When I was younger I always remember watching movies such as Jurassic Park and George of the Jungle and seeing the amazing scenery in the background and wondering if it was real and if it was, where this incredible place was. The answer it turns out is the 4000 acre Kualoa Ranch located on the island of Oahu in Hawaii known as “Hawaii’s Hollywood Backlot”. For so many years I dreamed of visiting Kualoa Ranch never knowing when that day would arrive but in May 2022 this year (two years later than originally planned) it finally happened.

On the day that we visited Kualoa Ranch, I woke up far too early due to a combination of both excitement as well as the eleven hour time difference from London. We left Aulani where we were staying at 06:45am and quickly grabbed a coffee and something to eat for breakfast for the forty five minute drive to Kualoa Ranch which is located on the windward side of Oahu. Our tour was not until 9:00am but we wanted to give ourselves plenty of time to get there in case of any traffic as there was no way we wanted to be late and Kualoa also asks that you arrive and check in at least forty five minutes before your tour begins.

As there was no traffic that morning we arrived at Kualoa about thirty minutes before we had to check in so we stopped at Kualoa Regional Park opposite the entrance to the ranch for a few minutes to take some photos. You already know that you are somewhere very special when you see the spectacular rolling green hills that surround you on that side of the island of Oahu.

The only way you can visit Kualoa Ranch is by a private guided tour and back in 2020 we had originally booked the “Premier Movie Sites Tour” which our long-time friends Luke and Rich from L&R Dreaming had done on their visit to Hawaii the previous year and had recommended to us – their photos were incredible and made me even more excited for our visit.

However since the pandemic that tour sadly no longer exists so we booked the brand new tour that has taken its place called the “Jurassic Adventure Tour” which lasts for two and a half hours. The Jurassic Adventure Tour takes you to all the iconic filming locations in the the Ka’a’awa, Kualoa and Hakipu’u Valleys from the different Jurassic Park movies including the Indominus Rex paddock, the Gyrosphere Platform as well as the famous log from the Gallimimus scene in the original movie.

As the Jurassic Adventure Tour is a brand new tour, there is not very much information about it online so I have tried to include both photos and as much information as I can in this blog post to help anyone who is planning to visit Kualoa Ranch.

The Jurassic Adventure Tour also has limited numbers with only sixteen passengers in each open air vehicle (unlike the much cheaper Hollywood Movie Sites Tour which uses large vintage school buses) making it a very personal and up close experience. You can also get out of the vehicle during this tour to explore and take photos at all of the locations making it even better than you can ever imagine.

As of May 2022, the Jurassic Adventure Tour costs $139.95 per adult and $69.95 per child (aged between 3 and 12) and no one under the age of three is allowed on this tour.

As with all of the tours offered at Kualoa Ranch, booking in advance is essential as the tours do sell out very quickly due to the limited numbers on each one – we booked nearly five months before our trip as soon as reservations for our date opened as we did not want to miss out. When visiting Kualoa Ranch, try to book any tours as early as possible in the morning when the temperature is comfortable before the weather gets too hot.

Once we had arrived at Kualoa Ranch and parked our rental car, we walked straight through the gift shop to the ticket office where we checked in for our tour – all I needed to show was a valid photo ID (I used my driving licence) as it was my name that was listed on the booking. We still had just over forty five minutes to go before our tour started so we used this time to look around the courtyard area of the ranch, take some photos and meet the horses.

Close to the ticket office is a Wall of Fame with photos of the stars that have appeared in the movies and television shows that were filmed at Kualoa Ranch including Brendan Fraser, Elvis Presley, Ben Stiller, Drew Barrymore, Tom Selleck, Ken Watanabe and Chris Pratt as well as the Tyrannosaurus Rex, the Indominus Rex, the Mosasaurus and the Gallimimus.

After using the toilets (as there are not any available during the tour itself), we walked over to our meeting point as we wanted to get there early so we could have our pick of the seats on our tour vehicle. As already mentioned the small sixteen seat vehicles are open air making it very easy to take photos during the entire tour and we sat in the back row so we could also take photos behind us as we were driving along as well as be first off at each of the stops to take photos as well. We sat on the right hand side though I do not think there is a better side to sit as the views are all around you.

We also met our guide who was called Lilo (she also has a cat called Stitch!) which we could not believe as she was also our friend’s tour guide from when they visited so we already knew that we were going to have an even better time than we could ever possibly imagine. There were lots of random things that happened on our trip to Hawaii that I believe were meant to be and Lilo being our tour guide (after our friends had raved about her) was yet another one of those things – she was amazing.

In true Hawaii style it started to rain just after we set off so Lilo immediately changed the first stop of our tour to the Battery Cooper bunker (to allow time for the rain to pass before continuing the tour) where a lot of the props and memorabilia from all the movies and television shows that were filmed at Kualoa Ranch are displayed as well as information about Kualoa Ranch during World War 2.

