Spas are Offering Snake Massages That Can Cost Up to $300

I’ve heard it’s a “super-relaxing and thrilling” experience, so why not? 

If you do not have a morbid fear of snakes, then this is totally for you. An Israeli beauty spa is serving up the exciting trend of snake massages at the cost of $80.00 per hour. Snake massages have been around for a fairly long time, and more popular in Indonesian spas. A massage therapist will place a few non-venomous, large snakes on your body and you have to lie still while they crawl all over your spine, back, face, arms, and legs.

It is believed that the movement of the snakes is deeply thrilling and nearly as efficient as the human hands in relaxing the muscles. The clients would just have to relax their minds and try to enjoy the cool, soothing feeling – which I can only imagine.

A kneading sensation

A spa owner in Israel, Ada Barak, was enchanted by the kneading effect of the movement of snakes and decided to bring it into her business. She explains that most people are normally skeptical about having serpents on their bodies, but once they get past the initial fear, the experience would become very stimulating. She says that’s some of her clients prefer to hold the snakes or even touch them while they slither. According to Ada, one of her older clients described the feeling as “soothing, like a cold compress.”

If you’re not very interested in the kneading effect of the larger snakes or the deep muscle massage, medium-sized and very tiny snakes could be brought in. They can crawl between your toes and fingers, creating a fluttering and tickling effect.

Barak mostly uses the California and Florida king snakes, corn snakes, and milk snakes. The snakes are thoroughly washed and dried off before they are placed on a client’s body. Snakes are not slimy or thorny like many people believe. They stay dry and naturally cold to the touch, an easily smooth feeling to imagine.

 The snake massage is not as scary as it sounds – you just have to relax and enjoy it.

Snake Massage at the Serpentessa spa

Looking for something a little closer to home? Serpentessa is a snake priestess and an inter-species facilitator who specializes in Boa Constrictors. In addition to giving snake massages, she also works at the Dreaming Goddess gift shop in Poughkeepsie, New York. Her work as an interspecies facilitator over the past 25 years has allowed her to use her serpents to “ignite awe and mystery in people’s lives.” Speaking to CBS2 as she guided three large Boa constrictors over reporter Murdock’s body, she explains that the snakes do not take orders from anyone [3]. They choose their own path to travel around a person’s body, sometimes colliding and crawling around each other.

When Murdock expressed a bit of uncertainty at the idea, Serpentessa assured her that the snakes are perfectly harmless.

“They tone and stimulate the vagus nerve in our body and that releases endorphins and oxytocin,” Serpentessa said. “Those are the feel-good hormones. There are no guarantees with a wild animal. You are the one who’s going to choose whether if it’s is safe for you or not. So no one has ever been hurt by one of my boa constrictors.”

One of Serpentessa’s clients, Pam Kelly, seemed like the snake message would become a regular thing for her after that experience. “It was a lot calmer and peaceful than I thought it would be,” said Kelly. “There was a point it felt like they were just hugging me around the shoulders. It just felt very calm – like I could fall asleep.”

Serpentessa charges $297 for a 75-minute massage. If you would like to book a snake massage session, they are available at two locations, Bedford Hills and New Platz, NY. If you live in Isreal, you can get one for a lot cheaper, otherwise, it may not be worth the plane ticket. Either way, it may be the slithering good time you’re looking for.