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Monteverde Butterfly Gardens: Insectarium and Gardens Tour
4.7
87 Ratings
Monteverde
Discover Costa Rica’s bugs and butterflies with passionate guides. Explore unique gardens, see caterpillars transform, and enjoy unlimited visits during your stay.
Discover Costa Rica’s bugs and butterflies with passionate guides. Explore unique gardens, see caterpillars transform, and enjoy unlimited visits during your stay.
Duration:
2 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Monteverde Butterfly Garden (Jardin de Mariposas) - Here at the Monteverde Butterfly Gardens, we have been teaching people about Costa Rica’s insects and arachnids for over 30 years. We have made it our mission to change the way people think about these small, misunderstood creatures. This may seem like a daunting task, but our bugs and tour…
- Monteverde Butterfly Garden (Jardin de Mariposas) - Here at the Monteverde Butterfly Gardens, we have been teaching people about Costa Rica’s insects and arachnids for over 30 years. We have made it our mission to change the way people think about these small, misunderstood creatures. This may seem like a daunting task, but our bugs and tour guides can win over even the most skeptical visitor! With up to 30 species of butterfly in 4 different habitats, over 20 species of live insects and arachnids in our nature center, an active leaf-cutter ant colony and the best guides in the business, we truly have something for everyone!
What's Included
- Professional guide
- Photo opportunities
- Professional guide
- Photo opportunities
What's Not Included
- Transportation to/from attractions
- Transportation to/from attractions
Additional Information
Our tours last just over an hour and offer the following experiences:
- An introduction to the fascinating bugs of Costa Rica and an orientation to the Gardens
- A close-up encounter with a variety of insects and arachnids
- A visit to our rearing chamber, where caterpillars transform into butterflies
- A leisurely walk through our three unique gardens,…
Our tours last just over an hour and offer the following experiences:
- An introduction to the fascinating bugs of Costa Rica and an orientation to the Gardens
- A close-up encounter with a variety of insects and arachnids
- A visit to our rearing chamber, where caterpillars transform into butterflies
- A leisurely walk through our three unique gardens, teeming with stunning butterflies.
The highlight of every visit to the Monteverde Butterfly Gardens is a tour led by one of our enthusiastic and knowledgeable guides. Available in both English and Spanish, our tours guide you through each section of the insectarium and gardens. With our guide by your side, you’ll discover and learn much more than you would on your own. Our guides are passionate about bugs!
Throughout the tour, our guide will share a wealth of fascinating information. After the tour concludes, feel free to continue exploring at your leisure. Pay for entry once and enjoy unlimited visits for the duration of your stay in Monteverde!
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
Location
Monteverde Butterfly Gardens
Cerro Plano, 20 minute walk or short cab ride from downtown Santa Elena
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.7
(87 Ratings)
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Hayden_t
Feb 17, 2026
Ephemeral beauty - A nice exhibit of local insects and four greenhouses of butterflies of different types and environments. Informative and friendly guides. The final section of road is very steep so beware.
Review provided by Viator
Candytravel92
Feb 4, 2026
A delightful afternoon - What a delightful time we spent at the gardens. The girl giving the fantastically informative and entertaining talk completely made it! Sadly I can’t remember her name, she is on sabbatical and only has three more weeks there. What a loss.
The talk was very interesting and seeing all the butterflies was a delight. Sadly we had to leave Monteverde the next day, otherwise we would have been back.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
5691mariac
Jan 29, 2026
Little gem butterfly garden with super friendly and knowledgeable staff. - Such a little gem in Monte Verde! Lots of butterflies in different spaces. Super friendly staff. Our guide knew a lot about the different varieties.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
A6387fupeterm
Dec 8, 2025
Big insights in a small world - I learnd a lot about the life of butterflys and other insects. Thanks to the profound knowledge and the good humuor of our guide, this tour was amazing and real fun.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Cindy_r
Aug 19, 2025
The guide explained... - The guide explained a lot of very interesting little things, the different gardens... very nice and interesting and after the tour we could go back alone and take our time.
Review provided by Viator
Isabellass3427xq
Jul 2, 2025
Brilliant tour with a brilliant guide, Leah! - We had a fantastic tour of the butterfly gardens and the bugs! Our tour guide Leah was so enthusiastic and passionate and absolutely brilliant with so much knowledge! We learnt so much from her whilst she completes her internship. The butterflies, especially the Morphos were stunning, a very worthwhile tour if you are in Monteverde.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kelly
May 18, 2025
Worth every minute - This was a wonderful learning experience! So many beautiful butterflies in various stages of metamorphosis. The Blue Morphis is absolutely stunning. The Owl Butterfly has such amazing artistry on the outside of its wings to protect itself from would-be predators, including what looks like a snake. So cool!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ptodd18
Apr 24, 2025
Worth visiting -butterflies actually land on you to drink your sweat - A fun l, educational, family friendly tour which includes introductions to other bugs of costa rica as well as butterflies - tarantula, stick insect, scorpion and cockroach. Enthusiastic guide you are free to wander through gardens again afterwards and return another time . Small gift shop at end. Worth the visit
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Waltherusf
Nov 15, 2025
Nice. - Good explanation and enough time to walk around and see everything. Because it was very rainy those days opportunity to admire butterflies.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
D1497pijacobg
Apr 25, 2025
Poor experience - We visit Costa Rica regularly and have always loved the butterfly and sloth garden at Selvatura. This time, we tried a different garden with a larger group, and it was a big letdown. The enclosures were basic—just sticks and cloth—and there were very few butterflies. Our guide, a kind volunteer, told us he was promised food and housing for an internship but ended up in a shed eating beans and rice every day. Overall, poorly managed and not worth the visit. We’ll be recommending other places or going back to Selvatura next time.
Review provided by Tripadvisor