Andorra Approves Dino Forest: Dinosaur Park to Open in Sant Julià de Lòria

Sant Julià de Lòria council and the Andorran government have approved Dino Forest, a dinosaur-themed park in Auvinyà set to open mid-summer.

The project, spearheaded by local company Serveis Tecnològics SL, will occupy 35,000 square metres at 1,154 metres elevation on unconsolidated urbanizable land in the private plots of Terres Tarteres and Terra dita del Frare, adjacent to the Rabassa road and near the medieval-style urbanisation, bordering the Comabella canal to the south. Aimed primarily at children and families, the palaeontology-focused attraction will feature life-size moving models of prehistoric species—sourced from Zigong in China's Sichuan province, where most global dinosaur sculptures are made—arriving by ship. These include massive sauropods from the late Cretaceous, extinct 66 million years ago, some exceeding 100 tonnes in life.

Visitors will follow a pedestrian trail through wooded areas, with facilities including a playground, educational activities, parking on a 100-by-40-metre meadow already linked by an asphalt entrance, a technical zone, restrooms, fast-food restaurant, souvenir shop, and paths accessible for those with reduced mobility, seniors, and strollers. Developers emphasise eco-friendly, portable materials in a traditional style, avoiding concrete or brick to minimise landscape and environmental changes. Tickets will be affordable across all groups, with free entry for children and people with disabilities, and priority access and jobs for parish residents.

The design draws from Mallorca's Dinosaurland near Portocristo, Spain's only such park with over 100 animated models, through a management and advisory partnership. Local experts led the technical study: architects Judith Puig, Anna Mirapeix, and Carles Puig, engineer Josep Comella, and surveyor Josep Viñals.

Promoters view Dino Forest as a unique Pyrenees draw, enhancing Sant Julià's leisure options and tourism network while justifying the investment through projected visitor numbers and its blend of fun and learning. The site will not reuse figures from the closing Juberri dinosaur gardens, despite informal discussions.