I attended the STEAM Festival at the Texas Discovery Gardens and the artwork, the animal exhibit, the nature garden outside and the butterfly garden are all so phenomenal. A great date night, family trip, and perfect day trip excursion. The facility is beautiful, well lit, and spacious. A 5 out of 5! read more

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I came here last month on a sunny day and enjoyed exploring the inside and outside of the discovery gardens. The staff are friendly and knowledgeable about TDG. I happened to come when a field trip was taking place so there were plenty of people there. TDG has various reptiles, amphibians and insects on display inside. I got to see their noon butterfly release at the conservatory and hold a preserved butterfly. The conservatory was filled with thriving plants and butterflies which was besutiful to see. I appreciate that they keep the indoor and outdoor restrooms clean. The gardens were beautiful and well-maintained with plenty of places to sit. They have a couple of water fountains outside and a hand sanitizer dispenser before you head out to the gardens. TDG was peaceful and I enjoyed my visit, I would recommend coming here if you plan to spend the day in downtown Dallas or live in the area. The gift shop has some nice souvenirs, I'd recommend stopping there on your way out. The price for admission is inexpensive for what they have available. read more

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In the hushed shadows of Dallas Fair Park, sits a place that is filled with quiet beauty - Texas Discovery Gardens. It's not a big place, but it's filled with beautiful natural gardens and a Butterfly house that will amaze you. It's peaceful, never crowded, and you can spend hours here taking in all that is offered. In addition to the butterfly house, and the gardens, there's a snake house, trains, beautiful water features, and a play area for kids. I enjoy every visit to this place. read more

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Texas Discovery Gardens is a beautiful place to visit or to hold an event. The prices are kept low for the whole general public to enjoy the facility. They gave beautiful gardens, inside they have an art gallery, reptile and insect viewing, and a butterfly house. This is a great cheap activity for the whole family to enjoy. The staff are super friendly and are very helpful about answering any questions you have about the facility. read more

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Great place! Parking is on side available at no charge. Nice and polite staff. Butterfly house was the first stop we visited. At noon very knowledgeable and kind man, as I remember his name is John, was showing butterflies and telling stories and quizzing kids. Unfortunately, not many were very into that, but we stayed and interacted for a while. I took bunch of pretty pictures and enjoyed butterflies and flowers. Outside they have a garden, big playground, fountain, snake and turtle house and some other things to go through. It worth the value and time. They offer $1 ice cream too. Nice small gift shop, where kids and not only can find something to take with them for a good memory or use. I will recommend! read more

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Staff were very friendly and informative, and the indoor butterfly garden was gorgeous. I loved all of the cool benches and photo ops. So many different places to sit outside in the shade- it would be lovely to have a picnic out there. Outside there are many different gardens and lots of pretty flowers- there's a big fountain as well. It's very affordable to get in, & you can stay all day. read more

Texas Discovery Gardens - Botanical Gardens Near Me - Dallas, Texas

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Great Butterfly House! I had never been to anything like this thought I hear and read that many other exist. I was really more into this that I thought I might be! The indoor garden was really neat, where you start at the top of the building and wind your way down what feels to be through a bit of a jungle filled with butterflies. There is also a pretty extensive outdoor garden area that has a lot of kids play areas. It is a great time for the whole family and definitely worth the trip! read more

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Yesterday my daughter and I took a trip down to the Texas Discovery Gardens. It truly is a hidden gem as I had never known this location existed. We had a great time and it was a nice way to spend a couple of hours on a Saturday afternoon. Especially before it gets too hot out. The greenhouse was beautiful with all of the different plant life and butterflies flying around. Quite a magical and peaceful greenhouse. We also went outside and walked around. There's a nice playground and a huge fountain. And I agree with a previous reviewer that said the gift shop wasn't so expensive that you couldn't grab a few mementos on your way out. Would love to go back again in the future! read more

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A mix of various exhibits, including a butterfly room, reptiles, amphibians, and a large outdoor garden. It's not too big and only takes about an hour to get through everything, but it's definitely fun to spend awhile with the butterflies. If you are still/quiet and wait long enough, they will land near you. read more

