We rented a Butterfly House from Riverbottom Butterflies for an event with some young girls in our neighborhood and I have never seen so many smiles. It was a huge hit! My boys and all the adults loved it, too. You get to step into your own butterfly biosphere in your own backyard and interact with live butterflies. The butterfly house is perfect for birthdays or other special occasions.
How it Works
Having a butterfly party house in your backyard is super easy. Make your reservation with Riverbottom Butterflies and they get everything ready. You pick it up from them the day before or day of the event, and then return everything once you are done. They provide the “house” which is a shade canopy with sides, as well as the butterflies. The butterflies come in a cooler so they stay resting until the event. You will want to take the butterflies out a little before so that they can start to wake up. I didn’t realize that the box had an ice pack in it, so I set the box on the counter to warm up, but they weren’t really warming up. So make sure to take the butterflies out of the box and warm them up for 30 minutes on your counter.
Then set up the canopy outside. Once it is set up, you can release the butterflies whenever you are ready. There are specific instructions about all of these steps, so don’t worry. It really is so easy.
Butterfly House
Once the butterflies are inside the butterfly house, you can allow people to be inside with them. We spent about an hour watching butterflies and gently holding them on our fingers. Lots of them landed on our heads or backs. Make sure to be careful where you step because the butterflies like to land on the ground, too. Everyone smiled and loved being with the butterflies. Our kit had three different kinds of butterflies, all native to Utah, which was really fun.
When you are done with the party, it is time to either gather the butterflies or release the butterflies based on what you have arranged with Riverbottom Butterflies. We chose to release them. Everyone took turns taking butterflies out into the open and letting them fly away. Some liked to stay with people, so we gently set them on the trees or bushes. This was another highlight for our group. Make sure to release the butterflies while there is still plenty of light so they can find a safe place.
This was such a unique and memorable experience. Honestly, we can’t wait to do it again. Check out Riverbottom Butterflies website for more info on the Butterfly House Rental. If you don’t want to do the huge butterfly house, you can also get smaller butterfly kits and raise caterpillar into butterflies. We love doing this activity every spring. Read more here: Riverbottom Butterfly Kits.
