.webp){kind=logo}
If you’ve watched the local news or a news magazine show like 20/20 recently, you’ve likely seen a report about bedbugs in hotel rooms. Reports have shown that even upscale and expensive hotels can be afflicted with bedbugs, and it’s alarmingly easy to bring them back home with you after a vacation.
Once they’re in your home, these nasty little pest can travel all over the house via bedding, clothing and even carpets. They’ll start to reproduce quickly and before long, you’ll have a full-blown bedbug infestation on your hands.
To prevent that nightmare scenario, follow these four tips while traveling over the holiday season:
- Inspect hotel rooms before settling in
When you first arrive to your room, make sure you take a close look around for bedbugs, paying extra attention to the bedding. For the most thorough inspection, strip the linens off the bed and look on the mattress, underneath it, and near the headboard. If you see blood stains or little black dots that look similar to ground pepper, that’s a sign of bedbugs. You might also see bedbugs themselves, which are very small: between 1 and 7mm in length.
Also, while you inspect the room, keep your luggage in the bathroom; bedbugs are much less likely to be in there.
- Keep your luggage off the ground
Even if your bedding is clear, bedbugs can travel around from room to room and may end up on your carpet before your stay is over. Keep suitcases on a luggage rack (many hotel rooms are outfitted with one), or if you want to be extra cautious, purchase a plastic luggage cover. This will keep your bags sealed up and safe from bedbugs.
- Do your research
Before booking a hotel, read some online reviews (if available) to see if previous guests have reported issues with bedbugs. Also, The Bedbug Registry is a free online resource that catalogs reports of bedbugs in hotels and apartments all over the United States.
- Quarantine and treat infected materials
If you find or suspect bedbugs in your luggage or on your clothing after the trip, put the infected items in plastic bags and keep them in a room without carpet – this will help bedbugs from escaping the bag unseen. Clothes should be washed in hot water and dried on high heat to eliminate bedbugs, and luggage should be washed by hand with hot water.