Texas Discovery Gardens - Botanical Gardens Near Me - Dallas, Texas

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Garrison was so nice and helpful! I was with friends and family at a wedding and the butterfly exhibit had closed. He was kind enough to open it just for us so we could walk through and have our close up experience! Thank you Garrison!! read more

First time here, mid-December. Because of this season that it is, you won't see many blooms, but I'm sure it's absolutely alive with color in the spring and summer. It smells heavenly and there are many paths for people of all ages to enjoy and it is pretty handicap accessible from what I could see. I was quite sad to see that be snake and reptile habitats were much too small for the animals on exhibit. I'm hoping that they have a much bigger place to rest and play when the gardens are closed. It wasn't terribly crowded which was nice but I feel that the coolest stuff was inside - the butterfly room and insects in the lobby. There was too much noise to be able to just sit anywhere outside and enjoy a garden Ambiance. Will try coming again at a different time of year. read more

Texas Discovery Gardens - The lights display for Christmas (I took a daytime tour) - Botanical Gardens Near Me - Dallas, Texas

We actually stumbled on this place by accident. This was the address given for an event that was happening for a Native Texas Plant show and sale. Odd bit of marketing, but, it was on their website. I don't hold that against them in the review, they were sponsors I guess, but the show was elsewhere... regardless, they allowed us in for the inconvenience. They were a lot of cool butterflies in the exhibit. Didn't see Monarchs, but there was a lot of others. These were all in the greenhouse area which oddly needs a LOT of work. The spiral walk is a great touch, there area a lot of cool plants inside, sadly there is a lot of brown dead leaves and branches everywhere which is a big turn off. A location that is supposed to be taking care of plants and trees in an ideal environment and they can't take the time to prune and pick up the debris and trash laying everywhere. It was really distracting for me and my wife, as a Landscaper and a Johnson County Master Gardner, they really need to clean the unhealthy vegetation hanging from the living parts of the plants. The outside area as nice and well kept, much better than the greenhouse. The snake exhibit, if you want to call it that, is a small building with about 8-10 small glass containers with a few snakes and frogs. Disappointing. read more

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Beautiful spot to spend the morning. Lots of butterflies in the butterfly house, plus MASSIVE moths, and the opportunity to witness all stages of growth, from egg laying to chrystalis to newly hatched butterfly. Very neat! The snake house has 10-15 snakes. The gardens are gorgeous, the playground is open for kids, and there are plenty of picnic tables if you want to bring in your own lunch. We did not see any hummingbirds in the hummingbird garden, but perhaps you'll have better luck. Wednesday's are "community days", which I thought meant admission was free... but actually means admission is "pay what you want." You name the price and they ring up the tickets for whatever you say. Honestly I found that to be a little awkward. I didn't want to be cheap, and I know they depend on ticket sales to maintain the garden, but I also came on Wednesday specifically because we can't afford to buy 7 regular admission tickets on a weekend (or don't want to, anyway). A more comfortable arrangement would be to make Wednesday's free admission and then ask for donations (they could even offer a suggested donation to guide us). Anyway, take it for what you will: Wednesday's are "pay what you want." The gardens are partially shaded, but still pretty hot. I think it was 85-90 degrees this morning and we only lasted a little over an hour outside. Of course I'm 8 months pregnant, so my tolerance might be a tad lower than usual. I would plan on spending 2 hours total here, with some of that being inside the butterfly garden, but more if you pack a lunch and/or if it's cooler. The entire place is stroller friendly, but it's not large, so you probably don't need one unless you have a non-walker. My 2 year old was able to walk the entire thing. Getting there was quite confusing for me - the iPhone maps app led me to a closed gate. I just circled the area until I found a gate that was open. People who have visited the state fair before will probably find this process less complicated. In any case, a great morning in a beautiful place. Do go see it! read more

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Came to the butterfly garden with an 18 month old who enjoyed what an 18 month old would enjoy & the rest of us older folks were happy to get out of the incessant Dallas heat, see the butterflies (not too many varieties, from what we saw) & walk along the winding path that loops from top to bottom. There are also resident quails here, which act as "guards" for the butterflies & call to each other every so often. There is a gift shop on the first floor as well as tanks holding frogs & other reptiles situated in the hallway that leads to the outdoors gardens, a senior citizens rate, & a very nicely maintained garden with walking paths just outside the butterfly house with signage telling you about the plants. Our grandson enjoyed his meander on the paths. Parking is convenient & plentiful. read more