As well as many displays about Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, Kong: Skull Island, Lost, Pearl Harbor and Hawaii Five-O you can also find lots of information about the Jurassic Park movies as well as the Gyrosphere sign, an animatronic dinosaur and the tour vehicle from the Jurassic World film.

The rain stopped and blue skies started to appear as we left the bunker and drove into the beautiful Ka’awa’a Valley. At this time Lilo also played the Jurassic Park theme which gave me goosebumps as that instantly recognisable and incredible scenery appeared before our eyes to the sound of that iconic music. It really was one of the coolest things ever.

The Ka’awa’a Valley is also known as the Jurassic Valley and was where the famous Gallimimus chase was filmed back in 1992. This was the only scene in the original Jurassic Park movie that was filmed at Kualoa Ranch as the majority of the movie was filmed on the neighbouring island of Kauai. However after Hurricane Iniki caused major damage and destruction across the island, Steven Spielberg moved production to Oahu to film that one scene which put Kualoa Ranch on the map.

Even though our tour focused on the Jurassic Park movies, other filming locations were pointed out as we drove past them which included Hurley’s golf course from Lost, the road (and penguin) from 50 First Dates and Godzilla’s footprint.

Our next stop was the Gyrosphere Platform from the Jurassic World movie which offers the best view of the Ka’awa’a Valley and can only be visited by booking the Jurassic Adventure Tour. This was the place and the view that I had dreamed of seeing for such a long time and it truly was every bit as perfect as I imagined it to be – all of the sadness from the last two years since our dream trip to Hawaii was cancelled in 2020 simply melted away in that moment and as I always joke with friends, nature finally healed.

After taking far too many photos of the view at the Gyrosphere Platform (I did not want to leave), we drove to the Radio Tower Bunker from Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom as well as the hatch that Claire and Franklin used to escape from the Baryonyx.

We also stood at the spot at the bottom of the hill where Owen and the stampede of dinosaurs run to escape from the erupting volcano on Isla Nublar during Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.

Our final stop in the Ka’awa’a Valley was the log where Dr Alan Grant, Tim and Lex take cover from the Gallimimus who are running away from a T-Rex. The log is in the same spot but actually a replica as the original one was never kept as back then no one expected Jurassic Park to become one of the highest-grossing films of all time.

I had been looking forward to getting a picture here all morning and Lilo helped to take everyone’s photos next to the log before taking another photo from a different angle to make it look like we were being attacked by the T-Rex statue which came out brilliantly – it makes me laugh every time I see it!

As we started the drive to the other side of Kualoa Ranch, we stopped briefly at the overlook above the Moliʻi Fishpond, Kaneohe Bay and Mokoliʻi Island which also known as Chinaman’s Hat. This was the area where the Jurassic World Helipad was located but it no longer exists as the set was removed once filming was complete.

Along a very bumpy road was the final stop of our Jurassic Adventure Tour which was the Indominus Rex paddock from Jurassic World which was one of the sets that was left standing once filming was completed so it could be used for tours at Kualoa Ranch. Exploring the I-Rex pen was great fun and you can still see the claw marks on the walls which are actually made from styrofoam.

You can also go upstairs and into the observation room which still looks exactly like it did in the movie where you can get a great view of the Indominus Rex paddock below just like Claire and Owen did when they were discussing this new breed of dinosaur.

The Jurassic Adventure Tour and the Jungle Expedition Tour are the only two tours at Kualoa Ranch that visit the Indominus Rex pen.

After the best two and a half hours of exploring we said thank you to Lilo for the most wonderful tour of Kualoa Ranch. We wandered around the gift shop before we drove around the North Shore of Oahu getting lunch from Giovanni’s Shrimp Truck in Kahuku and some shave ice at Matsumoto Shave Ice in Haleiwa before a quick stop at the Dole Plantation on our way back to Aulani for some much needed pool time. It really was a great way to spend the rest of our epic day.

From the moment we rebooked our tour of Kualoa Ranch I could not have been more excited to finally visit and I loved Kualoa even more than I could have ever thought possible. It had been a perfect morning and my dream of seeing that incredible backdrop of the Ka’awa’a Valley with my own eyes had finally come true.

Kualoa Ranch is one the most beautiful and stunning places that I have ever had the privilege to visit and it was worth waiting those extra two years after our original trip was cancelled in 2020. The Jurassic Adventure Tour is worth every single penny and simply one of the best things that I have ever done – I will remember that day forever.

If you need to access mobile data whilst visiting Hawaii, you can purchase a travel E-Sim through Airalo. If you would like to use my referral code NIKKI8866 when signing up, you will receive £2.50 / US$3 off your first purchase.

Since this blog post was written back in 2022, some of the information may no longer be accurate or up to date. Be sure to do your own research and check official websites for the latest details before making any of your own travel plans.

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