Travel

Staying in hotels and tourist spots should always make travellers cautious of a potential contraction of bed bugs. These bugs don’t inhabit a place because of reputation or cleanliness of a hotel or bedroom. Always keep in mind that even the most luxurious hotels are also prone to bed bug infestations. This is why you should put effort into preparing and inspecting your sleeping area to ensure a bedbug-free accommodation.

Preparations Before Travelling

One important thing to do before travelling is to Google information about your hotel. One way to know if your hotel has any cases of bed bugs is to Google the name of the hotel and bed bugs. The results will most likely show reviews of real customers about their stay at the hotel. Sites like TripAdvisor will provide you with trustworthy reviews and give you insights into their experience.

We highly recommend that you bring dissolvable laundry bags, plastic or garbage bags to hold all the contents inside your luggage. The safest option you have is using dissolvable laundry bags. In the case that you have detected the presence of bed bugs, these laundry bags will minimize the risk of bringing them home. Any bed bugs hiding in your clothes will be securely contained inside the bag and will not latch on to other items.

Upon returning home, carefully transfer your clothes from the plastic bag to the washer at the hottest setting. With dissolvable bags, you can simply put them inside the washer at the same setting. The hottest setting will surely kill live bed bugs and their eggs. We also recommend that you don’t bring your pillows from home as this increases the chances of getting bed bugs and effortlessly bringing them home.

Things to Do When Travelling

The first thing that you should do upon arriving at your accommodation is inspecting your room prior to settling in.  With an inspection that will take a maximum of 10 minutes, you can save money, stress and time from dealing with bed bugs if there are any.

Based on the protocol of Air Canada for their travelling employees, you can also do the following:

• Put all your luggage in the bathtub.

Bed bugs are less likely found in and around the bathroom so it is safe to say that you won’t get any bed bugs when you put your luggage inside the bathtub. In case there is no bathtub, you can place your luggage on a metal rack away from the wall. You can then proceed with the inspection.

• Inspect the bed.

You’re lucky if you don’t see any signs of bed bugs in your room. However, if you spot any signs of infestation or live bed bugs, get your luggage and head to the reception to ask for another room. Even if you’re in the middle of the inspection, stop and go to the reception. If you can’t ask for a new room, get a refund and book another hotel.

Never take the risk. Let us remind you that bed bugs are the most difficult pest to eradicate in your home.

When Returning Home

Prior to entering your home, isolate your luggage from your house by placing it on the balcony or in the garage. Start by removing contents one by one and directly placing them in your washer. Remember to set it at the hottest temperature to kill any live bed bugs and their eggs that are nesting inside your luggage.

You can bring clothes that cannot be washed with detergent or water to the dry cleaner to avoid damage. If the dry cleaner or washing them are not available, you can inspect the item properly and put them in the freezer for at least 24 hours. Make sure that you put them in a plastic bag to prevent the garments from absorbing the freezer smell.

Despite all the inspection and prevention you’ve done, if you think you still may have brought home bed bugs, we recommend that you look at our bed bug monitors and traps. These cost-effective solutions will help you in the early detection of bed bugs without the need to call for a professional exterminator.