The Original Mackinac Island Butterfly House & Insect World

This place is so majestic and I make sure to comeback every time I am on the island! I am not a butterfly person and typically would not do something like this but for some reason this place is magical! The garden itself is so pretty and peaceful, and the butterflies are just the cherry on top. Make sure you wear bright colors or vibrant patterns, but even if you don’t the butterflies will still land on you! You can easily spend an hour in there (even tho it’s a relatively small garden) cuz it’s just so pretty:)

My wife talked me into going through this butterfly enclosure - and I'm glad she did. It was really quite well done. It was interesting seeing all of the many different kinds of butterflies. You are in the enclosure with them, watching them fly from one flower to the next. We were there for a butterfly release. That was interesting to see how they do the release. I wouldn't delay or rush your schedule to see the release. Just sitting in the enclosure is the good part! After the butterfly enclosure there is a following room with various walking sticks and other insects & reptiles. Apologies for the video... Little buggers move quick!

I was mesmerised by the butterflies!!! We had a wonderful experience at this place. First i thought its too pricey but it was worth it. They had amazing collection of butterflies and information. Not only butterflies but also some insects and some snakes, some small animals. I just loved the whole experience and would definitely recommend to everyone. We had experience of butterfly house from Maui, Hawaii, but this beats that! Specially for kids its wonderful experience. We been to Mackinac before but we didn’t go at that time. I’m glad we went there this time. All the butterflies were marvellous and they are taking pretty good care of them. Definitely recommend to everyone.

Highly recommend visiting the butterfly house! 🦋 we have been to the island the past 6 yrs & this was our 1st time. The staff is friendly & knowledgeable. The admission fee allows you multiple visits for the entire time you are on the island. You can sit & relax & see the different butterflies up close & personal! Our 16 & 18 yr olds loved it! Attached to it is the bug, reptile room if you like those things too.

Price is a little steep, but the butterfly house is gorgeous and makes for some great photos. They give you a butterfly identification guide and the staff are present, knowledge, and happy to answer questions! Nice way to pass an hour!

I visited this wonderful Butterfly House on Sept. 8th, 2023. The staff were incredible helpful and educated me on all sorts of things I never knew existed their insect world ( and I’ve visited a couple other butterfly houses in my past ). So it was nice to be educated. The place was also peaceful and enchanting. Ruth the manager was there on-site and was very passionate and patient with me and others who came in. I run a store in Mackinaw so it was refreshing to be on the other side of things and be treated so well. Enjoy a couple photos, i wont post inside because like many things it can only be appreciated in person. Cheers! Nathan

Most peaceful and gorgeous exhibit ever. Butterflies were lovely. 100/10 would recommend making this a stop during your visit to the island. It’s a must see! Admission is rather expensive but if you like this kind of stuff at all, it’s worth the price.

I visited here with my 12 yo daughter. The main exhibit is basically a large open garden room with some water features and many flowering plants for the butterflies. There are many different types of butterflies flying around you in the room. We enjoyed watching them and took quite a few pictures. It was a nice experience.

Why not have a butterfly greenhouse on an island that's only accessible to visitors for half of the year? You might as well. I'm kind of jealous of these butterflies and insects that live at The Original Butterfly House. They get to flit and walk about, undisturbed, from November through April. But come May, they have to dust themselves off and fluff their hair, because visitors are coming. Mackinac Island's busy times are late spring through fall (late October), and I imagine that's when the butterfly house is also busy. We visited in fall, the week before the island started closing up. We got to see lots of butterflies in the greenhouse (apparently, there are hundreds!), plus the resident insects and even a hedgehog. At certain times of the day, some of the animals and insects will be taken out of their containers, and a docent will display them and talk about them. The hedgehog was super cute, but we didn't get to touch him -- just look at him. You experience lots of live butterflies flying and landing on you in the greenhouse. Some people (me) think that it's cool to have a butterfly land on you. Other people (my youngest child) do not think it's cool, and they are grossed out and it makes them scream. Your mileage may vary! Fortunately, if you ain't about those winged insects, you can keep it moving and just visit the other exhibits, which feature insects that live safely behind glass. But if you ask me, the greenhouse is a nice, peaceful place to sit and enjoy looking at butterflies and tropical plants. This is a small attraction, but your admission price grants you access all day. So, come and go as you please!

