Jurassic Skyline

The Jurassic Skyline tower (known until mid-2015 as the Weymouth Sea Life Tower) is an observation tower on Weymouth Pier in Weymouth, Dorset, England. It is situated next to Weymouth Beach and the Weymouth Pavilion, where it overlooks Weymouth town, the beach, the Pavilion, the Old Harbour, Nothe Gardens, the Nothe Fort, and Portland Harbour. It opened on 22 June 2012.

The tower stands 53 metres (174 feet) high. The clear-fronted passenger gondola is able to turn a full 360 degrees as it rises during operation, and can accommodate 69 passengers at a time. Each tower session lasts approximately 15 minutes. A total of 1,100 tons of concrete was used during building; the tower itself weighs 140 tons. It offers views of the English Channel and the surrounding countryside; on a clear day, views at the highest point are said to extend down the Dorset coast to Lulworth Cove and Durdle Door.

The tower received national attention in September 2017 after the gondola became stuck and could not descend; 13 people were winched off by helicopter as the weather prevented other modes of safe rescue.

The tower, designed as a tourist attraction, took eight months to built at a cost of £3.5 million. It was designed in Germany and built in Hungary and France, before being shipped in sections to be assembled on site. Work commenced in October 2011, when excavation of the 18-metre deep foundations started. The ground-level reception building was the last part of the tower to be built in June 2012, in time for the Olympic events. The idea of such a tower had been put forward in 2009-10. After a number of sites across Europe were considered, Weymouth was selected due to its far-reaching vistas and its closeness to the Sea Life Park.

The tower had been funded by private money as one of the 90-strong worldwide attraction network operated by the Poole-based Merlin Entertainments, who also owns the nearby Sea Life Park and the Pirate Adventure Golf at Lodmoor Country Park. Completed a week ahead of schedule, an early running of the tower was enjoyed by a host of VIP guests, including borough mayor Margaret Leicester, and local councillors and business community representatives. In a 2012 article by The Sun, the tower was speculated to be able to carry more than 2,000 passengers over the course of one day at its busiest.

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