Palm Springs snakes

Question

Hi! I have a severe snake phobia and I might be going to Palm Springs. I am not planning on going hiking or out on the desert. Has anyone seen a snake in town? Also, are there any of those guys walking around with big snakes? I've had so many trips tainted by the guys walking around with huge pythons soliciting people forphoto oops.

Answer

Palm Springs is located in the Colorado Desert, so while snakes do exist in the surrounding desert areas, sightings within the city itself are extremely rare. Most of the common desert snakes, including rattlesnakes, tend to stay in more natural or undeveloped areas and avoid busy streets, residential neighborhoods, and commercial zones where people are walking around.

If you’re sticking to the city, shopping areas, resorts, restaurants, and standard tourist spots, you are very unlikely to encounter any snakes. The city environment, with its paved streets, buildings, and maintained landscaping, is not a natural habitat for snakes. Occasional small garden or yard sightings can happen, but these are not common, and dangerous encounters are extremely rare.

Regarding people walking around with large snakes for photos, this is also uncommon in Palm Springs. Unlike some tourist-heavy areas in other parts of the world, Palm Springs does not have a culture of street performers handling exotic snakes for photos. You might see snakes at certain animal-related attractions, but they would be contained and managed professionally, not roaming the streets.

If you stick to downtown, shopping districts, and resorts, the risk of seeing any snake is negligible.
Avoid desert hiking or undeveloped areas outside the city to prevent accidental encounters.
Street performers with large snakes are not a typical feature in Palm Springs; such encounters in the city are highly unlikely.

In short, for city-based activities, you can feel confident that snakes won’t be a problem and you won’t have to worry about people walking around with pythons. Just enjoy the city attractions, pools, restaurants, and art walks without concern for your phobia.