Snakes!!! A strange question about Italy
 

Okay, here goes probably one of the strangest questions ever posted on this board... We're going to the Italian Riviera in May. Found what looked like the perfect villa for us, until I read a review that said: As the owners are aware of the snakes in the property I think it should be mentioned but how to do it without causing unnecessary panic for those being really afraid of snakes. (Sorry to those of you who had to read this twice!)

I just so happen to be absolutely petrified of snakes (even the non-poisonous, non-life-threatening kind)! Are they really that common in that area?!?! Told you it was a strange question.

There are snakes in Italy- all over Europe in fact. Just as there are snakes all over the U.S. The fact that one person encountered a snake should not put you off this property.
Don't sunbathe in the grass- sit in a chair. If you love the villa rent the place.

Snakes are not really so common in Italy. Where are you staying exactly? I’m Italian and in my 42 years of life I’ve never seen a snake nor at the seaside nor in the mountains. I’m not saying that they don’t exist but they stay clear of urbanized areas. Enjoy your vacation

try Ireland!

In three years living in Piedmont we have seen one snake - it was in our garden for a couple of days - non poisonous, but clearly disconcerting if you dislike snakes. We have dogs and they thought it great fun to chase it away!
My experience of snakes is that they will actively avoid humans.

Hi B,

Would you rather be somewhere where you know that there is a very small possibility of seeing a snake and can take precautions, or in one where they haven't told you about the very small possibility of seeing a snake?

((I))

Hi Barb, I have spent a lot of time in Italy since the 1970's in cities, small towns, very small villages, in the various countrysides etc., and I have never seen a snake. And believe me, I hate snakes, lol. The only time I have seen snakes was as a little girl in the entry of our house in the SF/Bay Area and about 12 years ago in our house in a small city in the Bay Area.

I suppose that seeing a snake in Italy is a possibility due to highledge's post but as he said the posibility is true in the US also.

As much as I hate snakes I certainly wouldn't let one comment about them keep me from renting the villa I was interested in. And btw, family members rented a villa in Tuscany for three weeks this last summer which was out in the countryside and they never saw a snake. Go and enjoy!!!

Down in Puglia in the villages and countryside I have met snakes (terrified of them) but never in cities or in the mountains. No matter my fear I always calm down as they are always more scared of me than I am of them.

Please ignore this advise in Africa....

I honestly wouldn't worry about it. I think they just want to cover themselves and warn everyone ahead of time. I remember seeing a few snakes during the couple of years I lived in Italy - but lizards were much more common. They used to come in the house through the windows and climb the walls. :)

As people were saying, like most wildlife they will be less common in urbanized areas. If you are renting a place that is more rural, there is always more possibility of encountering a "visitor" of some variety.

I didn't know about the snakes in Riviera region. I lived outside of Genoa for 2 years and never saw a snake.

I have heard about vipers in the hills in Tuscany. In the fall, my husband and I go into the forest in the hills here in Tuscany for chestnut hunting. My hubby always tells me to be careful and watch out for the vipers. I haven't seen one yet, but my hubby and his family have.

I have a house in Puglia and have been told to expect the odd snake. Have been told they look like the black hoses we have all over the garden. Haven't seen one yet but let's just say I am very careful when collecting wood from the wood pile outside! Apparently they try to avoid humans like the plague and will slither off sharpish if you get near.

Oh great!! Just what I needed to hear. I have a deathly fear of even seeing a PICTURE of a snake, and here I am going to Puglia in May!! Oh dear me......

I have never seen a snake in Italy outside of a zoo. Snakes are VERY seldom in Europe - they are MUCH MORE common in North America.

Thanks to everyone for all your advice -- and for a couple of good laughs. I know how nutty I sound -- giving up a vacation to the Riviera b/c of some irrational fear -- but they're that scary for me (for reasons unknown. I'm a city girl -- Philly. Snakes would get trampled mercilessly here!)

Hearing lots of "I've never seen a snake" responses from all of you has helped to calm my fears a bit, so thank you. I'm hoping if I just stay OUT OF THE GARDEN I won't have any unwelcome encounters. Does anyone know -- do they often make it INTO houses????? If so, how?

(Flame123, I'm the same -- can't even look at pictures. Sorry to give you something to worry about!)

Hey B,

>do they often make it INTO houses????? <

Calm down.

You can walk in the garden.

Snakes very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very,rarely go into houses.

((I))

You should then come to Malta, no snakes here, St. Paul got rid of them a few centuries ago. Strange but true.

My brother in law lives outside Rome in the hilly areas .Property is loaded with snakes his land is surronded by trees,and light forest.I believe that is why there are so many cats all over Europe,but rule of thumb .Check out the area find out if these snakes are poisenous if they are not don't worry they will run away from you ,another caution is if your horseback riding horses could get spooked by snakes.

ref Ira's comments, I promise that if you should ever visit us, i won't tell you about our pet snake that escaped from its cage into the house and has never been seen again. [no, i am not kidding!]

