The Victoria Butterfly Gardens is a fantastic cure for gloomy west coast weather.
Here, you’ll feel the warmth, beauty, and biodiversity of a tropical jungle – interacting with tropical birds, viewing streams teeming with tropical fish, and marveling at thousands of tropical butterflies.
Let’s take a look at how to plan your Victoria Butterfly Gardens visit.
Victoria Butterfly Gardens General Info
This is one of the best things to do in Victoria, hands down.
Theclimate-controlled 12,000 square ft garden is maintained at 26 degrees celsius and 80% humidity.
Along your excursion you can expect to visit:
- A lush tropical jungle
- 200 species of tropical plants
- Streams, ponds, and waterfalls
- Palms, papaya trees, bamboo trees, vanilla, and coffee plants
Naturally, this is the optimal environment for the stars of the show – the butterflies.
You’ll see thousands of species of butterflies flying overhead: while gorgeous Caribbean flamingos, turtles and brightly coloured koi fill the ponds and streams.
Best of all, the gardens are located just 5 minutes from the popular Butchart Gardens in Brentwood Bay for an epic one-two tourist punch.
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Victoria Butterfly Gardens Animals
Visitors get a glimpse at the incredible biodiversity that tropical rainforests have to offer.
Most of the animals are rescues, adoptions or donations – so your admission fee actually goes to help animals in need.
Here’s a quick overview of what you can expect to find:
- Over 6000 free-flying butterflies (70+ different species)
- Red-footed tortoises
- Pond turtles
- Eclectus parrots
- Blue and gold macaw
- Tropical ducks
- Poison dart frogs
- Wall lizards
- Geckos
- Tropical koi
- Tropical fish
The stunning blue and gold macaw named Shadow and the eclectus parrot named Little E are true garden favourites – after all, they’ll actually come over and introduce themselves!
But don’t miss out on the Mango and Houdini the 41-year-old Caribbean flamingoes either.
Beside these incredible birds in the pond you’ll spot poison dart frogs – whose bright, vivid colours really stand out.
You’ll also see numerous pond turtles, tortoises and tropical ducks.
Interested? Check out Victoria Butterfly Gardens reviews from recent buyers.
The Butterflies
The Victoria Butterfly Gardens has over 6000 different butterflies, comprised of over 70 different species from around the globe.
They are free to fly, eat and reproduce throughout the facility – so you’ll see them virtually wherever you look.
You can learn about these beautiful creatures in every stage of their lifecycle – starting from an egg, to a caterpillar, into a chrysalis (a type of cocoon) and finally into the stunning adult butterfly.
The Victoria Butterfly Gardens nursery window shows this process in full – and if you’re lucky, you may even see one hatch!
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The Insectarium
The Insectarium was a new addition to Victoria Butterfly Gardens back in 2017.
This exhibit contains thousands of insects and invertebrates in its jungle-like setting.
Free with Victoria Butterfly Gardens admission, the Insectarium presents a unique up-close and personal photo opportunity with these brightly coloured critters – from behind the glass of course!
Watch as they employ amazing traits such as camouflage, mimicry and intimidation.
You’ll also view the surprisingly complex social behaviours of a complete Leaf Cutter ant colony.
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Victoria Butterfly Gardens Plants
The Victoria Butterfly Gardens contain over 200 species of tropical plants – amongst a variety of ponds, streams and waterfalls.
Here is a small sample of the tropical flora you can expect to encounter:
- A variety of species of palms
- Common bamboo trees
- Numerous carnivorous plants
- Tropical pitcher plant
- Pineapple & papaya plants
- Arabica coffee plants
- Vanilla planifolia
- Mimosa punica and much more
Personal highlights included the extensive variety of carnivorous plants.
Did you know that these amazing plants can attract, capture and digest insects and even small animals to obtain the nutrients they need to grow?
The mimosa punica is one of the few plants capable of rapid movement. If you touch its leaves you’ll actually see them recoil in order to protect themselves – it’s quite an amazing sight.
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Victoria Butterfly Gardens Tickets
- Adult (18-64) – $17.85 CAD
- Senior (65+) – $13.65 CAD
- Child (5-12) – $6.50 CAD
- Infant (0-4) – Free
*Smartphone tickets are accepted.
We recommend purchasing your smartphone ready tickets online in advance using Tiqets (orange button below), particularly during peak season. The tickets also include free parking.
Buy Victoria Butterfly Gardens Tickets
Looking to book the Victoria tourist bus as well? You can save 10% booking these two attractions together.
Victoria Butterfly Gardens Hours
- Peak-season (July 1st – September 5th) – 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
- Off-season (September 6th – June 30th) – 10:00 am – 3:00 pm
*Last admission is one hour before close
Wondering how long to visit the Victoria Butterfly Gardens?
Your visit will be dependent upon your level of interest in observing the butterflies, animals and tropical plants – as well as your passion for photography.
