LEHI — Thanksgiving Point celebrated the grand opening of its newest educational attraction: a five-story tall interactive playground themed around the Jurassic period.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Mountain America Jurassic Jungle was held Monday in the Museum of Ancient Life. The jungle playground is the largest prehistoric playground in Utah and was built in the area that used to be an IMAX theater inside the museum.
“You can spend the whole day there just exploring. It’s going to really make a difference for the children, and we are proud to be a part of it,” said Sterling Nielsen, CEO of Mountain America Credit Union, at the grand opening Monday.
Nielsen praised the creativity and design of the play structure. The five-story expansive indoor “play world” teaches kids in a hands-on way about prehistoric creatures through animatronic dinosaurs, slides, bridges, games, puzzles, playground elements and audio and visual effects that immerse children in the experience.
The playground is also interactive — patrons wear wristbands that can be used to interact with technological features, track progress as they solve missions and gain points to turn into prizes at the Base Camp Gift Shop. Kids scan their wristband at checkpoints hidden in the jungle then conduct missions such as shooting food into a hungry T. rex, fixing the teeth of a sleeping spinosaurus or sliding down a volcano.
Thanksgiving Point partnered with playground manufacturer Soft Play to build the structure. Soft Play vice president Rich Albright said a “massive amount of work” went into creating the playground.
“The Thanksgiving Point build is our largest single-site project to date,” Albright said. “It is the most technologically advanced, creatively envisioned, and daringly safe playground ever constructed, becoming a must-visit destination for kids and families from around the region.”
The structure was built with almost two miles of steel and 122 sculpted elements. There is also 14,000 feet of “tough net” which “keeps your kids safe,” Albright said.
“There should be enjoyment, there should be joy at the end of what they do. Learning about names of dinosaurs, learning about the prehistoric times and things that were there — there are lots of very, very fun activities that could be done,” Thanksgiving Point founder Alan Ashton said at the grand opening.
Ashton is looking forward to seeing children play and learn together as they experience the Jurassic Jungle, he said.
The playground opens to the public Tuesday and reservations are required. Admission is separate from Museum of Ancient Life admission.
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