Reviews of Butterfly Conservatory (Zoo)

Carolyn Ford

This was such a disappointing experience. The aquarium is really small. There's two floors but the second floor has a handful of small tanks. There is one outdoor exhibit and doesn't even require a ticket. Altogether, it took 20 minutes to see everything. Small is fine except that it costs $20 per person to visit plus parking. It's super crowded which makes it hard to move and see anything. Also nobody was wearing a mask which is just a bit uncomfortable seeing how packed it is inside. It was just really underwhelming, crowded, and a waste of time and money.

Davina Rosado

Cute little Aquarium.easy to find. Yes you have to pay parking of 5$ plus entrance fee. But worth it. They have a hands on touch pool for the learning enthusiast

Stephanie Reynolds-Golgan

Definitely worth the trip. It's small but it's mighty. Very educational and fun! The outside pinnipeds love just hanging out in the sun and swimming around. The fish and animals inside are just...wow. Don't forget to stop by Shark & Ray Bay. You can touch the animals!

Mark Gomes

Small but cute. Nice California Sea Lion show. A touch tank with sting rays is fun. It's a a great aquarium for younger children who who may get bored easily. The aquarium presents an important ecological message.

Tonya Johnson-Jenkins

Small place but was an amazing aquarium with lots packed in! So much to see! Check it out when visiting Buffalo! We spent over an hour here! Loved the shows.

TheOutdoorsy TruckerGuy

Not a very big exhibit for what you pay for admission.. You can see it all in about 15 min but they do have some pretty cool aquatic creatures. The shark and ray exhibit is awesome! Don't forget to go upstairs too!

Srithar Rajendran

We have expected lot in that place. But only few water animals. For kids, it was a great place. Luckily that time we had a seal animal show. That was great to watch. For adults, I won’t recommend this place. I

Petrina D

My hubby n I went here while I was visiting the falls. The staff was nice informative,we watched sea lion show which was free. They had a touch section for stingrays. Was good experience overall. Just found it to be smaller then expected but was still ok. ????????????????

Lisa Powers

We enjoy this aquarium. Anytime we take a day trip out to Niagara Falls we stop here too. It’s fun for my daughter. It does get quite busy tho, right now they still recommend getting advance tickets due to covid. They also are strongly encouraging mask wearing no matter vaccination status since many of the patrons are children under 12 that cannot get the vaccine yet. You also have to pay for parking which is 5$ and you can do it through texting/website or at the meter. It’s extremely hard to maintain any sort of social distancing here, I do feel they are letting too many people in at once and it is quite crowded while trying to look into some of the exhibits. And the sea lion show which is the main attraction gets super crowded. We went first thing in the morning when the crowds were way less and we left at lunch time when it was starting to get mobbed. Yes it is small, yes it’s a bit expensive but we still think it’s worth visiting. They do a good job of informing about conservation efforts and it’s a gem that our family likes to support.

Solomen Conner

Great atmosphere and show with the sea lions. Parking was only five dollars and it is a fun and interesting aquarium. It's not that big and it's easy to get around inside. Memorable event and the whole family enjoyed it.

Ray Belliveau

Very wonderful staff and lots of fun at great prices. You actually get to interact with the sea life. The sea lion exhibit, it's really cool, which by the way I just so happen to have the pleasure of painting. What a wonderful place!!

Anthony Smiley

I was very disappointed in this place, first off it was way to expensive for a place this small. I know it’s an aquarium but the smell was overwhelming, the upper level outside was closed and I was looking forward to seeing that, if parts of it are closed you should charge full, way to high price, I felt way to much anxiety because of how small it was. I only gave two stars because I got a cool picture of the jelly fish

Ryan

Pretty neat aquarium, albeit a little small. The seal shows are definitely the main attraction.

Sunny_ rainclouds

What a wonderful experience! My partner and I did the 'penguin encounter' and had a superb time. Abby and Ally (no idea of correct spelling, sorry) helped us along our journey and it was phenomenal from start to finish. We saw much more of the overall penguin exhibit than expected and enjoyed our interaction with the actual penguins themselves, we enjoyed time in a small room with two penguins and two staff and it was funny and informative. Although this aquarium is small it packs a big punch. I would highly recommend attending if in the area.

Ruthie Wiley

The aquarium is small, but what habitats they do have are wonderful. They have a show with the sea lions and a play with the penguin activity. I highly suggest you buy tickets online prior to visiting and look at the times they are happening. Walk ups were being told they needed to wait. We did both activities and the staff and animals at both were fun and exciting to watch.

