There's a purpose behind dinoland that makes it easier to enjoy and understand. You may ultimately still decide to hate it, but at least it will be an informed decision.
Chester and Hester are an elderly couple who owned the gas station that became the Dinoland gift shop. When the first fossil was found in the Boneyard, the Dino Institute opened up just down the road from their gas station and the surrounding area instantly started drawing in tourists. Chester and Hester capitalized on the area's new found popularity by opening "Chester and Hester's Dinorama", a tacky run-of-the-mill tourist trap park with quickly built rides and carnival games. They created two characters to serve as mascotts of Dinorama, and named them after themselves. Their gas station also expanded into a large touristy gift shop specializing in Dino-everything.
You can still see the original gas pumps and old-style cocacola vending machine out back behind the gift shop.As time went on, they realized there was more money in selling souvenirs than gas, so they stopped the gas business, but continued with their souvenir shop. They are the only business that didn't sell out to the Dino Institute.
If you look closely, you'll see that the rides are in a parking lot and the highway goes through the area.
Here's a great link that explains it all. As they say in this article, "The backstory behind DinoLand U.S.A. is one of the most elaborate and complex Disney has ever constructed. And once you know it, its like someone has turned a light on, and you can finally see why everything is the way it is." Enjoy!
http://seeyarealsoon.com/2010/02/26/dinoland/