Here are some travel tips are to help you avoid picking up a bedbug from a hotel room, cruise ship or even public transportation and how to avoid accidently bringing them home. Be sure to check for bed bugs when entering any hotel room and if you suspect the presence of these insects, call the hotel manager who can help you inspect the room. Bed bugs are found in every country and even in some of the finest hotels and resorts, so guard your luggage and yourself so that you do not bring them home with you.
Many travellers worry that they are going to either sleep in a hotel or cruise ship room that is infested with bed bugs. Hotels probably are the most likely place you will find bed bugs, reports on cruise ships are less frequent.
1. What are bed bugs? What do bed bugs look like?
Bed bugs are small, oval, nonflying insects which includes three species that bite people. Adult bed bugs reach 5-7 mm in length, while nymphs (juveniles) are as small as 1.5 mm. Bed bugs have flat bodies and may sometimes be mistaken for ticks or small cockroaches. Bed bugs feed by sucking blood from humans or animals. Adult bed bugs are reddish brown in color, appearing more reddish after feeding on a blood meal. Nymphs are clear in color and appear bright red after feeding. The wings of bed bugs are vestigial, so they cannot fly.
2. Symptoms of Bed Bug Bites
Bed bugs bite and suck blood from humans. Bed bugs are most active at night and bite any exposed areas of skin while an individual is sleeping. The face, neck, hands, and arms are common sites for bed bug bites. The bite itself is painless and is not noticed. Small, flat, or raised bumps on the skin are the most common sign; redness, swelling, and itching commonly occur. If scratched, the bite areas can become infected. A peculiarity of bed bug bites is the tendency to find several bites lined up in a row.
3. Where are bed bugs found?
Bed bugs can live in any area of the home and can reside in tiny cracks in furniture as well as on textiles and upholstered furniture. They tend to be most common in areas where people sleep and generally concentrate in beds, including mattresses, box springs, and bed frames. Other sites where bed bugs often reside include curtains, the corners inside dressers and other furniture, cracks in wallpaper (particularly near the bed), and inside the spaces of wicker furniture.
4. Signs of Bed Bug Infestation
When inspecting a hotel room or other area when traveling, you can look for the following signs of bed bugs:
• Fecal remains (brown spots) or blood spots on sheets or the mattress itself. Look along the seams in particular. Look at the bed frame, night stands and other areas near the bed. Note that carpet beetles are often mistaken for bed bugs (see image below).
• Bed bug shells which look like brownish black specks.
• An oder that is a raspberry sweet smell.
5. Bed Bug Travel Tips
To reduce your chances of bringing home bed bugs when you travel, consider these bed bug travel tips.
• When traveling, only bring clothes that can be washed when you get home. Select clothes which can be laundered in hot water and withstand 20 to 30 minutes in the dryer.
• Consider using luggage that doesn’t have outside seams, such as hard sided luggage. Bed bugs will try and hide in crevices on the luggage and like to lay eggs on rough surfaces.
• If you purchase items, place them in sealable plastic bags.
• Don’t place your luggage inside the hotel room until you inspect the room for bed bugs.
• When entering the room place luggage on racks and away from the floor and if possible at least 10 feet away from the bed. Most bedbugs will be near the bed.
• Keep clothes in the luggage, not hotel room drawers.
• Zip or close luggage after it is opened so that nothing can crawl inside.
• If hanging clothes, consider hanging it on the shower rack or in the bathroom, the place where bed bugs are least likely to hide.
6. If You’ve Been Exposed While Traveling
If you know or suspect that you’ve been exposed to bedbugs while traveling, place all your belongings into disposable plastic bags and then directly into the washing machine when you get home. Your luggage will need to be disinfected or maybe even discarded when you get home.
Always travel Safe & Secure with Prime Link Travel Health Insurance available from your participating insurance brokers or online www.primelinkinsurance.ca
Mark Anevich
Travel Insurance Expert
LinkedIn Profile
Hey Mark – Nice article -
Good information to know, thanks for sharing. I can see how bed bugs could be confused with carpet beetles, depending on the variety of beetle at least. Either way they are both annoying pests to deal with.
bed frames that are based on steel would give you a more durable bed and a bed that last longer *,’
Great article……. pesky little things.
Does a hotel have to declare if they have Bed Bugs.
What’s your recourse if you find them and have paid for a room in advance…
Is there an industry stand on this…