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Pretty abysmal garden. I don't know if it is even fair to call it a garden. Very unkept and most of the flowers on display are not real. Butterfly exhibit was only nice part, and even that seemed like it hadn't been cleaned in years. Spider webs everywhere and very limited animals. For a price of $12 it's not bad, but not worth most people's time. I felt more sad after leaving. Do not come here. read more

I visited the Texas Discovery Gardens with my brother a week or so ago when we were visiting Fair Park for a few hours. We had never been before - I'm not even sure we knew it was here until I found it on a map of Fair Park. Admission is $10 for adults, which was a little steep considering the state of the gardens. It was fall - but fall in Dallas was still 70 degrees, so it wasn't full winter frost-y weather or anything. We visited the butterfly house, which was okay. We did see some butterflies, but not a ton. But really what struck me about the butterfly house is that the plants were not doing well. We also wandered around the gardens for a bit, which were nice, but not as large as at the typical botanical gardens I have visited. Overall, I think it has the potential to be really great but feels a bit like it's fallen on tough times. I considered our admission (which we paid even though we couldn't stay long) a donation to the gardens. I hope to visit again and see the plants and butterflies flying. Definitely consider visiting and supporting them. read more

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It's cute for what it is. The butterfly house was my favorite. I went in the winter so everything was dried out hahaha I just needed to get the baby outside for some fresh air. This place is meh. It's not that big. Maybe a tour in the spring time would've made it amazing. But anyways it's off the checklist. read more

Texas Discovery Gardens - Snake house - Botanical Gardens Near Me - Dallas, Texas

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This is quite an attraction in Dallas. So much to see/do. Saw lots of happy kiddos running around, learning. Hubby wanted to see the snakes but the place is so big. . . . We just couldn't walk that far that day. As has been mentioned, it's little money for so much entertainment. The grounds are beautiful. We're prejudiced, however. Take what you get and be thankful, but this butterfly experience was a let down after the one in Key West. They have the same statuary so there must be a connection. This one is *maybe* 1/2 the size of Key West and not as packed with butterflies nor does it have the hatchery area either. Nor the flamingos. Perhaps it's not fair to compare. You should still go and enjoy for a multitude of reasons. But don't miss the one in Key West if the opportunity arises. read more

What a wonderfully delightful wallet-friendly way to enjoy God's beautiful creation on a Sunday afternoon! All 3 of our children experienced butterflies landing in their hand. We were fortunate enough to be there for a Snake Encounter where we saw 2 snakes & 1 lizard up close! The keeper was very knowledgeable about each specimen. Most surprising may have been the reasonable prices found inside the quaint gift shop that offered a nice variety of take home treasures. A lovely way to spend 2 hours with your family. read more

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Fun Family fun Great for a date Great place to take pictures Autism Friendly #KickinitwithCurincy read more

Saw the butterfly house on an Instagram post and decided to visit. We were honestly very shocked at the state of the butterfly house. The entire place looks extremely unkept, dead plants everywhere, dirty windows and the fish tank is disgusting. This place needs some real help and tlc. I can see the beautiful potential it has. Outside of the butterfly house in the lobby are some other houses creatures who I feel really bad for! They are in extremely small, gnat filled enclosures. Two snakes as well who have literally barely any room to move around. Someone please save this place. read more

Even in the winter time (well, if you can "truly" call it "winter" in the Deep South. LOL!), these gardens are a pretty and relaxing place to visit. I scored a Groupon deal for the visit and it was well worth it. Due to the season, the grounds were not in bloom, yet still pretty. There are lovely fountains, statues, and picnic tables throughout. We especially liked looking at native bugs (including huge, colorful tarantulas) and Texas native snakes. Thankfully, all insects and snakes were safely tucked away in their cages. The butterfly room is simply beautiful. Countless different types of butterflies were flying around the room during our visit. There are also quail roaming around the butterfly room (they help keep pests in check). It was way cool to also catch close up glimpses of these birds. I look forward to visiting again during the Spring when the gardens are in full bloom. read more

