Monarch Butterfly Tour Mexico: Sierra Chuincua og Magic Town

Once in a lifetime experience! It was like being inside a snowglobe full of butterflies. Andres, our tour guide, was super delightful, kind, chill, and accommodating. Without traffic, the drive is closer to 3 hours but it took us about 4 hours there (we took a short pit stop for breakfast and bathrooms) and 4.5 hours back (we hit rush hour traffic and there were heavy rains). The viewing point is a short hike from the base of the reserve. The incline is slight, but keep in mind you're about 10k feet or 3k meters above sea level! There are horses you can rent for a ride up and down, but they stop before the wooded area and you walk the rest. Lunch is after the tour, at the base of the reserve. It's then about a 30-minute drive to the Angangueo, the Magic Town.

Breathtaking experience! Hermes was the perfect guide! The drive is long but we didn’t mind. We honestly loved the views and even stopped to grab the best tamales on the way. We had plenty of time to enjoy the monarchs and after had another delicious meal at the sanctuary. If you don’t want to walk the under 3 mile jaunt to the monarchs, there is an option to rent a horse from the locals to take you part of the way up and down. A long day but well worth it!

Butterflies were awesome. Super cool experience. Alberto our guide was fantastic. The reserve is really beautiful. Be prepared for some slow and rough road driving out in rural Mexico. Definitely recommend.

Our tour guide Sal took us on the perfect adventure to the monarch butterfly biosphere. He explained our day to us and kept us amused with stories the whole way there and back. We had a new clean comfortable car to ride in. He stopped when we asked for restrooms and food. He is the perfect gentleman always asking about our comfort and our needs. Our trip up into the mountains to see the butterflies couldn't have been more perfect. The day was sunny and the perfect temperature for the butterflies to come down out of the fir trees to flutter all amongst us and feeding on the the beautiful flowers that surrounded us. We saw the huge roosts of thousands of butterflies all clinging to each other. Finding the Kaleidoscope of butterflies in the sanctuary was a personal dream of mine. The day more than exceeded every expectation I had. It was magical as they floated all around us. We went midweek so there were barely any other people there. It felt like we had the magic all to ourselves most of the trip. The views in the mountains were spectacular of the neighboring valley. We did take advantage of riding the horses up and back halfway. That was a fun experience as well. The young men who helped us with the horses couldn't have been nicer. Sal was extra patient with me if I needed a break from walking for a few minutes to catch my breath. If you ever get the opportunity to go- Go! Many thanks to our guide Sal for providing with this exciting adventure. I will cherish it forever.

Seeing the butterflies was great. We loved that experience! I wouldn't go with this provider again, though. Our guide was not particularly enthusiastic or informative. He was okay, just not great. His English was good enough. He'd answer questions if we asked but didn't volunteer a lot of information. Our long drive there also got extended by about 45 minutes when our driver got diverted to have to pay an existing ticket for a red-light violation, or something like that.

The tour is amazing. Transport is well arranged by meeting at a location. The guide drove nicely. Then arriving at the spot, a local guide joined us to explain even more about the area and the butterflies. They both took the time to answer questions and there was also room for humour. Lovely given and still watched Axelotl. Top tour! (The picture is just a taste of how many butterflies you will see!)

Seeing the monarch butterflies was on my bucket list, so we booked this tour from Mexico City. Communication beforehand was good and our driver Arturo was good and shared lots of interesting information about Mexico. The only thing that could have been better was that at the butterfly sanctuary you have to go with a different guide up the mountain, and our guide didn’t speak English, so we did not get to learn or ask about the butterflies, we just saw them. Prepare yourself for a long day. With traffic and stops the drive is easily 4 hours each way.

Hmmm, this tour shows an available date and rate but each time I try to reserve, the rate increases from 179 - to 309. This does not feel right.

We went on the butterfly tour the first week of March 2025 and it was incredible! Our tour guide was Irazú (Zu) and she met our every need and then some! Superb attention to detail from Zu who give us tips and recommendations every step of the way that made things that much more enjoyable and inspiring. (We were fast friends by the end of the day. Also she offers to take pictures of you and your group in key places which is a nice touch). She also has a wealth of knowledge on lots of subjects, and elegantly transitioned between English and Spanish all day long to meet the needs of our group. Roberto was our driver, also a great person, and anamazing driver (its a LONG day and I admire the stamina and skills on all kinds of roads). So a few things you should know: Vibe Adventures offices were ok but not great at communicating with us before hand. We asked about if there was time for breakfast and lunch stops built in and the company said we should bring our own food to not reduce our time at reserve. However there was sit down food stands and cafes at the trailhead and restaurants in Angangueo town so the food we packed was a waste. The local food is excellent withsome tasty regional things you can't get elsewhere, and honestly faster than trying to picnic. We were annoyed to have spent the day before grocery shopping only to not end up eating food we brought with us before our international flight the next day. Bad messaging Vibe Adventures. Also the site and sanctuary you will see butterflies may change on a somewhat regular basis depending on the butterflies (they are wild animals that fly afterall) so the hike you will take might be different from ours. The good news is the company and tour guides will be up to dste on where the butterflies are to be found that day and a local sanctuary guide will be even more knowledgeable on the details. You will be in good hands as far as butterfly viewing experience. If you can go a weekday that's better as the sanctuaries get lots more tourists on the weekend. That said expect elevation gain to wear good hiking shoes or athletic shoes (we did, but again that could have been better communicated by Vibe Adventures). Finally prepare for the excursion to potentially (likely?) be longer than the 12 hours as there is a LOT you may want to see and do and the drive there and back is long and traffic dependant. Good luck and enjoy this lovely day, its worth it!!!! (in terms of time, $, and effort!)

Very long day but worth it to see the butterflies. Our guide Ari was very knowledgeable and gave us lots of information on Mexico City during the journey. The visit to the butterflies wasn't as much of a trek as we expected and we were able to spend ample time there. Highly recommend.