"Time... the ever-flowing river... Come with us now to a time before man when the river flowed through a new-born world and giants walked the earth." 

Few franchises can say that they've occupied the pinnacle of pop culture, persisting between generations. But for Universal, few owned-or-acquired IPs can beat the box office and merchandising dominance of Jurassic Park. Since Michael Crichton's 1990 novel and the 1993 Steven Spielberg film it inspired, Jurassic Park has been reborn time and time again, effortlessly extending kids' built-in fascination with dinosaurs and re-capturing the enthusiasm of adults over and over.

But any theme park fan will tell you beyond the highs and lows of the films, Jurassic Park has lived as a key property within Universal's theme parks. Today, we'll take a whirlwind tour of the five theme parks where Universal's Jurassic franchise has come to life, counting down the top dino-rides from toothless to terrifying.

10. Pteranodon Flyers

Location: Universal Islands of Adventure

When Islands of Adventure opened in 1999, its Jurassic Park land really served as an anchor of the park's lineup. One of the first ever IP-focused immersive lands, the space was meant to make you feel as if you were visiting John Hammond's real dinosaur zoo. Even though a family-focused "Camp Jurassic" playground is never seen in the Jurassic Park films, you can imagine that one existed just "off screen." Camp Jurassic at Islands of Adventure gives kids a chance to run, climb, slide, and dig as they swing across bridges, explore geothermal amber mines, and more.

The only ride in Camp Jurassic is Pteranodon Flyers. It's technically one of five roller coasters at Islands of Adventure... but you've probably never been on it. A swinging, suspended coaster, Pteranodon Flyers lets explorers dangle in bucket seats beneath an artistic interpretation of a pteranodon, gliding gently around the perimeter of Camp Jurassic. Unfortunately, its two-person vehicles give the ride an almost jaw-droppingly low hourly capacity – at best, just 170 riders per hour. As a result, shortly after the park opened, Pteranodon Flyers had its height requirement updated. During the normal operating day, guests over 56" cannot ride without an accompanying child. It's a sweet, cute ride, but certainly has the fewest "teeth" of any Jurassic ride.

9. Dino-Soarin'

Location: Universal Studios Singapore

Universal Studios Singapore has a land called The Lost World. It's mostly themed to Jurassic Park. (It just also happens to contain the park's Waterworld stunt show.) One of its rides is "Dino-Soarin'" – a fairly standard Dumbo-style spinner, but with guests riding fairly realistic pterodactyls. Even immersive theme parks need these kind of "D-Ticket" flat rides that add to parks' ride counts, increase their attractiveness to families, and add to park capacities. But Dino-Soarin' doesn't feel like a ride that John Hammond's "real," boutique theme park for one-percenters would have. 

8. Canopy Flyer

Location: Universal Studios Singapore

Even though Pteranodon Flyers wasn't exactly a brilliant ride to have at one of the world's top ten most-attended parks, Universal Studios Singapore decided to incorporate a version into its Lost World area, too. The good news is that Canopy Flyer feels lot more sturdy than Florida's ride. Canopy Flyer actually feels like a roller coaster, with a couple dips and banked turns that are much more thrilling than the placid ride in Florida. It also uses, like, real roller coaster trains – four-seaters, with two guests facing forward and two facing backward. 

7. Jurassic Flyers

Location: Universal Studios Beijing

The concept of having an aerial ride glide around a dinosaur theme park really stuck. At least the new Universal Studios Beijing got serious when it comes to capacity and experience and purchased a Mack Inverted Powered Coaster. We've seen this ride model used for elaborate attractions, like Europa Park's Arthur family coaster / dark ride. The Chinese park's Jurassic Flyers isn't quite that ambitious, but it does make use of the powered coaster and its controlled rotation to send guests rising, gliding, dipping, twisting, and turning as it navigates indoor and outdoor environments, providing great views accompanied by on-ride audio that gives the ride a distinctly-Jurassic feeling.

6. Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure

Ever since the original Jurassic Park: The Ride opened at Universal Studios Hollywood in 1996, dinosaurs and boat rides have just seemed to go together. Even though it was a Jeep ride that we saw in the movie, it seems fair to imagine that a rustic raft ride through aquatic dinosaur's habitats could be a part of the park. However, Universal Studios Singapore switched up the formula, swapping slow-moving rafts with a free-spinning rapids ride (like Kali River Rapids, Popeye's Bilge-Rat Barges, or Grizzly River Run). 

That significantly increases the ride's pacing while also introducing the thrills of rapids segments as the raft rotates. Rather than a a playful dinosaur, it's a flash flood that sends the rafts spinning into an off-limits area overrun with carnivores. The only means of escape here is a "Hydrovater" that physically lifts the raft... right toward the snapping jaws of the T-rex directly overhead, with a run-off chute as the only path foward. It's certainly different from the raft rides we know... But the ride's animatronics are sun-bleached, hokey, and battered by time, leaving this ride from feeling like an E-Ticket. Which brings us to Florida...