Texas Discovery Gardens - Make sure you check out the Butterfly House when visiting - Botanical Gardens Near Me - Dallas, Texas

I really love the different Gardens offered in the DFW area so when a Groupon became available I scooped it up. Though smaller in size it was not in beauty. Lovely flowers and plants in abundance. Taking photos of nature is something I truly enjoy; this place has offered a nice variety of photo ops. Including status, murals, fountains and small structures. There was a large play set in the back as well. I look forward to utilizing on my next visit. They had some snakes from Texas available for viewing and education. I really look forward to seeing all the butterflies and I was not disappointed. They were beautiful! A variety fluttered about inside of the butterfly area. Which offered more beautiful plant life. The gift shop was costly but nothing out of the ordinary. I look forward to my next trip back. read more

Texas Discovery Gardens - Botanical Gardens Near Me - Dallas, Texas

The Texas Discovery Gardens is an excellent attraction that features a variety of ponds, attractions, and landscapes. It's garden is very pucturesque and a great destination for photoshoots. While i was there last week, part of the main building was bring set up for an event, possibly a wedding. It is refuel a nice venue for a wedding, banquet, or reception. There is a huge butterfly house here with thousands of different species of butterflies inside. There was even a huge, beautiful moth on display inside the butterfly greenhouse. It's quite warm in there but is a really nice facility why beautiful, tropical plants and foliage among three fluttering butterflies. Also on the property is a cabin that houses snakes indiginous to the state of Texas. It was really neat to see the snakes which are in small aquariums. Of the small tanks had a tiny white mouse in it with the snake so you know it was about to be some Carnage going down. I couldn't watch. I had to leave. Lol The variety of activities and picturesque surroundings of the Texas Discovery Gardens makes this place a unique destination in the city of Dallas. read more

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Texas Discovery Gardens was the perfect venue for our son's wedding! The gardens, the bride's cottage, the groom's room, the reception hall, and of course the Butterfly Conservatory were just amazing! Even with crazy Texas weather the staff pivoted and made everything perfect for this special day! All of the vendors had great things to say about TDG and the staff! We definitely recommend this lovely hidden gem if you need a venue in the Dallas/Fair Park area! Clark/Jones Wedding! read more

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My husband and I got married here in March 2019! Texas Discovery Gardens is a beautiful botanical garden on the Fair Park grounds in Dallas. It's educational, well maintained, and everyone who works there is so friendly. I worked closely with Tammy who is the Weddings Coordinator and she was great! Always very helpful and kind, and I feel that she had our best interest at heart. We used our own vendors for everything which worked out great, but they do have in-house vendors should you prefer to use theirs. In terms of having your wedding there, I would highly recommend it! Pricing was reasonable, although there were a few moments of frustration where I felt 'nickel-and-dimed' as it seemed everything I wanted had an extra fee, even the minor stuff, but I still had a fantastic experience. Something that TDG lacks that I'd love to see is more diversity in the employees there. The garden is located in the Fair Park neighborhood which is a part of South Dallas, so it would be awesome to see that the employees are as diverse as the surrounding community they serve. Giving opportunities to minority business owners is something I value which is why I outsourced all of my wedding vendors. We reserved the grand hall (indoors), a small garden on the left, and the main circular garden. We also took photos inside the Butterfly room which turned out great! I'll attach a few of my wedding photos here. I still receive compliments and my wedding has been featured in multiple publications online and in print! I truly don't believe my wedding photos would have turned out as lovely had I gotten married at any other place. It's truly a beautiful location. See for yourself! read more

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Attended the Discovery Gardens for a wedding, which I've learned is a popular wedding destination. I understand why. It's a beautiful set-up. Because it was after hours, I didn't get to actually participate in the educational aspect of the garden but I hear it's pretty nice. It was pretty cool to witness my friends exchange their vows as butterflies fluttered around. It is a tad warm in the butterfly house but I also imagine it's because we were dressed in cocktail attire and there were likely more people there than the usual number allowed in. Ha. A really cool experience for sure. read more

Texas Discovery Gardens - Selena impersonator performs at the wedding. - Botanical Gardens Near Me - Dallas, Texas