Piess Products

At first glance I dismissed the possibility of having a good time simply because of the external size of the facility. Once we entered though the place seemed to expand drastically. With a large selection of fish, touch tank, and shows- you will find something to please you. Admittedly, the animals could use much larger habitats which is limited because of square footage.

Geo “Geo” Leis

We did the penguin encounter and it was a great experience. To have the one on one with a penguin, and to see how funny they are up close was an incredible experience. The aquarium may be small however it's worth the stop.

Renee Beckland

Be sure to check out the sea lion show, the seal show, and penguin feeding time. It is a small aquarium, but there is plenty to see and enjoy. The staff is friendly and knowledgeable, they allow time during the shows to ask questions, very informative. Great for kids and adults.

Stacey Frank

We loved the aquarium. The stingray, and shark touch tank was awesome. Penguins were adorable and the sea lion show was amazing.

chicken smoothie

It was a very fun time! It was a bit smaller than I expected but it was very entertaining to watch the sea lion shows and the penguins. I very much enjoyed touching the fish in the touch pool. And to top off my time at the Aquarium I witnessed two penguins doing a little whoopie ????

Orvil Perez

Nice place for seeing different fish species, good conditions area.

Melodie Gossett

This place was so great. The staff was wonderful and so informative. The animals were awesome

Kiara Moravec

Very expensive and a tourist trap. However the limited number of tanks is okay, though many of the tanks should be bigger. The sea lion show is worth waiting for and you can tell the people presenting the show enjoy what they do. The touch tank is also quite a good experience and they give the fish plenty of space to stay where they cannot be touched.

Kristen

This truly was a disappointment. We got there at noon and finished with everything there was to do by 130ish and that included the 25 minutes we sat in the "attraction area" waiting on the sea lion show to begin.. There were penguins and the sea lions but that was it for main attractions. The "sea lion show" consisted of 3 employees who each performed with thier respective animal for no longer than 3 minutes each tossing fish treats for some high flipper fives. Downstairs there was a touch tank full of sting rays which was kind of neat. But when I say this wasn't worth the 25 minute drive or the cost of admission at all. Go anywhere else at all instead of this aquarium....literally ANYWHERE. Do better Niagara.

Ebony Prince

My children truly enjoyed everything. Being able to touch the stingray and baby shark was a plus. Facility is very clean and the staff are extremely friendly. Will visit again soon for more gift shop toys for my kids.

Melissa Hill

While the sea lions were amazing, I was blown away with how small this place was and felt the price was way too much for what you get. It takes literally 30 minutes to walk through the entire place and see all the exhibits. 40, if you read every placard. And god forbid you miss the parking lot signs! The minute you pull in it gives you a very negative vibe by threatening to have your car “booted” if you don’t download the app to pay for parking before you go in. The signs are everywhere and the app was confusing and I ended up paying $10 for 24 hours because the options weren’t clear in pricing or what they were for. In all this trip cost us $83 and it just wasn’t worth it. $20 for a ticket just seems like way to high a price for what little you get, especially if you’ve been to other places like the Long Beach Aquarium in CA or San Diego. Plus some of the staff were unfriendly and did not seem to want to interact with the public (in “Shark Bay” which is really a tiny pool with sting rays you can pet), although there were some nice staff too. I had been really excited to go here after moving gave to Buffalo from Los Angeles and bringing myself daughter and I gotta say, we were all really disappointed with the size and therefore experience. Except for the sea lion show, it felt like going to petco for fish.

surya

Weekends are crowded, weekdays are better. Small aquarium but kids will enjoy. Sea lion show (typically < 30 minutes) was good. Generally kept clean (main areas/rest rooms) and helpful staff.

Mike Warden

A small older style aquarium but they be kept it up very well. Lots of excellent tanks. Sea lions and seals. Penguins. We spent a little over an hour w no kids.

Titus Ponrathnam

It's a smal aquarium, but it is nice and informative. They house abandoned and sick seals and sea lions, and also display some interesting fish. A good place to learn. They have different attractions open at different times, so as to not stress the animals. So I suggest checking their schedule beforehand. Parking is not free.

Jill D

It's a pretty small aquarium but the staff were very friendly and informative. We watched the penguin feeding and the sea lion show, which were totally worth the admission. It wasn't too crowded either so I didn't feel rushed as I read the signs and watched the fish. Also happened to go on 7/16 which meant admission was $7.16 less than the regular price! Definitely worth the visit.

