Snake Island is interesting island you have to visit when come to Sumbawa Island, West Nusa Tenggara. It is a challenging tourist destination because you will meet hundred of snakes. But you don’t have to worry because they are tame as long as you don’t disturb them. You can take a picture while enjoying natural beauty around the island.
For you who love reptile, Snake Island becomes the best place to visit because you can have fun with them. The island lies around Oi Caba Beach and it is become original habitat for the snakes. The physical attraction of the snakes comes from combination of white, black and grey colors on the body.



Location
Snake Island lies at Kalo Village, Wera Sub-district, Bima Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. The island is close to Sumbawa Island because the distance is only 400 – 500 meters. To reach Bima City, you can take a flight to Sultan Salahudin Airport. If you start your trip from the capital of West Nusa Tenggara, Mataram, you can take public transportation from Bertais Terminal to Bima or Dompu. To reach Oi Caba, you can take public transportation from Bima City for about 45 minutes.

It is quite challenging to reach Kalo Village because the infrastructure is not adequate. That is why you need to rent a car from Bima. The cost is around IDR400.000 – IDR600.000 or US$41 – US$62 per day. You also can ride motorcycle by ojek which is cheaper because you only need to pay IDR35.000 or US$2.5. To reach the island, you can take a boat from Oi Caba Beach for 15 minutes. You only need to pay IDR50.000 or US$5. When the tourists are crowded, there is big ship take you to Snake Island and you only need to pay IDR5.000 or US$0.5.



Activities
Snake Island has been always related by snakes. It may sound horror because the residents in the island are snakes. But it is not too scary because the island is one of popular tourist destinations for local and oversea tourists. Total are of the island is 50 square meters and surrounded by water area with clear and turquoise water.

You will see Sumbawa Island clearly because the distance is quite close. Even when the sky is clear, you can see Sangiang Mountain standing in the middle of sea. The island is full with steep rocks and it is becomes a perfect habitat for snakes. Usually, the snakes will go into water to get their prey and rest in the island. It will be easy for you to find them because they are everywhere. They move so slow or just laying on the rocks.

According to the myth, the island has been believed as Portugal ship and the snakes are the crews of ship. But when you come there, you will see fishermen fishing around the island and sometime the snakes are trapped on the net. They will release them all because they believe if they take them home, their village will get disaster. By visiting Snake Island, you will be treated by beautiful underwater panorama with full of snakes in the island.

Source: www.picnictoindonesia.com