Wings of Paradise: Family Travel and a Butterfly Rescuer

First catch of the day. Payton lands one easily at Wings of Paradise near Cambridge.

Ainsley waited and waited. At first the butterflies swirling around her head were really making her nervous. Then she started to get a bit more comfortable and, when her sister proudly landed one carefully on her finger, well, my competitive six-year-old was not be to outdone. Here little sister finally had her moment.

The Blue Morpho butterfly – just like on Diego. This one is easier to capture in the cartoon show than in real life. When it lands to eat, its wings close up and a camouflaged brown butterfly sits in its place, completely hidden in the trees. Payton and Ainsley in the lobby of Wings of Paradise Butterfly Conservatory.

Where can you spend an afternoon fantasizing you are deep in the rain forest of Costa Rica as Blue Morpho butterflies swirl around you magically? Wings Of Paradise butterfly conservatory is located just outside of Cambridge in a tiny spot known as Breslau.

Wings Of Paradise butterfly conservatory is an excellent, affordable, educational field trip to take with the kids. If you are in southern Ontario, the road trip is worth it. But be warned this is not a place for rampaging preschoolers. More for the school-aged set. Even with my girls, now six and nine, I had to remind them a few times to walk, because this is a spot you want to soak in and not race through. Also you don’t want to step on the butterflies. Which is not to say that you need to walk on egg shells, but a bit of caution goes a long way.

Did you know butterflies tend to hide on rainy days and we’ve had several of those this summer. Try not to visit then. We picked a sunny day and packed our snacks and our GPS and were excited to learn more. So with that in mind, and armed with another one of my Lay’s Chip Trips vouchers, for buy one get one free admission, (we saved about $8) we headed down Highway 401 for the afternoon.

The space is new and clean and Wings of Paradise is a lovely spot. Make note it is near the K-W airport, so if you go for lunch at the cafeteria style restaurant inside, you will be able to spot several airplanes. Also make sure the tank is filled with gas as the building is in a remote spot. We paid about $25 for our day and went through the conservatory numerous times as my sixer got braver each time through the rainforest.

Ainsley started pretending she was Diego, animal rescuer, about the fourth time through, when she spied a butterfly on the ground, looking wounded. She managed to scoop him gently off the ground, without touching the wings and placed him back on a plant. For pictures, patience is key, but also I noted girls who wore straw hats had many butterflies land on them and also butterfly print shirts seemed to somehow attract these beautiful creatures.

This Wings of Paradise family day trip was entirely worthwhile. I only wished that there had been a guide giving regular tours through to point out the varieties present and perhaps to discuss some of the background and geographical information. That would have made the day even more educational and it would enhance the experience. We will return to this spot.

Thriftymommastips rating $$$$ out of $$$$$.