Rick Komas (TinyStudio)

The aquarium is small for the admission price which is a bit high for the time that takes to see the sea life. If you really took your time you can see everything thoroughly within 2 hours. There were three or four rays in the touch tank along with a few horseshoe crabs but it was difficult to really touch them because they stayed in the bottom area or by the rocks which is the filtration which is where they rays like to hide. The outdoor sea lion exhibit was nice but they looked bored and the indoor main tank was plain but they do have shows on a schedule. If you're looking for a bigger aquarium experience this is not it.

Jeni K

Immersive aquarium. Many aquatic species. The jelly fish room was my favorite. Gift shop and washrooms on premise. Fair admission price. Not far from the usa/canada border.

Raymond Ellis

I really enjoyed the Aquarium. Some of the highlights were the Rescue Harbor, the Humboldt Penguins and the Sea Lions. The trainers at the Humboldt Penguin habitat were very informative and interesting.

Megan McClintic

I want to rate this higher, but it is such a tourist trap. Very, very small for the price. Not a lot to see outside of the main attraction which is a variety of seals. They keep it absolutely packed as well, which makes it very difficult to move around and see the fish/animals. It was clean, but it was just too small to enjoy for the crowds.

Amanda Lauricella

It has pros and cons. I forgot just how small this aquarium is. It's also very pricey for how short of an experience it is. The only interactive part was touching the sting rays, which was pretty cool. If you've been to a larger, more interactive aquarium before (like Virginia Beach or Miami Seaquarium) this will be a huge let down. That aside, the first staff we encountered was very rude. The parking station was broken and takes your money but does not print a receipt (which it's supposed to) to prove you paid. The staff who we asked about this had an attitude right away and said the machine is broken (which was not indicated anywhere) and spoke to us as if we were wasting her time. The rest of the staff were nice. We got there a little before 1:30 as the sea lion show was ending, and the next one wasn't until 2hours later, which is way more time than it takes to go through the whole place twice. So, we missed that, too as there was no point in waiting around another 1+ hour. My daughter did enjoy, but it was her first time. Once you've seen it, it's not something worth coming back to for another visit.

steven wilson

The aquarium was great. Very knowledgeable staff at the touch tank. The kids had a great time.

Amanda Lindsey

This was a very neat aquarium. It was kind of small for the price. The best thing about the experience was the seal show!!! Now that made it worth it and was amazing!

Kansas Ceasr

Pretty decent place. I haven't been to this aquarium for many years, last time I went was about 20years ago.. it seems much different from then. I believe they updated the place, but I feel it is missing some animals and exhibits. I enjoyed walking thru and seeing all the different animals, and learning about the different fish and aquatic mammals. I enjoyed the seal show!! It was a special show for veterans day. :) The price for 2 adults was about $40, and didn't seem to crazy for what you get. People who give negative reviews, are probably the people who rush thru everything and don't actually read...or take the time to learn something new.. I spent about a hour, walking around taking pictures, watching the seal lion show and enjoying each exhibit. My husband enjoyed touching the rays, and seeing the seal lion show. We spent about $50 at the gift shop, and bought a large seal plush toy, a pen, a stuffed stingray and a bag. :D worth it to help the animals. My only complaint wasn't the smell, like some people.. it was actually the Jellyfish enclosure... The ones with the long tails... They at first seemed to be one jellyfish, but upon closer investigation were not one jelly but several.. that were tangled together.. I thought ohh this is odd?? But yes sadly their tails had become Tangled, and they are stuck together in a small tank... Please, someone see to it that they are untangled and maybe one put two in a tank? Instead of 6... That is my only complaint, other than that jelly issue ..it is a good place to spend a couple hours.

Brenda McDonald

Very nice Little aquarium. It had some fish and other animals we haven't seen before. Our boys enjoyed the seal show. One of our favorite things was playing with the penguins, they like to follow and play with you along the glass. The touch tank is a little deceiving, our one son was over the top excited about touching a shark, but the Bamboo sharks stayed in the deep water under the tree roots. Still a nice touch tank, and informative staff.

Susan Totaro

Not the biggest aquarium my Littles have been to, but I wanted them to experience what I grew up with and it didn't disappoint. They had a great time. And I love that the sea lions are still outside greeting you before you enter . Such good old & new memories.