Self guided, spend as much time here as you please. Sit and wait for the butterflies to land on you. Beautiful blues and greens and oranges from all over the world. Would be 5 stars if they had a restroom. That's tough to not have at a children's attraction.

Oh my goodness--all the butterflies! We absolutely adored our visit to The Original Butterfly House. We came here after finding them on Yelp and really on a bit of a whim and then ended up spending more time than we had intended as we got so completely lost in the butterfly magic. After purchasing your tickets, when you first walk in, you can stop first and see a collection of live chrysalis, some with butterflies beginning to emerge and some butterflies having just emerged. It was magical and we were completely mesmerized. Then you enter the butterfly sanctuary that's rich, green, and teeming with butterfly life, It's relatively small but we so enjoyed wandering through and then eventually found a seat (careful not to disturb any butterflies, of course!) on one of their benches and just sat and enjoyed the fluttering scenery. Amazing! Get to it!

This was a great place to visit they have a butterfly release twice a day and they bring out their bearded dragon once a day. They have way more than just butterflies! They have a wall full of insects! My daughter got to see she dream pet in real life! They have an axolotl in their exhibit. The butterflies are constantly flying around everywhere landing on your hand, head, and back! A great experience for sure!

Excellent experience! The staff was so friendly and knowledgeable! The butterflies loved me and the girls in my group, haha; and we were lucky enough to see a few coming out of their cocoon and the release!

We loved it! We spent like a solid hour here. If you love butterflies and other insects this place is great. There were around 1500 butterflies in the main room that free fly and may land on you (don't pick them up!!). They have staff watching for those breaking rules which was appreciated, they definitely prioritize protecting the butterflies from damage from humans. There are also very cute tiny quails in there too. In another section there are various insects and some turtles. Then a nice little gift shop. Pricing was fair, $14 adults, $9 children and 4 & under are free , it gets you in an unlimited amount of times. They're usually open 10am-7pm during peak season and 10am-6pm off season. You get a free butterfly ID chart you can keep or recycle with your ticket.

Wasn't planning on going here but glad we did. Saw a lot of cool butterflies and even had one land on us!! My daughters loved it here. Is a little bit of a walk from downtown but not crazy. No public bathroom in there just an fyi.

Located behind the white church and up the hill is the butter house. I have not been to a butterfly house before, so I do not have an experience to compare it to. We came in the beginning of May so there were about 3 other people inside of the butterfly house while we were there. The staff here are great. They really are really passionate about the butterflies and will answer any questions that you may have. My favorite part of the exhibit is seeing all the chrysalis's and watching the butterflies take their first flight. It is really mesmerizing to watch the chrysalis shake because a butterfly is about to emerge, or the wings of a butterfly still be crumped since they were just inside the chrysalis. The inside of the butterfly house is very pretty. Tons of butterflies from all over the world. They have fun souvenirs in the gift shop. My friends bought some of those candies that have bugs inside of them. We came back at 4PM for the animal encounter. Here we were able to hold a beard dragon, hedgehog, walking stick bug, and even a cockroach. You are not able to hold the tarantula or the scorpion since they are both venomous. If you can come for this or the butterfly release. They can give you a wristband to come back later in the day.

It's very small and they should regulate how many people come in at a time but hey, mackinac island is small and there are SOOOO MANY people there. There was a big museum after the butterflies. I saw some of the craziest and ugliest bugs I've ever seen. Scary actually because some were so big! And then there was also a fake beehive and lots of bees to see! I had a great time. They gave me a butterfly guide and they even released some butterflies when I was in there :)

I love butterfly houses and this one is no exception. For $10, you get unlimited visits during your time on the island. The variety of butterflies here was amazing. A butterfly's lifespan is about 10 days and they receive about 400 butterflies from all over the world weekly. There's also a room full of bugs to look at after you have had your fill of butterflies. The people working here are nice and friendly. ....| \ _ , , , - - , , _ , .../ , ` . - ' ` ' . _ \ - ; ; ; , _ ..| , a - ) ) _ . ; . ( ` - ` - ' - ' ' - - - ' ' ( _ / . _ ) - ' ( _ \ _ ) 2019

