Butterfly Gardens

Costa Rica’s varied ecosystems and habitats are famed for their biodiversity. This is most evident in the hundreds of butterfly species that inhabit the cloud forests, marshes and rainforests throughout the country. Visitors have the opportunity to observe butterflies and other tropical insects at a number of butterfly gardens, all of which offer educational tours.

Most notable are The Butterfly Farm in La Guacima de Alajuela, the Monteverde Butterfly Garden, and La Paz Butterfly Observatory, part of La Paz Waterfall Gardens. The latter is the country’s largest butterfly garden with more than twenty species of butterflies soaring freely in a natural habitat the size of an American football field. La Paz is located near the town of Vara Blanca, about an hour and a half drive north of San Jose.

Within San Jose itself, the Spirogyra Butterfly Garden is an ideal side trip from the city's usual hustle and bustle. Located in the suburb of Guadalupe, the small garden offers self-guided tours and walks down its Contemplation Path. More than 30 butterfly and moth species are represented at the Spirogyra Butterfly Garden, though these form just a small fraction of Costa Rica's total species.