Butterfly Pavilion

6252 W 104th Ave, Westminster, CO 80020, USA

Address:	6252 W 104th Ave, Westminster, CO 80020, USA
Phone:	+1 303-469-5441
Site:	butterflies.org
Rating:	4.5
Working:	9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 9

Alexander Ortiona

This place scores high even if it were just a butterfly pavilion... but thats just a third of the place! Theres a bug and arachnid zone, where you can have Rosie, a tarantula, safely walk/sit/walk across your hand. They explained why shes so safe and friendly, and as an engineer, I find their logic to be perfectly sound. By the way, this an all areas easily afford the space for people to roll double strollers and still have other visitors freely move around. The butterfly pavilion is spot on. Temperature/moisture/etc controlled to afford a perfect and sometimes invasive experience. Its only invasive if youre a two-year-old and all of a sudden decide today butterflies landing on you is too scary. Fine every other, just not today... There is also a sea life zone, to include the trickiest octopus weve seen, and a touch area (of course with the associated paper towels and hand sanitizer). There are many other displays, but these are our favorite. Lastly, before the gift shop and affordable cafeteria, theres a huge area where you can cleanly play with worms in dirt... youll see. Tons of birthday parties are held here, both indoor and outdoor facilities, and all the kids and parents come out so happy. Its just too far for us to plan a celebration there. Oh, and theres also an indoor playground and outdoor garden area where you can easily enjoy a 15 minute walkabout. Value-wise, I cant really tell. We had a gargantuan discount because we are Childrens Museum members, but we have easily paid off the amount of family membership for sure, and every visit has been wonderful.

Rebecca Bornstein

This was such an interesting place! One of the only invertebrate zoos in the world. There was even a place where guests could hold a tarantula (with guidance from a staff member). Of course my favorite part was the tropical greenhouse type space where all the butterflies and moths are. There were so many types to see, and purchasing a butterfly guide for $1 on entry is worthwhile to help identify them. It is possible to get good photos (even with a decent phone camera) when the butterflies stop on a flower, just be sure not to touch them as it can shorten their lifespan. If possible, attend a butterfly encounter (happening at 12:30 and 3:30 when I was there). A very knowledgeable employee taught the crowd (which included lots of young children) about how butterflies and the rainforest are critical to our planet, introduced us to several types of butterflies before releasing them, and encouraged us to do our part to support conservation efforts. All around a good time, and worth stopping by if youre in the area.

A Private User

After a long drive and $8.50 per adult, the Butterfly Pavilion was not what I expected. First, the Butterfly Pavilion seemed smaller in terms of space, variety, and number of critters, and despite the name, only about 25% of the building has butterflies. I managed decent photographs of about five species of butterflies. I was surprised not to see lady bugs, but it was fun to see walking sticks. Second, in the play area there was a large group of first graders (?) from a day camp that were almost running over my 20 month old boy. He generally did enjoy looking at the bugs, touching the tarantula, touching the water creatures, and the play area. We didnt do the trail but from the parking lot noticed prairie dogs sounding the alarm and hiding (fun). He was too young to appreciate many aspects, but he was well behaved and enjoyed the visit.

Maggie Weber

My 2.5 year old could have watched the bees come and go from the hive for hours. I finally had to tear him away because I wanted to hold the tarantula. Butterfly Pavilion covers many invertebrates, not just butterflies. They have a creepy crawly room, sea creatures like an octopus and sea stars you can touch. We didnt even get to all the rooms during our 2 hour visit. We got a membership since we arent far away and its a good pop-in entertainment for young ones. They recommended if you are coming individually that you come after noon because the school groups come in the morning. There was a group while we were there but we were able to avoid the large group for most of the time except in the butterfly house itself. Check online schedule before you go for specific events like story time.

A Private User

I recently took my 2, 3 and 5 year olds to the butterfly pavillion only to be stalked and followed by their curators who constantly reminded me that the boys needed to be careful, quiet and not touch anything. It got to the point that I was so uncomfortable that we left. It is as if they have forgotten that they took the butteflies from their natural environment and are raising them in captivity. You did that, not these boys, is what I thought. Also the maze that is there for kids to play with was obviously designed by someone without small children. Beware of the sick feeling you will have in your stomach when you cant find your kids because they are crawling under the maze. I just wouldnt recommend this as an activity for little ones.

Cate Britton

We love this place. Yesterday, they had a "bug a boo" event for Halloween. There was no parking nearby but they had a shuttle bus running from across the road. It was very crowded and they ran out of little pumpkins to paint. The lines for the balloon man, face painting and princesses was more than my kids could bear so, we didnt get to do any of the special activities. Maybe numbered tickets for the activities. Maybe if they allowed less people in at a time and staggered the entrance times. Or, if there were more activities.But the kids had fun. You can purchase a yearly membership that allows unlimited entrance here and at the childrens museum Denver which is well with the purchase price.

Tattoo Addict

Fantastic. My toddler loved it. HOWEVER! what ruined the experience at times were children and adults who did not respect the butterflies and continued to touch and hold them. Even while standing in front of signs that said not to. What appalled me even nore were the adults who did nothing about their children who did this and did not teach them respect. Because the touching got excessive Ihad to inform staff, who were very unhappy that even the adults were out right breaking the rukes. DO NOT TOUCH THE BUTTERFLIES, WHEN YOU DO YOU ARE KILLING THEM. TOUCHING THEM SHORTENS THEIR LIFE SPAN. It shortens their life span, and costs the pavilion money.

Jeremy Howie

I took my 4 year old son to the Butterfly Pavilion the other day for the first time. Amazing learning opportunities not only from auditory and visual, but also experiencial. My son held Rosie the tarantula and overcame his fear. There are insects, sea life, worms, spiders, bees, and of course butterflies. The outdoor gardens are awesome with butterflies all around you in a tropical setting. There are even stations you can touch starfish, crabs, and mealworms. Plan to stay for at least 3 hours. As an adult, I could have stayed all day and not digested all the info. Nice gift shop as well. Must be for locals and tourists alike.

Ric Rini

I must say, I was thoroughly impressed! Dont let the name fool you. Yes, they have butterflies but there is also so much more! Plenty of insects and a ton of tarantula as well. For the money I really enjoyed this place. The culmination is the butterfly viewing area (pavilion). There is no doubt that you get to see plenty of them flying around. They also have an outside area on their grounds that gives you a great interpretive experience on elevation systems (prarie dessert etc). Very interesting and most likely you will catch a prairie dog or two. If you are in Denver this is definitely something I would put on my list.