Butterfly World, Coconut Creek

When your child enters the enclosed butterfly garden at Butterfly World their eyes light up and they squeal with delight. Butterflies are everywhere! The butterflies flutter around you, sort of like when someone turns on a bubble-making machine! It's magical to just stand there and take it in.

The butterflies are from all around the world. There are small red ones, big blue ones (my favorite), white ones that look so frilly and delicate, striped ones, green and black spotted ones, and all sorts! The garden is filled with flowers that butterflies love and it's a beautiful scene. The enclosure is pretty with a modern geometric design above you. Hanging baskets line a walkway that leads to another area, the tropical rain forest. Here you can cool off in a cave where you are sprayed with  mist. Little waterfalls and ponds surrounded by flowers set the backdrop for the pretty dance of the butterflies all around you. You can rest on benches and watch the scene.
Next you walk through a maze of passion-flower vines. These were pretty, but not in bloom when we were there. You come to a bird aviary with hummingbirds, and other plump little colored birds. These are harder to spot than the butteflies but you can usually see one or two at the feeders. A Brazilian Grape Tree (Jaboticaba) with the coolest fruits growing along the trunk of the tree can be seen in this area.
There is a suspension bridge, which would be cool but it goes over the most disgustingly dirty pond. Not sure why they let this part get so bad. You see macaws on a stand. There is also a lorikeet area but the enclosure is small and concrete and the birds sound way too loud in there. They also look worse-for-wear but I'm not surprised because their enclosure is so awful. Lorikeets in the wild in Australia look so much lovelier and don't sound so loud at all. My daughter hated this area because of the noise and how claustrophobic it was.
Lastly there's an indoor area with preserved butterflies that are absolutely incredible. Some of the ones from South America are iridescent and it's hard to believe they are real! There is also a bug zoo, with roaches and such, in a stinky room.
A gift shop and garden shop are available on the way out. Also, on the way in, there is an area where you can watch scientists work with the larvae.
This attraction is well worth a visit because of the beauty and magic of the butterfly garden area.
There is a playground outside Butterfly World, part of Tradewinds Park South, and kids can have fun on the structure and swings, beside a lake.
After your visit, have lunch at Chipotle Mexican Grill on Highway 441- yum! And then head over for a pony ride at Tradewinds Park North.
Other butterfly conservatories to check out are the butterfly rainforest at Florida Museum of Natural History in Gainesville (my favorite) and Wings of the Tropics at Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden in Miami.

Directions

Butterfly World is located in Tradewinds Park (the south section) at 3600 W Sample Rd  Coconut Creek, FL 33073, call (954) 977-4400.
Exit Florida Turnpike at Sample Rd and head west on Sample Rd. Immediately turn left into Tradewinds Park and follow the signs to Butterfly World.
Open daily 9-5, with last entrance at 4pm.  Closed Easter Sunday, Thanksgiving Day, and Dec 25.
Admission is $25 for adults, and $20 for children aged 3-11. Annual passes are $40 for adults and $30 for children aged 3-11.
Chipotle Mexican Grill, 4220 N. State Road 7, Coral Springs FL 33067, call (954) 960-4000.

Click on map for interactive view