Visited on Thursday November 26 2020 at noon. We saw two butterflies, not clusters. Maybe need a few more weeks? Its a nice area with beautiful art and a short walk

We only got to see a few butterflies because they hide in the trees this time of year but it was a cool experience. Cant wait to go back.

I love this sanctuary, we got here a week too early to see the monarchs. If you plan on coming to see them come in a week or two and theyll be here! Ill probably come back around then

Nice walk... peaceful...but no monarch butterflies due to the fires in CA.

Missed the butterflies, havent arrived yet.Enjoy all the work the volunteers have put into planting new trees to provide a great habitat. The Canary finches were flying all over the place.

Great place to visit, with excellent info posts. Butt the butterfly population is dwindling (thank you climate change ).

I love that this place offers a safe haven for these butterflies. We visited a week too early and didnt see any butterflies, we did see lots of hummingbirds and other song birds.I am a fan of their mission, make sure to donate when you arrive, they dont charge an entrance fee.

Much smaller than I was expecting but we did see a handful of butterflies and the parking was convenient and free.

What a flock!!! What an amazing site to behold!! I was hoping to be able to take pictures of the spectacle. When you have a HUGE clump of butterflies, the picture wouldnt have been great.

Nice, quiet walk but didnt see any monarchs sadly

They have done a beautiful job in creating the sanctuary. We didnt see any butterflies but I guess they come later in November.

Very well done area. A very clean restroom that is ADA .Path becomes steep and ends at a through road.We were too early for the butterflies.

Wasnt much to see, No butterflies residing at the time of my visit. But very cool nonetheless

It was nice to learn about Monarch butterflies and the need to help conserve their population by being aware about their ecosystem and migration patterns!

Just a 5 minute walk but regardless your age, you will still learn something. Not really that much to see, but the impressive natural process will humble you.

Beautiful setting. No butterflies mid October. Will try coming mid winter.

TOO BAD ! After dipping out seeing any Monarch Butterflies at the Natural Bridges Monarch Trail in Santa Cruz we decided to have a peek at this one. A couple leaving told us no butterflies at all before we ventured in. I did see a Blue Jay in a tree !

Very nice quiet place to get away. Older motel but clean for coming during the virus period. Its always cooler in the bay compared to the valley.

An wonderful place. Been there several times. Monarchs not there yet.

Bring your DSLR camera or Binoculars or else you wont see a thing. The butterflies rest on the Eucalyptus trees which are 40-60 ft tall so they are hard to spot without a magnifying lens. Nice place but small. You can walk through in less than 30 minutes. So its a nice spot to check out if youre in a crunch for time. Sometimes there are volunteers that will bring a telescope for your viewing. I suggest going on a nice warm day when butterflies are active. If not, they group together in the trees for warmth. No fee. Walk right in.

There are no butterflies right now but there is a beautiful butterfly mural going up near the walkway in.

A eautiful and quiet butterfly sanctuary with feel good vibes. My husband and I come here to Pacific Grove once or twice a year and always love stopping here.

The people here are very kind (and its free, but with a suggested donation). Unfortunately, butterfly populations have declined drastically, so there were only a few butterflies, leaving the place very depressing. However, the volunteers made the place as interesting as possible given the unfortunately circumstances.

Lovely little park. I went in November 2018, which was supposed to be the peak of the monarch migration in the area, but there were not very many. Theres usually a docent or two on site and they very helpfully explained that while they dont know why there arent as many this year, it could be because of the local fires or the fires last year where their breeding grounds were or because its warmer this year and they dont feel the need to migrate just yet or any number of other factors we cant think of yet. But its still a pretty space even without the butterflies. The docents are helpful and often have telescopes and iPads to help you see the butterflies up close. Would recommend bringing your family here for a beautiful and educational afternoon.

We came to Pacific Grove specifically to see this sanctuary. While there werent too many monarchs out, it was still early in the day and not very warm. We did get to see a few flutter around. Signs around were very helpful and informative. Help support monarchs!

Beautiful but must be the very end of the season. We only saw 1 butterfly and we spent 15 minutes looking intently. Nice walk through a mini forest. We will be back in November or December. Peaceful. Free!

Even though I only saw 1 butterfly Im still rating 5 stars. It was late in the season and very windy so Im sure the numbers were down. Its a short quiet walk with butterfly facts and the scenery is still nice. Its free and off the beaten path of things to do so if youre down by Asimolar beach and looking for a time killer it doesnt hurt to check it out.

A very small but nicely well kept sanctuary. If you walk across the sanctuary probably take you less than 5 minutes, that’s how small it is. However you don’t come here for a long walk, but for watching butterflies! Unfortunately we didn’t see many since we came on a cold and rainy day, but it was still nice to visit nonetheless. Free parking, free entrance.

Beautiful area and loved the guide being there! Wished wed seen more monarchs but they were tucked in for the day. Fascinating place!

