Stratford-upon-Avon Butterfly Farm

Rain or shine, families can enjoy a memorable day out at Stratford Butterfly Farm in Warwickshire. Discover many of the world’s most beautiful butterflies in a wonderfully exotic environment of tropical flowers with splashing waterfalls and pools filled with fish at Stratford upon Avon Butterfly Farm.

Watch in awe as over a thousand spectacular and vibrantly coloured butterflies fly and feed around you. None of the birds in the flight area feed on insects so the butterflies are quite safe. Keep your eyes open for Princess, the resident green iguana – you’re most likely to spot her high in the trees or on top of the heaters, toasting her tummy!

The landscaped tropical greenhouse at Stratford Butterfly Farm houses the largest tropical butterfly display in the United Kingdom. Visitors can hope to see more than 250 different species of tropical butterfly, from 20 different countries. At any one time there are around 2,000 free-flying butterflies.

Some of the butterflies will have been bred at the farm while others have been imported from conservation projects or village projects in the tropics. In this way the farm can both help preserve the rainforest and educate visitors as well.

Take the kids to the Discovery Zone and find out more about the amazing life cycle of a butterfly. See caterpillars of all colours, shapes and sizes, cocoons, silk moths and shining pupae and check what is happening in the Emerging Case. If you’re lucky, you may spot a butterfly emerging from its pupa and getting ready for its very first flight.

Rainforest Realm, the innovative new exhibition, features a stunning spectacled caiman and adds an exciting and educational element to the immersive tropical experience against the backdrop of a mesmerising cenote, such as is often found in limestone-rich regions of Central America.

Minibeast Metropolis is home to a huge insect collection, spiders from around the world, snakes and reptiles such as minute poison arrow frogs, a skink and a chameleon. Look out for the fascinating Leafcutter Ant Colonies and one of the largest spiders in the world! All are viewed in safety behind glass.

Watch the website for details of Meet the Minibeast and Butterfly Lifecycle demonstrations in school holidays – perfect for the would-be naturalists in the family. Before you leave, pop into the Nature Inspired Gift Shop and browse a variety of lovely nature and butterfly inspired presents for all ages.

The Butterfly Farm is only five minutes’ walk from the centre of Stratford. Take the footbridge over the Avon and follow the signs to the entrance.

Opening times

Open daily (closed Christmas Day); times vary

Please see Stratford-upon-Avon Butterfly Farm’s website to find out more.