When the film Jurassic Park was released in 1993, my love for dinosaurs was cemented right there and then as I watched those giant lizards come to life on the big screen. Fast forward 12 years and three more installments of the movie franchise (the latest will be released this month) later, my love for these prehistoric creatures has not diminished. If you share the same undying love that I have for dinosaurs, then you’ll want to visit these places.
Compiled by Danny Lau
- National Dinosaur Museum, Australia
The museum started out with a small collection in 1993, but now houses the largest permanent display of dinosaur and other prehistoric fossil material in Australia. What’s impressive about the National Dinosaur Museum is that they have 23 complete skeletons and over 300 displays of individual fossils as their collection continues to expand. The museum is located in Gold Creek Village near Canberra and has an annual patronage of 100,000 visitors annually. There’s plenty to learn here and lots of fun for the entire family.
Contact
National Dinosaur Museum
Gold Creek Village, Gold Creek Road & Barton Highway, Nicholls ACT 2913
Phone: +61 (02) 6230 2655
Website: www.nationaldinosaurmuseum.com.au
Let’s see who can open their mouth the widest!
- Zigong Dinosaur Museum, China
Regarded “the best dinosaur museum in the world”, the Zigong Dinosaur Museum is a must-visit for dinosaur enthusiasts. The museum itself is located in the township of Dashanpu in Sichuan, and the museum sits on top of a large concentration of diverse dinosaur assemblage. The fossil collection housed here are of all the known dinosaur species in the Jurassic period of 205-135 million years ago. With over 66,000 square metres of exhibition space and with seven million visitors a year, this museum should not be missed if you’re a dinosaur lover.
Contact
No.238, Dashanpu, Zigong, Sichuan 643013, P.R.China
Phone: +86-0813-5801235/5802095/5801234
Website: www.zdm.cn/en/index.html
Get lost in this massive museum
- Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum, Japan
Another top contender for the title of world’s best dinosaur museum, the Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum also takes the top honour of being the largest of its kind in Japan. Located in Katsuyama City, Fukui Prefecture, the museum lies just a few kilometers from the country’s most prolific excavation site. There is a total of four floors with the main floor housing the principal dinosaur exhibition, where visitors are greeted by an incredibly life-like animatronic T-Rex. Besides that there are also 40 dinosaur skeletons on display including the local Fukui-raptor and Fukui-saurus.
Contact
51-11 Terao, Muroko, Katsuyama, Fukui 911-8601, Japan
Phone: +81 779-88-0001
Website: www.dinosaur.pref.fukui.jp/en/
To be extinct or not extinct? That is the question.
- Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM), Singapore
The stars of this brand spanking new museum? Three 150-million-year-old diplodocid sauropod dinosaur skeletons named Prince, Apollonia and Twinky. But make no mistake: while you will be able to marvel at the beauty of the trio, the museum is also Singapore’s first and only permanent natural history exhibition. The collection includes more than 500,000 Southeast Asian animal and plant specimens but only 2000 will be on public exhibition to showcase the region’s rich history and biodiversity. The museum is located at the University Cultural Centre at Kent Ridge, opposite Raffles Hall.
Contact
Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, Faculty of Science, National University of Singapore, 2 Conservatory Drive, Singapore 117377
Phone: +65-6601-3333
Website: lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/nus/
Marvel at Prince, Apollonia and Twinky right here in Singapore! © LKCNHM
- Sirindhorn Dinosaur Museum, Thailand
The birth of the museum is attributed to the discovery of dinosaur fossils at Wat Sakkawan, Amphoe Sahatsakhan, Changwat Kalasin. It was reported that over 700 fossilised bones belonging to seven dinosaurs were found in this excavation site. In fact, there is a part of the excavation site that is also on display for those who are curious about how a paleontologist (a scientist who studies past geologic periods) works.
Contact
Along route 227, about a kilometer east of the Sahatsakhan Sueksa school, Non Buri, Sahatsakhan, Kalasin, 46140 Thailand
Phone: +66-043-871-014
Website: www.dmr.go.th/main.php?filename=Museum4_en
Thailand’s first dinosaur fossil museum