However, in our opinion, the typical visitor to Victoria Butterfly Gardens should budget around 1-1.5 hours of time. This should leave you plenty of time to visit the nearby Butchart Gardens on the same trip.
Related: Best Pet Friendly Hotels in Victoria
? Coming from Vancouver? Check out the 5 best Victoria tours from Vancouver.
How to Get to the Victoria Butterfly Gardens
Location: 1461 Benvenuto Avenue, Brentwood Bay BC
Victoria Butterfly Gardens is located 20 km North of Victoria in the suburb of Brentwood Bay.
This places it about a 20-30 minute drive from most Victoria hotels around the Inner Harbour – depending on traffic of course.
It is also an 18 km 20-minute drive from the Vancouver to Victoria ferry – and just 5 minutes from nearby Butchart Gardens.
Downtown Victoria
Click on the address above to visit Google and get custom directions from your hotel.
- Drive North on Patricia Bay Highway #17
- Turn off the highway at Keating Cross Road (Exit 18)
- Keating Cross Road will change into Benvenuto Avenue at West Saanich Road
- You’ll immediately see Victoria Butterfly Gardens on the left-hand side
Swartz Bay Terminal
- Exit the ferry and drive South on Patricia Bay Highway #17
- Turn right at McTavish Road
- Continue on McTavish and turn left on West Saanich Road through the village of Brentwood Bay
- You’ll then hit the intersection with Benvenuto Avenue and see Victoria Butterfly Gardens on the right-hand side
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Victoria Butterfly Gardens Visitor Tips
Pair your visit with a trip to Butchart Gardens
Butchart Gardens is the most popular tourist attraction in the Victoria area, attracting over one million visitors a year.
Moreover, both attractions are located in Brentwood Bay, about 20 km North of Victoria – just 5 minutes apart on Benvenuto Road making a paired visit a no-brainer.
Make sure to check out the nursery window
There are thousands of butterflies and tropical moths that fly, eat and even lay eggs within the gardens.
The facility also maintains a nursery window that contains hundreds of different cocoons and chrysalis.
This allows you to see butterflies at different stages of development – and if you’re lucky, you may even see one hatch!
Warm your camera or phone lens on the hair dryer near the entrance
With so many brightly coloured tropical plants, animals, insects and butterflies on offer – surely you’ll want to take a few snaps.
However, the facility’s high temperature and humidity can result in condensation on your device’s lens – ruining your pictures.
To remedy this, there is a hair dryer provided near the entrance for you to warm the lens for a moment – thus reducing condensation.
Have your kids perform the Butterfly Garden Victoria Scavenger Hunt
If you ask at the front desk there are two separate scavenger hunts available that contain checklists composed of animals and plants for them to find.
If they manage to complete the first checklist they’ll receive a silver medal – but if they complete both they’ll earn gold.
While they don’t actually receive a medal, the hunt is a great way to make the attraction more fun and educational at the same time – which is always a winning combination.
Pair your visit with a Victoria Hop on Hop off Tour
The Victoria Hop on Hop off Tour allows you to create a custom Victoria itinerary from 15 pre-selected stops. It is a great way to see the city if you’re short on time amongst a group of like-minded travellers.
If you’re already planning on taking a HoHo tour and visiting the gardens, our partners at Tiqets provide a package deal that will save you 10% off of purchasing tickets separately.
Butterfly Gardens in Victoria FAQ
What is the Victoria Butterfly Gardens?
The Victoria Butterfly Gardens is a 12,000 square foot indoor temperature controlled tropical environment that replicates a tropical rainforest – including tropical plants, thousands of butterflies, tropical birds, turtles, tortoises, amphibians and much more.
Where is the Victoria Butterfly Garden located?
The Victoria Butterfly Gardens is located at 1461 Benvenuto Avenue, Brentwood Bay BC. This places it about 20-30 minutes North of Downtown Victoria and roughly the same distance from the Swartz Bay Ferry Terminal.
How much is entry to Victoria Butterfly Gardens?
If you purchase your tickets online in advance tickets cost as follows:
- Adult (18-64) – $17.85 CAD
- Senior (65+) – $13.65 CAD
- Child (5-12) – $6.50 CAD
- Infant (0-4) – Free
How far is Butterfly Gardens from Butchart Gardens?
Butchart Gardens is located just 5 minutes West of Butterfly Gardens along Benvenuto Road in Brentwood Bay. This makes pairing the two attractions together a great option for visitors making the trek out from Victoria.
Related: Victoria Whale Watching Tours
Ready to Visit Victoria’s Butterfly Gardens?
You now have all the information you need to experience the warmth and beauty of Victoria’s vibrant jungle experience.
That said, if you feel I missed something, or you have any other questions about the Victoria Butterfly Gardens: don’t be afraid to hit me up in the comment section below for custom Victoria travel advice.
I’m always here for all your BC-related travel needs.
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