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| - This gets three tentative stars.
It's advertised to be the largest indoor butterfly atrium in "the Americas" and I suppose that is true. But the experience overall was extremely underwhelming and I will tell you why.
First, the good. The Butterfly Exhibit in Boston is much smaller than this place. It's actually more like a closet than anything. So the good news is that Scottsdale's exhibit beats Boston's by several factors.
Now, the bad. I went to the Butterfly Exhibit in Xcaret last year and it was FOUR times bigger than Scottsdale's. Butterfly Wonderland measures ten thousand square feet...Xcaret is forty-thousand and is two full levels.
Now back to Butterfly Wonderland: After paying the fee ($$$!) you go down a hallway showing meager butterfly art. Then you're led into the theater, where you see a brief 3-D movie on Monarch Butterflies. Nice movie. It's definitely geared for kids, so it's very streamlined and the language of the movie is oh-so-easy to understand...but the sheer simplicity of the movie means that lots of information gets weeded out. I am an information geek. Cram my cranium with it! I can take it. Even as a child, I could. All that information would entice me to buy books, research, maybe even plant my own butterfly garden so that I can be a part of the action...
So all too soon, the movie ends. And you are led to the Butterfly Atrium. The atrium itself is very nice, and it should be, since it is brand new. Thousands of butterflies abound! In the air, clustered around flowers, gathering upon each other to get at bowls heaped with cut fruit.
Ten thousand feet is ten thousand feet...and all too soon you walk in your little semi-circle and it's over. I walked slowly, took many pictures and some videos, and was still in and out of the "largest atrium of the Americas" in less than 12 minutes.
After leaving the atrium was a tinny ant exhibit, bee exhibit, scorpion exhibit, and then some aquariums filled with fish you can see at the pet store. The lighting was pretty bad. Many signs were permanently hidden in shadows, making them very difficult to impossible to read. As for the fish and other creatures, the tags just showed their names but no other information. Where do they live? Why are they featured? What do they eat? Are they endangered? These are questions that children and adults ask.
So, the next stop was a stingray tank, which you can step up to. Being able to touch these magnificent animals is definitely a highlight. However. At the Wildlife World Zoo, you can purchase some food for a buck or two and actually FEED these graceful creatures.
Then there is the obligatory gift shop...for kids. Not too many items that would interest an adult. And remember, I'm just a big kid at heart...so I know that the chinsy toys offered just didn't cut it for me as a child as well.
The effort that went into this place is tremendous. But it's very small and you can seriously be done with the whole thing in less time than it took to drive here. I know and understand that they have to cater to the mentality of children, but that does not mean you have to dumb yourself down. Challenge children to think! Challenge their geography! Challenge their vocabulary! Teach them to read and write cursive! But I digress.
This is certainly worth a look. And a look is all you will get. You'll get some very nice pics from the Atrium. Other than that, I recommend the Wildlife World Zoo.
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