Europe
Greece
South Aegean
Dodecanese
Rhodes
Petaloudes
Things to Do in Petaloudes
Valley of the Butterflies

Valley of the Butterflies, Petaloudes: Address, Phone Number, Valley of the Butterflies Reviews: 3.5/5

See all things to do

Valley of the Butterflies

See all things to do
See all things to do
Valley of the Butterflies
3.5
2,534
#2 of 4 things to do in Petaloudes
Nature & Wildlife Areas • Valleys
Read more
About
From late July to late September, this planned valley fills up with millions of multicolor butterflies.
Suggested duration
2-3 hours
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listing
Tours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
Full view
Top ways to experience Valley of the Butterflies
See all
The area
Best nearby
Restaurants
12 within 3 miles
Alexandros Panorama
49
1.1 mi$ • Cafe • Fast Food • Greek
Vorino
220
2.2 mi$ • Mediterranean • European • Greek
To Stolidi tis Psinthoy
547
2.4 mi$$ - $$$ • Mediterranean • Greek • Vegetarian Friendly
Restaurant Smaragd
245
2.5 mi$$ - $$$ • Mediterranean • Greek • Vegetarian Friendly
Platia Tavern
107
2.4 mi$ • Mediterranean • European • Greek
Pigi Fasouli
193
2.6 mi$$ - $$$ • Mediterranean • Barbecue • Greek
Artemida Taverna
1,748
2.8 mi$$ - $$$ • Mediterranean • Greek • Healthy
Pino & Metho
9
2.5 mi$ • Bar • Mediterranean • Greek
Drosia
352
2.9 mi$$ - $$$ • Mediterranean • Greek • Vegetarian Friendly
Meytani Cafe Food Drink - Meitani
2.4 miGreek
See all
Attractions
9 within 6 miles
Monastery of Kalopetra
70
0.2 miChurches & Cathedrals
Farma of Rhodes Petting Zoo
837
1.4 miZoos • Farms
Rhodes Toy Museum
112
Children's Museums
Bee Museum
226
Speciality Museums
Agios Nikolaos Fountoukli
83
Architectural Buildings • Religious Sites
Campochiaro
47
Historic Sites
Agios Nektarios
36
Religious Sites • Churches & Cathedrals
Folklore House of Soroni Rhodes
10
Speciality Museums
Art Park Rhodes
11
Art Galleries • Art Museums
See all
Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
Popular mentions
3.5
2,534 reviews
Excellent
716
Very good
873
Average
572
Poor
236
Terrible
138
Lars J
Copenhagen, Denmark360 contributions
Astonishing
May 2022 • Couples
Absolutely need to visit.
Despite we were visiting the beautiful place out of butterfly season and despite it is a hard trip with many stairs and difficult routes , the nature is astonishing.
Written May 20, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Wetravelalot12
London301 contributions
beautiful shaded walk but hilly
Apr 2022
There are 3 parking sites where you can enter Valley of the Butterflies. Google maps shows "top" and "central" parking, but there is also parking at the bottom by "Cafe Butterflies" We decided to park in "central". Entry was 3 euro's each due to the time of year (April). The ticket booth was just around the corner from the parking. Before we purchased a ticket, the lady explained that there were no butterflies at this time of year. At this ticket booth, you are entering the valley in the middle. This meant you explored the top half first. You head up hill through the beautiful forest and follow the River Pelekanos (although it was more of a stream), passing all the different waterfalls. Its very shaded too. You know you have reached the top and you can turn round and come back down again as there is a sign saying 100m to cafe and 300m to the monastery. We carried on walking to the cafe where we stopped and had fresh orange juice, then continued to the monastery. We didn't realise until we got there that the monastery was closed. To get to the monastery from the cafe, take the steps to the right of the cafe and follow them all the way up to the road. The monastery is on the other side of the road. Once finished, you come back down the same way you went up.
On exiting the upper valley, head over the road and visit the lower valley. It is well sign posted. Same thing again, this time you head down the valley to the bottom and then turn round and walk back up the way you came.
The pathways are definitely not suitable for buggies or anyone unsteady on their feet. They are either made of crazy pathing or large stones half buried in concrete. You need solid walking shoes/trainers. There are also a large number of steps in the upper and lower valley's. We counted them (sad - I know!). 295 approx in the upper and 198 approx in the lower.
If you can deal with the exertion and large number of steps, it is a beautiful place to visit.
Written May 13, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Dollar14
Staines, UK23 contributions
Beautiful but - alot of physical exertion
May 2022 • Family
It is off season so no butterflies - but the scenery is still beautiful so I imagine it would be lovley in season (June-September) however it is ALOT of walking and ALOT of stairs( iPhone health app says 26 floors worth) , and sensible footwear is a must and the pathways are very rocky uneven and narrow at times . It is good but it would have been good to know sooner due to older relatives and younger children as it is physically demanding.
Written May 6, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
ChristineAH1
Manchester, UK7 contributions
Beautiful walk
May 2022 • Couples
Out of season so no butterflies to see (which we were made aware of when buying tickets) but we didn’t mind as it was such a beautiful walk. It would be no good for anybody with mobility problems or babies/toddlers in a pushchair because it mainly consists of steps and the ground is uneven but for anybody else, it’s a must visit. Such a calm feeling place and really very beautiful. We spent about an hour and a half walking the trail. It’s mainly shaded so good for hot days when you need to get out of the sun.
Written May 4, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Kattie_me
Helsinki, Finland33 contributions
Beautiful place
Aug 2021
Beautiful place but not for families with small kids. It was impossible to use a stroller on the way. 2-year child all the way was sitting on the lap. The road is not easy, sometimes going up and down, narrow, but beautiful. I was impressed not by butterflies but nature overall. Butterflies are not colorful, and when we were at the place, butterflies did not fly at all and almost did not move. But we saw turtles there and were happy.
Written January 15, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
sopaca
Cambridge, UK1,703 contributions
Lovely walk and we say one of the Jersey Tiger Moth even though it was October!
Oct 2021
We visited in the first week of October so were not expecting to see any butterflies but very much enjoyed the walk. The path is excellent and through trees so shaded if sunny. There is a meandering stream, occasional lizards and plenty of beautiful things to see on a very pleasant walk in dappled sunshine.