Better than expected We were there on a Sunday. This is one of the few things to do on the island if it's raining or too hot to be outside. We had been to several butterfly things in large botanical gardens ect this was similar. It was better than we had expected. Keep in mind all butterfly exhibits are REALLY hot and often humid. they say if you were colorful clothing its more likely to attract the butterflies to land on you. If you are going to return later that day they give you a bracelet or something to let you return for not extra cost. we knew we weren't coming back .. so didn't do that. i stayed in there as long as i could taking pics then went to the outter bug exhibit which was small. They had some sort of lizard out letting people hold or touch it if they wanted. lots of butterflies!!!

We were walking around on the Mackinac Island and it suddenly rained. Thank goodness we found this butterfly and insect conservatory, so we ended up spending quite some time at this place as we were waiting for the rain to stop. The conservatory itself wasn't too large in size - we had a total of 3 rooms to walk through: first was a room full of preserved butterfly display (and some live chrysalises), second was a tropical room full of live butterflies, then third was the insect room. My favorite was the second one: it was like a tropical oasis where lots of butterflies just flied around near you and they didn't even flinch when they saw people around. It was amazing. The third room was also interesting as here they displayed quite a range of preserved insects such as beetles, spiders, scorpions etc. The ticket price was $12/visitor (I think), but it was an all-day ticket.

What a cool stop with really wonderful people running it! $10 is a bit expensive for the experience IMO but you do get a free pass to come the next day also. It's small but they put a lot of love in what they do and it's great to support this!

My friends and I decided to stop into the Butterfly House on a trip to Mackinaw Island this past weekend. Although we probably wouldn't return as four adults without any children, we were not disappointed. Entry for adults during our visit was $12 for people ages 12 and up and $8 for children above age 4. We were also able to get a small discount coupon from our bike rental provider. The staff was very friendly and were happy to answer any questions that we had. They also offered a free identification chart with the different species of butterflies in it that we would see. My friends and I made a game out of it whenever we saw a new one. We were able to learn about all sorts of butterflies and saw species from all over the world starting at the cocoon phase. Besides butterflies, we were surprised to find a few reptiles and other insects on display to learn about as well. The exhibit was a lot smaller than expected, but it was quite educational and held our interest for the short time that we did spend there. As long as you aren't expecting some huge museum sized exhibition you won't be let down. Mackinaw Island is small so I wasn't surprised that this was also. It's worth checking out for something to do, especially with children, but I wouldn't take the trip to Mackinaw specifically for this.

This is the number one spot my family has to visit when we come up this way. It is true that it's a small place- but those who say they're in and out in five minutes clearly are not really getting into the spirit of things, and aren't stopping to "smell the roses" so to speak. I could spend all day in there. It's peaceful, it's quiet. There's a nice trickle of water from the little fountain that's in there. There are a TON of butterflies, some more active than others. They give you a neat sheet when you walk in with all the species that are in there, so you can identify them all. Be careful where you walk and step lightly, so you don't hurt any of them. Stand still enough, and they'll land on you. After the butterfly house part, there's a little store with souvenirs, and a few cases filled with bugs and reptiles for you to gaze at. Plus, you get the famous big ole yellow sticker to wear around that says that you went!

This place was excellent. A storm was approaching, so this provided a great spot to visit next to our hotel since we couldn't stray too far. I highly recommend this place, it is a must-see attraction. TIP: Be on the lookout for ticket discounts, sometimes they have them in other shops on the island. 1. There's a viewing window that allows you to see dozens of butterfly cocoons - and at times see a butterfly actually emerging from the cocoon. My words don't do it justice, very cool to see. 2. There's a butterfly room, and if you've never been to one, this is a great one. They're flying freely all over the place, and it's beautiful. For some good photo/video captures, you should be able to make good use of the iPhone's "Portrait" setting for on-flower still pictures, and the slow-motion camera for the busier butterflies. 3. There's an insect/critter room, and it has some great choices for the living variants. A beehive, several insects, a few critters, and a tarantula. I can't remember seeing a tarantula that looked as enormous and healthy as this thing. It looked like a fake, like they were trying to show us what the largest spider in history looked like 10 million years ago. If your kids are terrified of bugs (my kids used to think that everything with wings was a bee...), the cocoon viewing window may be really cool for them, but the butterfly room may not be a good space to try and help them with that problem. It's not a tight space, but if you have 10-15 other people in there, with butterflies literally flying and landing everywhere, wrestling with a very upset and anxious kid could be big trouble.

