Snakes in Thailand
 

My wife and I want to go to Thailand, Laos, Cambodia & Viet Nam with OAT but I am concerned about snakes. My wife is terribly afraid of them so I would like to know the chances of running into them on a tour like this.

Any experiences? Is October a good time to go?

Thanks, Bernie

I doubt you'll see any snakes if you just visit the usual tourist sites around the major cities in Thailand. Snakes don't like people and they do avoid us as much as possible.

little or no chance of seeing snakes, except in the zoo....

october is ok, but november would be better....

When they offer to stop at the snake farm on the Klong tour just say NO THANKS

The only snakes we have seen on our trips to Thailand were at the weekend market. So don't go to the pet section if you to jj market.

On our first trip, this guy tried to get me to buy a venemous snake in an empty pepsi bottle and put it down my pants when I came thru customs back in the US.

Make your wife confront her baseless fears head-on. Its a pity to walk around with that kind of perceived fear.

i've been told lots of snakes in soi cowboy area.

no personal confirmation.

ken, those are different snakes...

While in Chiang Mai, we took a day trip to Doi Suthep, which was maybe a half-hour or so out of the city.

On the drive there, I was very surprised when the log that was in the middle of the road ahead of us suddenly slithered itself off the road. It was average-sized for a log, but enormous for a snake.

The driver just sort of laughed at our surprise and continued on to Doi Suthep. "They're not poisonous," he reassured us.

OP: Have you considered Ireland as a vacation spot?

Thanks for all the replies. I was most concerned with the Mecong River cruise and possibly Angkor Wat but I guess that they are shy and there will be so many people around that it will all be okay.
I just won't mention it as a possibility and hope for the best.

You can see snakes even in BKK. I watched a guy beat a 5' snake to death on the sidewalk of Suk Soi 39 one day. They also found a 6' python living in the bushes of my apartment complex on Suk Soi 49.

We saw three snakes as Ankor Wat, one of which the guide said was a krait, very nasty indeed so we stayed well clear of it.

I think that I have seen a total of five snakes in Thailand, in over 15 years so the odds are slim. The biggest was a python similar to the one described by Rizzuto.

Travel solo, and leave your wife at home *grins*. I have been to India, Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam and the only snakes I saw where in India...and they were being used by snake charmers, and they looked exceedingly dopey and forlorn.

Don't worry about snakes, especially in touristy areas. Here's the logic. In dense human population areas, especially SE Asia, snakes are food and they are increasingly rare due to local demand for exotic game meat.

In the countryside, human footsteps sound like earthquake to snakes. They would've scooted off long before you are close enough to see them. Take it from me, I live in a house surrounded by rainforest - and I rarely see one. The only places I see lots of snakes are chicken and duck farms; for obvious reason.

I would usually agree with all that has been said above, if not for the following review on Trip Advisors.com posted by a lady from the UK. They were "upgraded" at the Le Meridian, Khoa Lak. Here is a portion of her story, the rest can be found at the below link. While I'm sure this is not the norm, it would make me look quite carefully in garden hotels.

<i>Now we come to the reason, I've not given this hotel an &quot;Excellent&quot; rating. When we arrived in the new room (and it wasn't until late at night as we had been out all day), there was a snake in it, coiled around the top of the lampshade in the lounge (it's actually in the picture I've posted although we didn't know it was there until after we'd taken photos!) We rang down to reception and the man who answered laughed. We assumed that he was taking steps to get it removed though. However, we waited for 20 minutes, in which we couldn't relax at all. We daren't leave the room, in case the snake moved, and then we wouldn't know where it was. Coming from the UK, we don't have to deal with snakes and we didn't know whether this one was deadly, poisonous or harmless, but best to err on the side of caution. After 20 minutes, one of us went to reception to find out what was happening, and it turned out that nothing was! The lady was very apologetic and said she would sort something out immediately. We then waited another 15 minutes before receiving a phone call asking if the snake was still there! Where did they think it was going to be!?! Finally they sent two people up immediately after the phone call. They arrived with a stick and piece of drainpipe. We showed them the snake, and when they saw it they stepped back, which made us think we were right to keep away from it. They then spoke to each other in Thai for a few seconds, but said nothing to us. The next thing we knew, the guy with the stick poked the snake, it fell on the floor and started slithering around and the other guy with the drainpipe hit it! I didn't know it but the drainpipe had some old plaster in it and when it hit the floor this all flew up in the air. I thought it was parts of the snake flying in the air and shouted out. My Dad, who was on the other side of the sofa and so could see what was happening properly, quickly told me what it was that had flown in the air. They hit the snake three times and killed it which we were sad about. We wanted the snake out of the room, but we didn't want it killed, especially the way that they had done it. They didn't give us any hint as to how the snake had got in, what type of snake it was, or anything. It was gone one o clock in the morning before we got to bed. Needless to say, I didn't sleep at all well that night.</i>

Full review at the following link:
http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...-Khao_Lak.html

My teenage daughter has been backpacking around Thailand - Bangkok, Ko Samet, Chiang Mai and lots of other places in the northern part of the country for the last month. She hasn't seen a single snake yet!

Now she's off to Laos and Cambodia, then she will be working in an orphanage in Hanoi for most of May. After that it will be 2 weeks in southern Thailand before she flies home mid-June.

If she tells me that she sees any snakes I'll let you know!

Jack (tailer at Monet Il Sarto) told me one of his customers was bit by a snake at the Rice Mill restaurat at the Bangkok Marriott Resort &amp; Spa. I've stayed at this hotel several times and have seen Monitor Lizzards every time, but never a snake.

When I went, some years ago,there were snakes at the Floating Market(Thailand) as people walk around with pythons around their necks for tourists to take photos with. As one exits the Floating Market, the guys were standing there with the pythons around their necks.
Before I went to the Floating Market, many years ago, I asked if there would be snakes and was told there wouldn't be. Ha...what a joke. But, I survived it and I'm not fond of the critters either. I came across far more snakes (cobras) in one week, in Morocco...everywhere I turned...than in a decade of trips to Thailand. But, yes, there can be snakes in Bangkok as Thai friends have told me and also Tokay lizards which I'm &quot;really&quot; not fond of.I've had several encounters with them. Happy Travels!

I have resisted posting on this question because my answer is probably not what you want to hear!
You are going to visit Thailand, Laos, Cambodia &amp; Vietnam. I will be very surprised if you do not come across snakes at some point. Our regular visits to S.E.A. nearly always provide us with at least one snake encounter....usually several.
Never causing a problem.
I think , probably, they don't like meeting with us.
The honest answer is .....Yes, you may encounter snakes during your trip, but I doubt that it will be an issue.
On a recent walk at Phi Phi we encountered several snakes in the jungle, but they slithered off quicker than we could run away.

We have also come across snakes in the Angkor Complex but once again, they seemed more anxious to get away from us.

But, you know, common sense....Don't poke around or rummage away from the beaten path!