us about the dinosaurs. Our tour guide Megasaurus Megan was very nice and knowledgeable. We learned that the area used to be underwater and that the Stegosaurus was the most prevalent. This area has one of only two raptor tracks in the nation! If you are in to Geology or Dinos this place is a fun stop!
Written June 3, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
dean o
Castle Rock, CO14 contributions
Aug 2024 • Family
This was a place we thought the grandkids would like as they are 2 & 4 YO and they are into dinosaurs in a big way. I would say they were a bit too young to appreciate this exhibit. They were expecting to see more dinosaurs, real or fake, and the real attraction is all the dinosaur footprints on the ground. I thought it was pretty interesting and I think older kids might like it more if they are into dinosaurs.
It's free, so you can't complain too much about it and I think it is worth seeing once,, if you are into things like that. The girl at the desk, in the main building, was on her phone the whole time we were there and she didn't say a word to us about the exhibit or what things there were to see, so we just walked around and found our way to everything on our own. Things aren't very well maked so you have to snoop around to see things,
It's free, so you can't complain too much about it and I think it is worth seeing once,, if you are into things like that. The girl at the desk, in the main building, was on her phone the whole time we were there and she didn't say a word to us about the exhibit or what things there were to see, so we just walked around and found our way to everything on our own. Things aren't very well maked so you have to snoop around to see things,
Written August 18, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Is there RV parking? We have a 27' travel trailer & 20' truck pulling it.
Written May 13, 2024
It's a pretty steep hill, and me and my buddy are avid longboarders, and we where wondering if we can ride down the hill a couple times.
Written July 25, 2018
I suppose you could, but the bikers, joggers and senior walkers would be obstacles and the road is hash in many spots; lots of broken asphalt and potholes.
Written December 31, 2018
Can you arrive before they open and do the trail hike? Or can you only get on trails when they open? We are going on a Sun how early we go to do the trail?
Written July 15, 2018
The gates are locked when it is not open. You can check their website for hours.
Written July 15, 2018
How do I get here using public transportation? Are Taxis / Uber available ?
Written March 10, 2017
Hi
public transportation you would have about a two walk to the stop
Yes to Taxis & Uber
Written March 12, 2017
Yes you can! The tour is along a paved road. Just no vehicles allowed except for the tour bus. walkers walk for free!!! Your calves will be feeling it, the incline that is! Enjoy!
Written March 11, 2017
FODRStegosaurus
Morrison, Colorado
Yes as long as they are on a leash.
Do be aware that there is the potential for snakes on and off trail so do try to keep dogs out of tall grass.
Written August 7, 2015
Hi, we have never been to this area before and are looking for something to do for a short while before we head to Dillon for skiing on Sunday afternoon. Is this a good place to go, specifically in winter and with possible snow? Or is everything covered up and it's best to see in the warmer months on our next trip?
Written January 23, 2015
DinosaurFODR
Westminster, Colorado
Hello. If there has been a recent snowfall,sometimes the tracks are covered up. However, with Colorado's amazing sunshine, the snow melts quite quickly. If you are looking to visit this weekend, the snow has definitely cleared up with the sun and subsequent melt so you will be able to see dinosaur tracks and dinosaur bones. You can always call the gift shop, too, at 303-697-3466 x100 to ask about current conditions.
Written January 23, 2015
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