This place is truly wonderful. Great for all different age types. We went in as recommended by some locals and I am so glad we did. The lady who greeted us was very friendly and answered all of our questions we had. You could easily spend 30 min to 1 hour here. It is kept up very nicely. If you are visiting during the winter like we did its a great escape from the cold. Without ruining to much for you there are more than just butterflies flying around, you may learn a thing or two. We were just lucky enough to catch two butterflies coming out of their cocoons. Pro Tip: Some of the coupon books and maps have discounts for this place.

Absolutely serene, peaceful, calming, and an absolute must if you visit the island. Your experience begins in the hatching room, where with a little bit of luck you'll get to see a butterfly come out of its chrysalis. The staff is there to point things out, and explain the process to you. From there you go onto the butterfly room itself, and all you need to do is simply find a place to sit and watch the magic unfold before you. We had butterflies swapping around us the whole time, landing on us even at times. It was like stepping into a magical dream. The butterflies come in an incredible array of colors. About the only drawback is that the room is quite warm, which is obviously done for the butterflies comfort. The staff remains available throughout your visit, always eager to answer questions. The adjacent room includes a collection of dead bugs and spiders. This is interesting to look at, but not nearly as enthralling as the butterfly room. If you're going to be staying on the island for any amount of time, be sure to ask for a wristband. We were pleased to find out that we were able to get back into the butterfly house the next day for free with our wristband. On an island where you pay so much for just about everything, getting a free reentry was a nice bonus. I can't recommend this place, I wish I could go back tomorrow.

Awesome exhibits but it's a touted as a family experience and the closest bathrooms are the visitors center 0.5 miles away. Not a good scenario for little kids. Can't touch the butterfly's either making the other butterfly house on the island a far better experience.

Butterfly house is an annual tradition for my family and my kids, who now are four and eight years old. Unfortunately today Sierra, one of the employees, completely embarrassed my eight-year-old daughter in front of all of the customers at butterfly house. Instead of educating their young visitors on what butterfly food is, she reprimanded her in front of the entire customer base at butterfly house this morning. It was a flower that my daughter found on the floor and was feeding the butterfly. Sierra actually came and ripped the flower out of her hand and said " that's butterfly food and now I have to throw it away!". All of the guests around us were staring at my daughter and she was completely embarrassed. She did not know what she did wrong. This is a place for kids and if butterfly house does not allow children to touch butterflies (by landing on them, bc we know and respect the rules) maybe they should not allow children in at a certain age. Sierra was extremely defensive and rude. I walked over to Sierra and asked her to speak for a moment in private. I explained to her how upset I was, and how she handled the situation, and she was extremely defensive and only apologized after I asked her to, I also asked her to apologize to my daughter, which at that point had everyone's attention. I recommend educating your customers on what butterfly food is what is not food, what flowers you can touch and flowers you cannot touch, instead of embarrassing your customers. I am extremely upset and hope this does not happen to somebody else's eight-year-old daughter, who absolutely loves butterflies. Terrible customer service. So embarrassing for all of us. I would recommend Sierra go through customer service training. Again, this is a family tradition, but Sierra ruined our entire experience this morning, not sure we will return

This was one of my favorite attractions on the island. The actually butterfly room was small but it was packed with butterflies and flowers. There had to have been hundreds of butterflies flying around you. They also provided identification sheets to help you find all of the different species. They do also have butterflies hatching that you can see before entering the butterfly house and another room of bugs of turtles to see before you exit. The only reason I'm not giving it a 5/5 is because of the price. It was $22 for my husband and I, but we had a coupon that took off $2. I understand the upkeep, but $12 per person for a 20-30 minute trip is a bit steep.

