How to Visit the Monarch Butterfly Sanctuaries in Mexico

How to Visit the Monarch Butterfly Sanctuaries in Mexico

For those who don’t know, 25 to 50 million monarch butterflies migrate from the USA and Canada to the monarch butterfly sanctuaries in Mexico every year.  This is a far cry from the billions that made the journey until a rare freeze in Mexico obliterated 80% of the population creating piles 13 inches high of dead monarchs on the ground.  Regardless, it is still an amazing phenomenon that could go extinct…not the butterflies, but the migration. So go check it out before it is too late!

The monarchs arrive in the high-altitude Mexico mountains around November 1st and migrate back to the USA and Canada in mid-March.  They concentrate in 12 known areas over three hectares in the biosphere reserve.  Four of these areas are sanctuaries that are open to the public.

FLY AWAY!
clustered monarch butterflies

The Monarch Butterfly Migration

I’m not sure how I originally heard of the Monarch butterfly migration.  All I knew was that a bunch of monarchs cluster on trees in Mexico during the winter, and I thought it would be cool to photograph.  Well, I got so much more than I bargained for and learned a ton.  What a special experience!

Before I delve into the details, I have two major tips for seeing the monarch butterfly migration in Mexico. 

  1. Unless you are fluent in Spanish, read the book Bicycling with Butterflies by Sara Dykman, as the guides don’t speak English.  While she pushes her agenda on occasion, she provides a wealth of knowledge about the monarchs I wish I had known prior to visiting.  I ended up listening to the entire book on my extended travels home from Mexico.  It made what we watched that much more fascinating.  I have a renewed appreciation of the monarch butterfly.
  2. If you only have time to visit one Sanctuary, make sure it is El Rosario and go on a weekday.  DO NOT go to any sanctuary on a weekend.  They get way too crowded.
FLY WITH THE BUTTERFLIES!