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Great little garden, and the butterfly house is super cool - for kids and adults! Make sure to wear plenty of bug spray because even with our mosquito repelling bracelets (that typically work pretty well), we got eaten alive! read more

We came here for the first time today. The gardens are huge; beautifully landscaped with tons of pretty flowers and water features. We walked around out there for a bit. I should have brought bug spray since we've had a bunch of rain lately, but I didn't think about it. It really was lovely just to walk around the grounds and take in the beauty. There is a little house with snakes on display that my son really liked. After we toured the gardens, we went inside to the butterfly house. Beware, it's very humid. But it is also super fun to have butterflies dancing all around you. I was a little bummed that none landed on us, but I had a rambunctious preschooler with me, so I can't blame them. Overall, this place is pretty neat and worth a trip. read more

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Cool little arboretum with an enclosed butterfly garden. My kids loved that the butterflies were approachable. We went when it was drizzling outside but still walked thru the garden. Very scenic. Has a play area for the kids as well read more

I passed this place walking to a concert and made note that I needed to come back and check it out. My mom came to town and on a whim we went! Thank goodness we did! The building has bugs and reptiles, and the air conditioning felt amazing on a 110 degree day! The butterfly house was incredible, with a walkway through the trees that made you feel like you were in the tropics. We were so impressed with the beauty of the gardens when we walked through them to get to the snake shack. A really amazing 2 hours here. 11/10 recommend, and we will be back in Spring time! read more

So we had come to fair park area with intent on checking out the aquarium with our pogo passes. The aquarium only took us about 30ish mins ... we noticed our pogo passes had included the gardens, so we decided why not as we had made the drive. We arrived just in time to check out the release of the new butterfly's in the Butterfly garden. It was a little crowded in that spot but everyone did amazing letting kids sit on the steps to be able to see and hear, while the adults stood back so everyone could see. That area was our favorite! The outside gardens are huge and I don't think we saw everything as we decided to go ahead and head out for a late lunch. The play ground was fun but could use some updating. Some of the kids had a rude awaking coming out of the bottom of the slide ... many a kiddo had to go to mom or dad for bumped backs/bottoms/sides from a big drop from the end of the slide to the ground. (End of slides high up off the ground, and most of the soil is gone making that gap big for a smaller kid.) Now we used pogo passes ... regular prices would have put us at $30 for our family to go, $35 once my oldest has another birthday. I don't know if I would have enjoyed it as much during a non peak time where a lot of things were not in bloom if I had paid those prices plus parking given in Ft worth I think their gardens are free with only one area having a few with cheeper or no parking fee. But I wouldn't pass it up if i was going for a special event! read more

I do not recommend. The place is not well kept at all. It does not appear that the upkeep necessary for a place like this is in place. A lot of work needed to make this a place you'd want to visit. My wife and I went to see if this was a place to bring the grandkids. That's a definite no. read more

We strolled though the gardens while waiting for the Butterfly Pavilion to be transformed from wedding to reception. The gardens were nice. Wish we had time to walk through the Butterfly area which was an additional cost. read more

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I am absolutely in love with the butterfly house, seriously I'd move in if I could! The man working at the front desk was incredibly nice and helpful, explaining how to navigate around to get the full experience. Once stepping inside the butterfly house you are completely transported to a place so peaceful and beautiful you forget there's a world outside. I loved all the little facts and information dispersed around to help you appreciate it all more. Once outside it is very beautiful but there aren't as many gardens and flowers as I expected. However what is there, is very beautiful. I wish we had found the hummingbird house but we wandered around with the map and couldn't seem to find it. The gift shop sells very cute shirts that change color with the sun, along with a lot of other cute little trinkets. There is also a snake house but we didn't dare to enter! Overall a very peaceful and beautiful place to spend an afternoon. read more