$10 admission for unlimited visits? That is pretty cheap for a fun to-do. This place is pretty neat. I don't get to interact with butterflies in person much anymore in the wild - and certainly not with species and colors this diverse. There's a decent sized area filled with all kinds of butterflies doing their thing. Each is interesting to look at in it's own way and you can learn a bit about these beautiful (and scary if you look too close!) creatures from the presentation room. There's also a small secondary room with some other insects. I do always worry a bit for the butterflies when children are around - it is good to be mindful and have calm kids to prevent any accidents. If you are lucky a butterfly might even land on you (make sure to check for tag-alongs before leaving!) This was totally a fun activity for adults and I can see it being great for kids who can manage their emotions/reactions. Thanks for the work you do butterfly house!

Really beautiful . It's unreal how many exotic butterflies from around the world converged here all in one spot. The mix of gorgeous butterflies flying overhead and landing oh so briefly on trees and humans alike makes for gorgeous pictures if you can manage to capture one of these beauties mid-flight or in quiet solitude. Just remember to try and sit still and they will land on you and stay awhile. It's rather breathtaking and a cool way to spend an afternoon while visiting the island. I've gotten some unbelievable pics here, including some nice up close shots that I blew up and now have have framed on the wall. Admission is pretty reasonable (translation: you can still buy a truckload of souvenirs on the island afterward!) and it's an affordable treat for the family. The kids will love it.

I am perplexed on the amount of positive reviews. Please, please, please do not waste your time with this tourist trap. We were told the visit would take 45 minutes and that was a complete joke...the size of the "attraction" is laughable. That said, the staff is friendly and enjoyable, but this is not at all worth the price of admission.

My brother and wife decided to have their wedding ceremony here and it was beautiful. It was at 7pm so there was no one else around. The ceremony was only about 10 people. I think they said they do 2-3 weddings here a week so it seems to be quite popular. Also the butterflies were pretty. I was afraid one would land on me. (A bug is a bug) But they were nice to look at.... from afar. :P

A must do if you visit Mackinac island. They are so beautiful! The employees working the gift shop and butterfly house were the most welcoming and friendliest people we came across at Mackinac.

Meh, we could have skipped this. Very small, you maybe are in there five minutes, and thats stretching it. We added the tickets on to our carriage ride. Definately should have skipped it.

My daughter and I love butterflies. We grow milkweed and collect monarch caterpillars and put them in a netted cage from chrysalis to monarch and release them. So heck ya, we were excited. Cool collection of chrysalis. Very very hit area of free flying butterflies. Not 5 stars because I feel like they charge way too much. Brookfield Zoo has an extensive butterfly area that is much more comfortable and charges $3 per person. My daughter said she'd definitely do it again. I would as well.

This is - as they make pains to point out - the original of the two butterfly houses on Mackinac Island. The whole rivalry has a bit of "original Tony's" feel to it. That being said, this and its mortal enemy - Wings of Mackinac are both nice establishments. The Original Butterfly House is slightly larger although it did feel like there were more actual butterflies at the Wings. Admission here also includes an insect exhibit. The live insects were not particularly interesting, but the collections of preserved insects in the display cases were actually quite impressive, featuring some of the largest beetles and other kinds from all over the world.

This is an unbelievable place for anybody of any age who wants to feel that special feeling by walking around with butterflies. I love butterflies so I was right at home here. Make sure you bring your camera, especially if it has a macro lens. You will get some amazing pictures. This is a must stop on the island.

$10 to get in and I think worth it. You can hangout in the butterfly house as long as you want. They are a ton of butterfly flying around. There was a lady in when I was there pointing out the rare cool ones.