If you are in the Monterey area (especially October-February), you should visit the Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary. These beautiful creatures will migrate here because of the unique climate and food availability in Monterey. Parking is limited but free. Also, admission is free but there is a donation box if you are so inclined. If you want to take pictures, I highly recommend bringing a telephoto lens with a tripod. The pictures I am posting were taken with a 200 mm lens and tripod.

It was really a cool little Forest really pretty to to visit they included restrooms but they were locked

Awesome place for kids and fam. Great beach.

The Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary is clean, relaxing and such a unique experience. Benches along a path allow you to see the Monarchs flying above your head and landing into the trees. Its not very long, but well worth the time spent.

Still no monarchs on 11/14. They seem to be a bit later this year...

There was an older beautiful lady, she was there to fill our brains with information. Everyday we learn something new. Thank you so much. Enjoyed seeing the butterflies flying over the eucalyptus trees and reading the posted signs with information to increase our knowledge.

The butterflies are gorgeous! Make sure to bring binoculars. I used 7 x 50 mm cometron bincolulars. Worked well. Had a meditative experience looking closely at a huge cluster of butterflies at the end of a branch. Its a very short walk, but with lots of butterflies to see!

Well done! Lots of interesting facts presented along the path. A little tough to find, the path is between the two fences.

Not as big as I expected but still an amazing place to visit very educational as well. Staff was also friendly which is a major plus.

Amazing to see Monarchs flying long distance to winter here.

Very pretty place! If you get a chance checking out. Its kind of hidden but worth looking for. Check the website for when the best time of year to catch the butterfly migration!

We came after the butterflies left but it was still beautiful and peaceful. So glad we came.

We were two early to see lots of butterflies but did see two.

Peacefull location. Nice pathway to walk, many local plants.

Nice garden path with informative signs and easy parking. Sadly, very few monarchs (late Dec, 1 pm, overcast day). Helpful docents has tripod binoculars focused on a cluster of a few hundred monarchs in a tree but a sad decline from the millions which used to overwinter this sanctuary.

Park and walk across the street to entrance. Butterflies in Fall through Spring.

I love the butterflies only wish there were more

Cool little walk. No butterflies on our visit though. They need warmer weather...

The best part of this small park/sanctuary is the peace and quiet patrons and visitors observe as the butterflies move about the grounds.Volunteer staff are all polite and well informed.The sanctuary is very small and is situated within a residential neighborhood.

Wrong time of year but still nice

Beautiful place. Must visit when the monarch butterflies migrate. Such a pity that few of the butterflies migrate. Such a shame and also time to know the impact we have on the world. Time to make it better.

A great place to appreciate nature and Monarch butterflies, small, but inspirational!

We were here too early, first week in October, so only one Monarch sighted. The grounds look clean and there are plants around for them to nectar from at the right time.

We went when there was a lot of butterflies. There is a really cute hotel connected to it. Nice little community and city.

Beautiful, serene area. Too bad the population is down

Beautiful little park but unfortunately we only saw 3 monarch butterflies when we visited. January might be a little too cold and wet. We read online they were there through February. Not sure who you can check with before visiting, but my wife and I drove 5 hours to see the monarchs. Fortunately theres a lot you can do in Monterey and Carmel. The aquarium made up for the disappointment of not getting to see a huge migration of monarchs.

Excellent place for kids education

Was a very nice place to stay even tho we are locals. Nice rooms n pet friendly a plus!!

Beautiful little walk. We were to early for the Monarchs but saw some. Loved the little hotel so quaint!

We were there an Amazing 3 years ago. Stayed at the clean and friendly Monarch Motel.

No monarchs had arrived, but birding was awesome.

This place is awesome!!

Beautiful and peaceful...just perfect for a quiet stroll among the trees and watching for the guests of honor!

Wonderful little sanctuary - most always youll have pro photographers or volunteer staff to help you find the nesting butterflies.The Monarchs nest here Nov - Feb. Also, the butterflies huddle together when its cool and only fly around when the day warms up so dont come in the morning.Numbers have been going down in recent years. Bring a pair of binoculars if you can - theyll be someone to lend a pair - its a peaceful place and the mood is contagious.Great way to spend a peaceful hour. Tucked away in a residential neighborhood and close to the a public beach you can walk to if not in a rush and want to take in the views and stretch your stay. - a couple minutes drive and not too hard to find parking.

I have been coming here every year for the past 25 years, in December, and I witnessed the devastation of this wonderful sanctuary. Mismanagement, lack of communication, ignorance, and downright mismanagement have killed this wonderful landmark in the town that thrives because of it.In 1997, there were 47,000 butterflies. Last month the count was 672. I don’t live here, but I respect the monarch sanctuary. I’m afraid if I come back next year there won’t be any at all, and then what would the excuse be?This is a great landmark and deserves to be saved.

Peak season ist Nov to Feb and the best time 12-3 PM. We saw exactly two butterflies during that time. The reserve is tiny: a single meandering path through a four-acre property.We planned this visit for 8 months and I came from the East Coast to see this attraction. What a disappointment. Fortunately, we moved on to the 17-mile drive and Carmel, which saved the day.