Have a great snake free holiday,

Regards

Ann

Okay, I'm starting to feel a little better. And Ira, I'm holding you to that (the "very, very..." rarely in the house thing). I hope you're right... I only have until tomorrow to decide. Then I loose my option on this villa.

Sorry if I digress, but this reminds me of an article I saw in a now-defunct magazine, "Spokane Magazine." It referred to the difference between eastern and western Washington, which have very different climates, flora, and fauna. The article was called "Snakes vs Slugs." I live in eastern Washington, where it's possible to see the occasional snake, though very rare in the city. I much prefer the snakes to the slugs.

If you want to go somewhere lovely and totally avoid any remote chance of ever seeing a snake, then Hawai'i and Ireland are your only choices.

PLEASE don't freak out over this. If it's a rural property in any other place in the world, yeah, there might be snakes. And bugs and vermin and spiders! But the likelihood of you actually seeing one is pretty rare because snakes are shy and prefer to avoid people and will flee if you give them the chance.

Don't worry about the house, and when walking in tall grass no matter where you are it's always a good idea to have a long stick to disturb the grass in front of you so anything napping has a chance to wake up and get away before you step on it.

Anyway, snakes on a property are a GOOD thing: it means fewer rats and other vermin which, unlike snakes, will not avoid your home!

The chances of you encountering a snake are fairly slim, and in the house virtually nonexistent. We have snakes in the Dordogne (couleuvres and adders) and they appear only rarely, almost always in mid-summer, to sun on the stone terrace, but are truly spooked by humans and slither off fast if one approaches. I really doubt you'll even have a sighting of one, and if you do, it will be far more afraid of you than you are of it (well,actually, reading your post again, maybe you'll be equally scared)...

And yes, snakes are great for keeping other even less welcome vermin away...

Yes, I've heard they're more afraid of us than we are of them, but I'm DEFINITELY the exception to that rule. I would have never even considered this an issue until I read the review on the house; the house is, after all, in Levanto and close to the beach and town. But apparently it's at the beginning of one of the CT trails, which is where I suspect they may be coming from. So if there are snakes "on the property," most all seem to agree they can't or won't want to "penetrate" the house, right? And is May warm enough weather to bring them out "sunning on the rocks?"

Don;t know where this property is - but any farm or house in farm territory wil have snakes nearby. The far will have rats and mic and the snakes just love to eat them.


However, they shouldn't be in that near the house. If people are seeing snakes ona patio or wherever it sounds like they might be living inder the house. (This happened to friends of mine who rented a house near a farm in Vermont. they left after the first night - saw 3 sepaarate snakes sunning themselves on a stone path leading to the front door.)

Okay, that scares me!! Snakes living UNDER the house? The house is not a farmhouse, it's a beach house. (Go to http://www.italy-villa.it/_7895__index.phtm to see it. NOT a place where I would have expected snakes.) Whaddy'all think? Look like there could be snakes UNDERNEATH it??????

barb - maybe you should consider Hawaii instead of the Italian Riviera if you are so afraid of snakes. I wish this subject wasn't put on Fodor's Forum. Very few people like snakes but life does go on.

Barb, sweetie
PLEASE don't worry about this. The Vermont farm house mentioned was probably barely used and snakes were the least of the worries. We repeat: SNAKES AVOID PEOPLE. THEY DO NOT FREQUENT NORMAL HOUSES.

Being reptiles they must lie in the sun to get warm, so yeah, in May there might be some sun-bathing, but that isn't a concern for you. If they hear you approach they will flee. Repeat after me: IF THEY HEAR ME APPROACH THEY WILL FLEE. So don't worry another second about indoors, and when outdoors take a long stick with you and you'll feel better.

Plus you won't see a single one and you don't want to get back home and kick yourself for allowing the worry to ruin your trip!

Barb, I noticed that you are considering two other lovely villas in addition to the one with the snakes. Perhaps you would be more comfortable staying in one of the other two places.

Once, we almost rented a villa, which we loved, not far from Sorrento. On some review website, we read that it has a little creek running down beside the villa and that it occasionally had a bad odor preventing the people who rented from sitting outside and enjoying the pool and the terrace. We decided not to rent it since we were going in a summer month and the problem could be worse then. We were glad we changed our minds. We found a different and equally lovely place which had the fragrance of lemons and nothing else! So, consider one of the other places you are looking at for peace of mind.

Enjoy your trip!

I have spent about 250 weeks of my life in the mediterranean at places like the beautiful villa you are going to rent. And I have NEVER encountered a snake - neither in a house, nor in a garden or in the great outdoors. You WILL see a lot of lizards, which are very shy and completely harmless - but no snakes. Nature is absolutely harmless in Europe - the most dangerous beast is the common honey bee.