We've done this every time we've gone to the island. Extremely small space and the price has gone up every year. It's grossly overpriced! $9 for and adult 12 and up. 4.50 I believe for kids. You may be in there 5 mins but that's pushing it. It's very hot so be prepared for that. The butterflies are breathtakingly beautiful. Get a wrist band and you can go back later in the day if you wish. But the cost, it's honestly not worth it. I was disappointed by one of their workers. A woman passing out stickers to the kids, very rude. I teach my kids to use manners, she gave my son a sticker, he's VERY shy, he says "thank you," and she goes "uh huh." You're welcome works so much better and doesn't leave a bad taste in my mouth. I even said thank you and she said yup. If you don't like your job lady, don't work there!! So simple!

I went there a couple weeks ago and $12 is a little expensive to see a 5 minute attraction if you ask me.

I can't believe this has been on the island for years and this is my first time hearing about it! I am really glad we went; it was a nice little stop on our bike ride. I have never been to such an active butterfly house before and the staff were very helpful, friendly and knowledgeable, sharing stories about the butterflies and even the turtles in the insect exhibit. They also have a nice gift shop. Highly recommended!

As we walked up to this place I was skeptical and not sure I wanted to spend $30 for the family to get in, but I'm glad we did. It is pretty cool to see hundreds of butterflies flying by, with some even landing on you. So many beautiful colors. The insect/reptile house seemed more like someone's personal collection of pets. We could have stayed in the butterfly house for an hour easily, but it was getting kind of busy, so we decided to let others enjoy it.

This place is awesome. Guides were very engaged and informative. The hedgehog was fun. The amount for butterflies was amazing.

We really enjoyed our visit to the Butterfly House and Insect Museum. There were plenty of butterflies to enjoy and we appreciated the cards we were provided to help identify the many different species present. The attendants were helpful and friendly and had no problem patiently answering the 101 questions from our granddaughter. Thank you for a great visit!

A house packed with butterflies and other critters located behind St Anne's Church. Overall while it was interesting seeing the many types of butterflies, bugs, and other creatures, the price of admission for two people without an interest in entomology for both living and dead bugs seemed a little steep for the amount of time ultimately spent amongst the critters of the house

Lots of pretty butterflies and amazing pricing. Took my camera and got some great shots. They even said I could come back any time that week for free if I was staying on island. I will definitely be back with my daughter.

Not quite as amazing as many other made it out to be. I would spend my money on food or bikes around the island instead :) If you love butterflies then definitely give it a shot.

The staff was friendly, but man it was pretty underwhelming. It wasn't horrible by any means, but my wife and I felt we fell into a tourist trap with this one.

I loved the butterfly house! It is small in size but is filled with many different butterflies! Make sure to wear bright colors and you may get some to land on you!

This is a neat spot, but overpriced for what it is. We walked through in about 10 minutes and thought it was a cool experience, but totally overpriced. They have a pretty variety of butterflies, but unlike some places where you can feed the butterflies and have them land on you, this is just a look and see experience. If you love butterflies, check it out! If you're just looking for something to do in Mackinac, save your money!

My trip to Mackinac Island isn't complete without visiting the Butterfly House. Went there for the 1st time in about 4 years, and it's better. Not only are there butterflies, but also insects, and 2 ponds with goldfish.

This is a fun little place to stop while on the island. Besides the live butterflies, which are very cool to watch, they have lots of other live insects and tons more in display cases. It doesn't take long to see everything, which is fine. Admission is cheap and if you keep you receipt you can come back later too. This place is definitely worth a quick stop, especially if you have kids with you - they'll love it.

What an amazing place! They have a wide variety of butterfly species for you to gawk at and take pictures. It's small, but intimate. Stick out your arm, and you'll likely have a few of these beauties take a breather on your arm as well. Of course, the GF wasn't having it and ran away as soon as she saw one land on me ...

Terrible place... I have a chronic disease and they were not accommodating at all. I asked for a bathroom and said it was an emergency and the guy said they didn't have one. Sent me on a hunt for a bathroom that didn't exist. I went back to the place to ask the guy if he had an employee bathroom but saw a family walk into a room that was clearly a bathroom. When I confronted him about it he said it was only for kids. I am a minor so legally I am still a kid. He then proceeded to argue about it with me like a very immature inconsiderate human being. Terrible experience. I do not recommend it for any one who has any sort of health condition. They will not treat you with decency or respect or like you are a normal human being if you do.