**This was not a paid post. My honest opinions were used, they are solely my own & they may vary from others.I received two tickets to check out the exhibit to take photos and form my opinion on the event for free in exchange for this post no other compensation was given.**
Have you heard of Butterfly Wonderland? It is a unique rainforest experience in Arizona that gives you an up close experience with dozens of butterfly species and plants. While attractions such as Butterfly Wonderland are always enjoyable to visit it is kind of like the zoo after a few visits it all starts to feel a little like the same thing so it is wonderful when they add exhibits, host events, etc. to spice things up. At the moment Butterfly Wonderland is hosting 'The Glass Garden' which is an exhibit on the local artist Newt Grover and his glass works of beauty. Plus if you are like me and haven't been there a while (it's been a few years for me) they also have added a great reptile section plus they still have their bee hive, insects and fish.
Each piece being shown was created especially for the rain forest conservatory where they house their butterflies. The glass pieces blend in and intertwine with the plants and trees beautifully and naturally. I suggest arriving when they first open, Arizona can get pretty hot as is and they keep the conservatory a bit humid with misters to keep the butterflies and birds happy, towards the end of the day you may sweat a bit so beating the heat is a great idea.
I've shared a few of the pieces above but I will leave the rest to be discovered when you visit the Butterfly Wonderland. The experience as a whole is quite unique and is well worth the price especially if you are a big fan of butterflies, you get to see them in various stages and you get to get up close to them.
The Glass Garden is being featured for a limited time so check it out while you can! Even if you miss the glass garden I suggest heading out to check out Butterfly Wonderland anyway because there aren't many changes to be around this many species of butterflies. If you are lucky enough one might even land on you, and many will fly very close to you so you'll be able to make out all of their fine details. Tickets are $23.95 per adult and $15.95 for children, however they also offer combo passes (with Odysea Aquarium, Mirror Maze, etc) and they offer yearly passes.
**This was not a paid post. My honest opinions were used, they are solely my own & they may vary from others.The products mentioned below have been provided by Dolphinaris for the review free of charge.**
A while back my kids and I were able to visit the Dolphinaris in Scottsdale, Arizona to tour the facility and learn about how they care for their Dolphins. After the tour we were treated to a dolphin show which was a lot of fun and invited back to do a land experience where we could interact with the Dolphins. You can see a short video of part of the show we were treated to below.
After a crazy month I was finally able to set up a date to visit and now I am going to share my thoughts on the experience with you!
They offer a few different dolphin experiences which each offer different things, the land experience is where you stay on land but are still able to interact with a dolphin in a spot where you can walk up to the tank. Although you are on land and not getting into the water I suggest wearing a bathing suit or clothes you can easily change out of because you will get splashed and get quite wet, We ended up with half of our bodies soaked in water. The experience as a whole last for half an hour which includes a short bit of learning about how to help save wild dolphins with simple things such as not using plastic straws.
You are provided with a locker to keep your belongings as you are unable to bring anything near the dolphin tank including removing your jewelry, you will also be provided with a towel to dry off if you ask. During our experience we were each given a change to get a kiss from the dolphin we were interacting with and were able to give it a kiss back, my son opted out of this so the trainer had the dolphin blow water bubbles for him and put his nose up to the glass for him instead. We were all able to dance with the dolphin, the trainer has you stick your arms out with your palms facing down and the dolphin comes up placing it's fins on your hands and 'dances' with you.
During our interaction we were able to learn a lot about dolphins such as how to tell if they are a boy or a girl, where their ears are, why they have teeth even though they don't use them and how they are able to make different sounds. The trainer had our dolphin make several different sounds, at one point it even made a sound like a choo-choo train. Along with making different sounds the trainer also had him do several different tricks and even a shark impression, but the part that was the most adorable was when we 'scared' him with our faces. How did we scare a dolphin? They trained them to play peak-a-boo when you put your hands in front of your face then move them like you were saying boo the dolphin lets out an adorable little "Ahhh" scream as if you scared him.
Ok so let's talk about cost because I know you are all wondering how much something like this might set you back. The cost of the land experience is $59 per person if you pay at Dolphinaris or $39 per person if you buy your tickets online, your child needs to be at least three years of age and all children from ages four to six need to have an accompanying paid adult. Since you are not allowed to bring anything up to the experience with you they have photographers there to capture your experience, however ff you are wanting pictures of your experience I HIGHLY suggest bringing an extra person with you to take photos from the waiting area (they don't need a ticket if they aren't participating), if they are in the right spot they should be able to get decent photos of the experience for you to look back on in the future. So why do I suggest bringing an extra person to take photos for you? While they have a photographer the prints are quite pricey, I thought Disney was bad when they wanted $18 per print from their photographers, I couldn't believe it when the screen showed they wanted $40 for one digital photo, or $229 for a Digital 10 pack on USB. I took a photo of the screen above where it shows the 1 digital photo price, if you wanted a physical copy as you can see a 16 x 20 print is $89. Considering that some families don't have the extra funds to run out to do an experience and will need to save up for this seeing the price of a photo memory would be quite the shock since it is almost the same price as the experience itself. I am thankful my step-dad came with to snap a few photos for me otherwise I wouldn't have any photos for this post or for memories to look back on.
**This was not a paid post. My honest opinions were used, they are solely my own & they may vary from others. I received four tickets to the Arizona Legoland Discovery Center in exchange for the promotional post below featuring the newest section of this center.**
If you live in Arizona (or plan on visiting soon) and are looking for places that offer family fun and activities the Arizona Legoland Discovery Center is definitely a great destination to check out. The Arizona Legoland Discovery Center offers two different rides, a playground, a 4D Cinema, a parent zone plus a cafe and 10 lego build zones. Their newest addition is a Dino Explorer themed room that is sure to bring a smile to all Dinosaur and Lego lovers faces alike.
Upon entering the room you are greeted with a jungle themed decor featuring plants and leaves on the walls, crates containing dinosaur eggs, and a big T-rex bursting out of the wall. In the center of the room you'll find a big Dinosaur island made completely out of Lego Bricks, you and your child are free to use the Lego brick bins to create your dinosaur and add them to the island or add it to the master piece collection shelf for all to see. My favorite part about the island is that they use special lighting and sound effects to make it appear as though the water is moving, the lava is erupting and more plus they have two screens showing you ideas of Dinosaurs to build.
Since there is a limited amount of children/adults that are able to sit around the island in the center of the room there are also several Dinosaur print shaped tables in the room that have Lego brick bins in the center so there is more seating and play areas available. We had a great time checking out the new room at the Arizona Legoland Discovery Center, my kids had so much fun they were asking me if we could go back the next day so they could build some more. This facility is located inside of Arizona Mills Mall and is well worth the visit, you can come and build with your kids or you can relax in the parent zone for a bit while your children build and make friends.
If you buy tickets ahead of time online ticket prices are only $14.95 instead of $19.95 at the door. Ticket prices include both rides, the play zone, a walk through Mini land and more. Food/Drinks from the cafe and any photo packages purchased/gift shop items are sold separate. They offer zones for younger children that are toddler ages and older children with corresponding Lego brick sizes that are just right for each age group.