One summer I did quite a bit of hiking in the mountains of the Lunigiana region of northern Tuscany and I did see a certain variety of large black snakes several times. I even saw one of these in a tree. While finding one of these snakes was startling, the locals told me that this was a docile benign type of snake.

I also saw warning signs that read, "Attenzione Viperi!". It is my opinion that the primary purpose of these signs was to discourage people from trespassing on private property. Although I know that poisonous vipers do exist in mediterranean Europe I have never seen one and I believe that the likelyhood of casually encountering one is low.

There was a bad movie about reptiles slithering in a particular Italian countryside area last summer. I believe it was called
"Snakes On A Plain"

((H))

Interesting question. The only time on my trips to various parts of Italy I've seen a snake was in the town of Positano. It was quite small - about 18 inches - and the only reason I noticed it was that a cat was playing with it. I had read that there are snakes in the Amalfi Coast area and was concerned since we planned to do some hiking (which we never did for other reasons). Only you can decide whether it's worth the risk of running into a snake while you're there.

Yes, you can imagine that film was one of my favorites! (Couldn't pay me a million bucks to be in that one.) Okay, I am repeating after Cupid: IF THEY HEAR ME APPROACH THEY WILL FLEE. THEY AVOID PEOPLE. I know we could rent a different villa, like Marianna suggested, but if the climate and vegetation are the same throughout the Riviera, the wildlife will be as well, right? (It just never crossed my mind -- Riviera equals sun, beaches, beautiful villages and harbors... not snakes!)

BarbMH:

Just curious...are there NO snakes at all where you live? Here in Northern VA we have snakes of all kinds. You hardly ever see them unless you head to the mountains, but they are out there. Why would you be any more concerned about snakes in Italy than wherever you live now (unless you live in Ireland)?

BarbMH, Sorry to add to your fears but per an egyptian proverb "if you worry too much about a snake, you will miss the scorpians". So, look for the scorpians too :)

Just kidding. I empathize with your fear.

I have traveled extensively - much of Europe (including Italy), southeast Asia, and Africa. The only snakes I ever saw in my travels were two pythons and one cobra - one python around the neck of a guy in Prague and another around the neck of a man in Thailand, plus a cobra that some men were stuffing in a tall basket - ugh! Never any out in the woods. Like yourself, I'm deathly afraid of them. Asked a similar question on the Asia board before my trip to Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia. Yes, even pictures in a magazine scare me - and seeing one in TV causes the paralyzing fear to race through my body (and me to immediately look away). I was worried a bit during a hike we took in Thailand (guide told us at one spot that he'd seen a King Cobra there a few weeks before - yikes!), but I managed. Italy is a piece of cake by comparison(with great ice cream!). The chances of your seeing a snake are extremely, EXTREMELY slim. Have fun.
Karen

I'm with you, BarbMH - don't like them at all. Actually when I was in Rome about four Januaries ago, I went to Ostia Antica for a day trip. It was quite deserted - I spent most of the day there wandering around. Only after I got home did I read an article saying that snakes often lolled around the old marble floors. Had I read that before I probably wouldn't have gone ;-)

Anyway, I'm a city girl as well, New Yorker, and have sometimes seen people wearing them around their necks here - twice in the subway. OY!

Enjoy your trip!

What is it with Ireland? Are there truly NO snakes there? Maybe I'll relocate! To answer your question, StCirq, there may be snakes around here somewhere (Philadelphia), but not that I've ever come across -- thankfully. I steer clear of the wilderness.)

This has really been helpful. I honestly feel a lot better to hear that so many people have travelled so extensively and that most have not had a "close encounter." (I certainly wouldn't be as daring as you, Karen; you said you're deathly afraid, too, and yet you went hiking in the jungles of SE Asia. Once in Malaysia we went to an island that (for some reason) had a large python in a cage and that was it... I was out of there in a flash!)

So here's what my dilemma boils down to: the (snake) house, almost directly on the beach in Levanto, or the house in Portofino (62 steps and 100 meters above the town)? The Portofino one is more expensive and a little less centrally located, but it's in Portofino. The other is right on the beach (we'll have a total of five kids with us), less expensive, but possibly snake-y. Is it worth it to pay the extra money for the place in Portofino? It's about $100 extra a night for a similar size house. I don't know much about Levanto. I've heard good things about it from one person, but can't find out much more about it.

No beach in Portofino, and you'll have 5 kids with you. Take the house in Levanto, on the beach. Your kids will enjoy it more than Portofino, I think.

In Portofino, they will have to take the bus to Paraggi for the beach, or the boat to San Fruttuoso. That can't be as good for kids as a beach right out front! Or at least, I should say the kids in my family would enjou the house on the beach more.

I'm sure someone will disagree, but I don't really think of Portofino as a great town for kids.

I hope you take the snake house so you can write a trip report on your snake-less trip to Italy!