There's a snack bar at the highest point and you can leave the park briefly to visit Kalopetra Monastery which is just across the road, That is worth doing as it is a beautiful building inside and out and there are spectacular views from it.

We were pretty excited on our way back to spot one of 'butterflies' - they are actually Jersey Tiger Moths - that the valley is famous for.

We parked in the far car park which is at the lowest level of the park. It was good parking here as the walk was all uphill on the way out but blissfully downhill coming back. We spent around 2 hours doing it which including a drink at the highest point snack bar and visiting the monastery nearby.
Written November 27, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Ria
Bucharest, Romania70 contributions
Relaxing walk
Sep 2021 • Couples
It is a very nice walk through the forest where you get to see plenty of butterflies. Don't expect them to fly all around you, they are usually sitting on trees or rocks.

The path is with rocks and concrete, but very easy to walk on. We went in slippers, not knowing what to expect, but our feet didn't hurt at all. However, I would recommend being cautious as some rocks are slippery.

Next to the path there is a river and lots of small cascades. Also, in different points, you can scan qr codes to read a bit more about the place.

At the beginning and end you have small bars serving drinks and something to eat (burgers, salad and hot dogs).

Entrance fee is 5€ and the toilet fee is .50 cents (very clean).
Written September 14, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Mandy Raymond
Romford, UK12 contributions
The butterflies should not be disturbed
Sep 2021 • Couples
When we went there were hardly any butterflies, which of course was disappointing, but the walk was very pretty. Another annoyance was this is a lot of steps so basically when it gets busy it becomes more like a long queue and you feel rushed and people get annoyed because on a small pathway you have people going both ways. I have osteoarthritis in my left knee, which makes me slow on climbs, so of course this annoyed people. My biggest reason i only give this place 2 stars is, when we reached the top, sat down and read the leaflet about the butterflies, it says the number of these butterflies are diminishing. The reason the butterflies come here is a rest stop basically and they are nocturnal and shouldn’t be disturbed because they need all their energy for the next flight so they make it. What it also said the main reason for them becoming fewer is because of humans!!!!! This should not be a tourist attraction as you had some idiots bashing cages and trying to make them fly. I would never had gone there had i known this at the start.
Written September 13, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Kay P
Barry, UK189 contributions
From butterfly villa to butterfly valley
Sep 2021 • Family
We were staying in a villa only 5 miles from Butterfly Valley and so it was a must see attraction.The entry is very reasonable and under 12 years old enter for free.The paths are very steep and cobbled so be aware that good walking shoes are a must have.My husband took a tumble and bruised his arm but it was due to poor footwear.The valley is tranquil and shady but we did not carry on to the very top but the younger family did .We did see quite a few of the moth/butterflies which are brown and white until the take flight then a beautiful shade of red appears.The water running down hill is then pumped up again and is what keeps the insects healthy.the day we went there were lots of visitors and passing from path to path it was impossible to keep a safe distance apart.There are no facilities for wheelchair or disabled visitors which would be mandatory in most western countries but do not visit if you are elderly or disabled.
Written September 11, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
imthesecretshopper
somerset8 contributions
Extremely busy lots of coaches arriving not peaceful no butterflies only a few moths
Sep 2021 • Couples
Disappointing our visit started badly with the toilet WC attendant tried to rip us off! it is 50cents to go in the toilet be careful we gave him €10 and he tried to keep it and not give us any change? I don’t mind giving a tip if I choose too .. but he just gave us back €5 and opened the door to the toilet I said to him what about the rest of our change and he was angry we challenged him and finally we got our change but if we didn’t say anything about it he would of kept our money and I wonder if he does that quite often to trusting tourists.. we are regular visitors to Rhodes and won’t go back there again .. so underhand and dishonest spoilt our visit

It is a long up hill walk in crowds of people, if your going to do it wear shoes for walking not flip flops as it is cobble stones and rough ground, and steep steps lovely stream running down, you can see crabs but no butterflies they do have moths on some of the trees and rocks which are lovely to see

There is also a cafe on the lower level by the pumping station under the trees which is very nice by the water a really nice place to sit with a coffee and a friendly guy serving
Written September 9, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
2
…
Showing results 1-10 of 869
Anything missing or inaccurate?
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listing
Frequently Asked Questions about Valley of the Butterflies
We recommend booking Valley of the Butterflies tours ahead of time to secure your spot. If you book with Tripadvisor, you can cancel up to 24 hours before your tour starts for a full refund. See all 24 Valley of the Butterflies tours on Tripadvisor
Restaurants near Valley of the Butterflies: View all restaurants near Valley of the Butterflies on Tripadvisor