Dinosaur Adventure Land

Rachelle Johns

This place is absolutely amazing. Dr Hovind and the whole crew are nice and social. All of the tours are amazing. My family is going to make this a regular trip and stay longer next time. We were only here 2 nights but we took all the tours. Ate all the meals. It was absolutely fantastic. And other than what we bought at the bookstore and the donations we gave because we wanted to support the ministry, everything was free! God is given all the glory at this place. Can't wait to return!

James Lowe

Located a bit off the beaten path (approximately 20 minutes SW of Evergreen, Alabama), Dinosaur Adventure Land is a moderately sized park/campground. It is run by “creation-science evangelist,” Kent Hovind (I cannot verify the accreditation of his doctorate, but he calls himself “Dr. Dino” and sometimes, “Dr. Kent Hovind”). The forward portion of the campground consists of multiple cabins, a small museum, a dining hall, a large garden, several outbuildings, and Mr. Hovind’s personal residence (building 7), all centered around a small church. The rear portion of the campground consists of several lakes/ponds, animal pens, a barn, a pasture (with animals to feed/pet), a few “science” exhibits (the “science” can, at times, be questionable, often belied with conjecture and anecdotes), and a multi-path, ATV trail that snakes around the bodies of water, the fields, and through the forest at the back of the property. The campground is still a work in progress, but what has been built is functional, and there are numerous families and contractors living on the premises. Admission, food, lodging, and RV/camper accommodations are free (though they do take donations). Where the two halves of the property meet is a large (and rather impressive) playground. The residents/staff are extremely friendly. The campground is beautiful. Everyone is asked to sign in at the museum on a guest list that refers to a waiver (this waiver is included in the pictures). This waiver states that Dinosaur Adventure Land has no insurance, and that each person assumes their own risk (or their children's) while on the property. Several of the exhibits in the museum were cool, but sometimes unsafe. The tesla coil had no shielding around the transformer, and the Jacob’s Ladder (another electrical device) had openly exposed electrodes (which are well within reach of small children). The museum is decent, containing a large quantity of taxidermized animals, some live animals, some decent fossils, and a few, cool science exhibits. However, contrary to the name, there isn’t much on the property that has to do with dinosaurs. Though there are a few statues and drawings of dinosaurs, the park primarily focuses on Christian evangelism. Specifically, this is Mr. Hovind’s personal take on evangelism (even referring to "Hovind Theory"), as he strongly promotes his ideas such as that the earth is less than 10,000 years old, that the Chicxulub asteroid didn’t wipe out the dinosaurs (rather, he believes that they suffocated from insufficient oxygen), that humans once grew to 16 feet tall and lived beside dinosaurs, that the Grand Canyon was formed in a week (during a global flood), and that this flood occurred when a shell of ice he believes once existed around the earth (called, “the firmament”), broke open, covering the earth with water. [this is only a brief overview, see the pictures for more details] The Good: Free admission, free food, free lodging, free activities. Everyone was very kind. The ATV ride was fun. The playground was exceptional. The Bad: I was informed by multiple residents/staff that most of the people who work there are “preppers.” Further conversations revealed that a recent dispute among the leadership (I was told that Mr. Hovind did not approve of a marriage among staff) resulted in a split, that saw several staff members leave with over half of the animals (these animals were apparently owned by said staff). The museum has numerous, pseudoscientific exhibits interspersed among actual, scientific exhibits, and it decries many assertions that are broadly accepted by reputable scientists. The Ugly: There were multiple safety hazards, some coarse/offensive humor, and mild, religious extremism. Some of this came from Mr. Hovind's own mouth. The place promotes somewhat-fringe teachings that are adjacent to traditional, evangelical Christianity. If that is something you enjoy (or can just accept), then spending a day or two at this park/campground may be an enjoyable experience for you (do so at your own risk). Otherwise, I’d steer clear.

Schona Kessler

A must visit for those curious about the true history of creation not the man made history they teach in schools. Great time for adults and kids. Stayed in our rv with hookups free. Did laundry for free as well. Breakfast, lunch and dinner provided complimentary. Donations welcomed. Get a tour of the science creation museum, eat lunch, get a tour on side by sides lead by Kent Hovind, get a barn tour then let the kids play at the big playground. There are bathrooms with free showers available too. Ask about volunteering many have been there months to years! Stay longer than a few days and you will be put to work to help make the place better. 7pm is the live YouTube Bible study time in the church. You gotta go!!! This is not a cult.

Nate and Steph Miller

We spent the day here and had a great time! There are lots of hands-on activities and interesting artifacts in the science tour as you learn about Creation. The barn tour had interesting (& cute!) varieties of animals. We got to hand feed and interact with some of them which we really enjoyed. The 4 wheeler grounds tour was given to us by Kent and he sure didn’t hold back! His Biblical lessons, life lessons, and humor was just like you see in his videos. We were laughing and smiling the whole time. What a day! Highly recommend visiting here! May God bless this place abundantly. Thanks for having us! ~Stephanie & Kaitlin