Texas Discovery Gardens - Botanical Gardens Near Me - Dallas, Texas

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Great experience!! I've lived in Dallas for 24 years, and never visited the Texas Discovery Gardens until we attended a birthday party there recently. I can't believe I didn't know this was here. What a great place! The kid group we had was about 15-20 4 and 5 year olds and they had a blast. All the kids loved seeing the bugs, lizards, snakes, and frogs that are housed inside the building. I was surprised at how big the outdoor garden is, too...and the kids were mesmerized by the Snakes of Texas cabin. There are about 10-12 Texas snakes in tanks that kids can see up close with the help of a step stool, and helpful pictograms show which snakes are venomous/nonvenomous and what they eat. My kid was super into it. The butterfly garden is also fantastic. There are many species and you can see them flying around up close. There are also drawers for the kids where they can feel a (dried) cocoon, a snakeskin, etc. Very tactile and exploration friendly. Our party ended in an on site classroom where the kids did crafts, ate, and sang Happy Birthday. It was an excellent venue--perfect for a preschool or kindergarten group. I was surprised how much we did in two hours. Highly recommend!! read more

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We got married here on the circular lawn with the reception in the great hall and it was the most beautiful wedding ever, in my completely biased opinion. But really, I still get a ton of compliments even 5 months later so you can take that opinion seriously. Even if you're not considering getting married here, you should explore the gardens. They're like a little slice of happiness in the middle of the insanity that is downtown Dallas. We love the butterfly house and the area around the Centennial House, and the great lawn by the fountain looks like the perfect place for a nice picnic. Plus they have lots of activities for kids that sound super fun! If you are considering getting married here, I highly recommend it. You can get married outside and have the reception inside, which in our unpredictable weather is a good idea. We got the whole package, with Sugar City providing table and chair setup and takedown, linens, decorations, and wedding coordinator services and it did not break the bank at all. Carron and Tammy were AWESOME and made my wedding planning so much less stressful. Everything was exactly as I had envisioned it and incredibly beautiful. I really do still get compliments on how gorgeous everything was, and it's all thanks to Discovery Gardens and Sugar City. read more

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I have been to the butterfly gardens twice now and I enjoyed going both times. There isnt much to it, but I enjoy walking around among the many butterflies just flying around in this room. It is a muggy/warm room, which I imagine is good for the butterflies, but just may be because its Texas. Ha Ha Ha The most recent time we went was during the Texas State Fair and it cost $4 for adults to get in. The day we went there were two ladies in the room telling you all about a butterflies life and they had some type of gigantic moth there also. It was from Malaysia (not native to the US) thank goodness. The moth was a noctornal insect so it was sleeping, I dont want to be around when that thing is flying. :) There is a gift shop here also with shirts and toys for kids for you to buy. There are also several tanks with different insects in them. Creepy!!! Spiders and big waterbugs and stuff like that. Stop by here and check out the butterflies. There is also a big room that you can rent to get married in or have some type of event. read more

Two for one admission I got from Groupon. This place is pretty cool and I am not even a kid. Butterflies everywhere and they are so close to you. So neat to see them flying around and not afraid of you. I would definitely come back with my daughter next time! read more

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I love this place. It's such a fun place to visit. It's pretty affordable, and it has great stuff for kids and for adults. Basically, it is the much sought-after Fun for the Whole Family! By far the best thing about the Discovery Gardens is the butterfly house. Two stories of green house filled with lush plants, humid jungle air, and BUTTERFLIES! So many butterflies! If you stand still enough they will land on you. As you make your way down the spiraling ramp you can read facts about butterflies and use the guide you're given at the start of the tour to identify that butterflies that you're seeing. When you reach the bottom you can see where the butterflies emerge from their chrysalis, and ask an expert any questions you have. It's a beautiful experience, and a great learning opportunity. Then there are the gardens themselves, which are lovely. Like a smaller version of the Dallas Arboretum. Lots of fountains, green space, picnic tables, flowers. More than once I've seen a wedding being set up here (this would be a gorgeous place to get married). Patrons are welcome to bring a picnic and play frisbee on the grass. It's an idyllic spot. Inside the main building, there is a pretty great gift shop as well as an impressive collection of insects and reptiles! We spent a long time looking at poisonous dart frogs, tarantulas, walking sticks, turtles...the list goes on. Prices are more than fair. $8 for adults, $6 for seniors, $4 for kids. If you're a member of the Arboretum, you can access the gardens for free (but not the butterfly house). Also, the gardens are free for everyone on Tuesdays. read more

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