Its amazing how this little park in the PG neighborhood has all of these beautiful butterflies. It varies how many youll see due to the seasons, but the park itself is so peaceful to walk around even if you dont see many butterflies. I believe that its best to go first thing in the morning or just before the sun sets in the evening.

Cool place. Was hoping to see more butterflies but maybe not the best time to come.

Pretty but no butterflys. I saw more at my Inn. Plus this is the time for them to leave.

Very sad as the monarchs seem to be declining in numbers. It didnt help that someone cut down trees there. Its a quaint little walk with good info along the short path. You can tell that some really care about this little sanctuary. A couple people were counting when we were there and only saw 5 I like to think the butterflies already made their way to Mexico when we walked through We were right around the corner and walked to it. Otherwise I couldnt recommend making a journey to see it. Yet! Plant Milkweed!

Love this beautiful place it is very peaceful and quiet, there is also a Inn you can stay at right next to it so you can wake up to butterflies everyday. I highly recommend visiting when the butterflies first arrive and you see the sanctuary filled with swarms of butterflies.

Surprisingly small but a nice little spot to see the butterflies. Really wish they could get more land though!

Nice little place with a knowledgeable staff person to answer questions. Too bad about the sever decline in the Monarch population. From a high estimated at 2 million to around 9000 this year. Wow!

A very nice Place to Visit,and always a must see!!!

Serene. Showed up in March. Not a lot of butterflies. Better to show up towards the winter time. Still good weather and peacefulTheres a friendly cat.

An amazing place that typically has some seasoned experts ready to share their knowledge!

Beautiful place. I saw a few butterflies.

5 stars for the docent and education. So sad what has happened to the monarch population. There were 149 known monarchs when we visited.

Its a short walk. I expected more, but its still great to see butterflies.

Looks like a fun place and would be interesting to see the monarchs... But only saw 3. Or, 1 butterfly 3 times maybe. We were early, the season starts in Nov apparently. Several giant trees ready to be planted in big boxes looked dead or dying. That looked really bad but Im hoping they were going dormant early. Maybe. Ill go back in November and see if the beautiful monarchs show up!

The 5 stars is for the docent. She was leaving as we were arriving and she took the time to walk us into the sanctuary and point out two clusters of monarchs very high in the eucalyptus tree. When monarchs cluster the bottom of their wing is shown (not the orange) making them camaflouge in with the leaves. Eventually the sun brought the temperature up and fluttering was a breathtaking sight. Thank you docent!

Went here on a whim in mid-January. Warm and sunny, monarchs were flittering about, but did not see any clusters...I guess it was too warm.

Not too many butterflies yet (11/02/2019) but its a nice little stop if youre in the area.

VERY interesting park devoted to the monarch butterfly and related migration. Apparently, we missed the annual infestation of butterflies! My wife wants to return in August when they return by the MILLIONS...I dont know...we will see, lol!

This is our 3rd year going and were finally able to see butterflies it was wonderful!

Amazing place to see the butterflies and learn about their migration.

Nice sanctuary. Difficult to find and not really parking. We were too early, had to look hard to only saw a few on low ground bush.

Very cool spot in Pacific Grove but 90% less monarchs this year.

We went in early November and there were only a few monarchs fluttering around. It was still a lovely stroll among the eucalyptus trees and flowers.

It was very nice but the population is in rapid decline and therefore we only saw a few

I was looking forward to this trip more than any other California exploration. I give it a one because of how sad it made me. It is a teeny tiny park ... I was expecting a huge grove of Eucalyptus! Oh no.. humans needed to cut those down along with all the redwoods to build some mini mansions .... Who builds a home in a animal sanctuary?This is a hostile for butterflies not a sanctuary!

There was one clump(?) of monarchs. It was pretty cool. Still a bit early in the season, I guess.

Don’t go there if the weather is raining,you cannot see any butterfly. In the sunny day there has butterfly but you may want to bring telescope.

Really peacefull place to relax and to have fun. The butterflies are beautiful. And you should go!

Wonderful place to learn about the monarch winter migration. We didn’t see the butterflies up close, but we did see them through the iPad/telescope. Come on a sunny afternoon for best viewing. Lovely docent gave us more info, tips.

Must have been the wrong time of year. Went Feb 15th 2020.. saw maybe like 10 total Butterflys. Zero clumps. Maybe next time!

Love this place during the winter months when warm afternoons bring out the butterflies. Go between 11-2 for the best chance to see these delicate creatures overwintering in nov/dec/Jan

This is a small, lovely enclave surrounded by housing. The volunteers are old and young but uniformly helpful and knowledgeable. Knowledgeable. The Problem is that climate change has strongly cut into the butterfly population Compared to prior visits, we were able to see many fewer butterflies, especially close up.

Best time to visit 1:00 to 3:00, Nov-February

Great place, pretty small, you can walk the trail in a few minutes. Make sure to check the season, they only migrate here at certain times.

Nice area just a few butterflies. Maybe not the right time of year.