Checking into a hotel is usually the start of a vacation, business trip, or weekend away. The last thing you want is to bring an unwanted guest home with you.
Bed bugs are excellent hitchhikers and can travel from one place to another in luggage, clothing, backpacks, and other belongings. They can turn up in hotels regardless of price or location, so taking a few minutes to inspect your room before unpacking can help reduce your chances of bringing bed bugs home.
Keep Your Luggage Off the Bed and Floor
Before you start inspecting the room, keep your suitcase zipped and away from the bed. An inspected luggage rack or another hard, elevated surface is a better place for your belongings than the mattress or carpet.
Keeping luggage away from sleeping areas is one of the easiest bed bug precautions to take while traveling, since bed bugs can crawl into seams, pockets, and folds without being noticed.
Start With the Mattress and Headboard
The bed is the most important place to inspect because bed bugs tend to stay close to where people sleep.
Pull back the sheets and check along the mattress seams, piping, tags, and corners. If possible, check around the box spring, bed frame, and where the headboard connects to the wall or bed.
Common signs of bed bugs include:
- Rusty or reddish stains on sheets or mattresses
- Small dark spots left by bed bug waste
- Tiny eggs or eggshells
- Shed skins
- Live bed bugs
Adult bed bugs are small, flat, and reddish-brown, but younger bugs and eggs can be much harder to see.
Check Furniture Near the Bed
Do not stop at the mattress. Bed bugs can hide in nightstands, chairs, couches, dressers, and other furniture close to sleeping areas.
Pay particular attention to cracks, furniture joints, upholstery seams, cushion edges, and other narrow spaces. Their flat bodies let bed bugs squeeze into surprising hiding places that are easy to miss at a quick glance.
Even the luggage rack deserves an inspection before you place your suitcase on it. Check the straps, joints, and frame for dark spotting, shed skins, or live bugs.
Do Not Rely on Bites to Tell You There Is a Problem
Waiting to see whether you wake up with bites is not a reliable way to determine whether your hotel room has bed bugs. Some people develop noticeable itching or red marks, while others may have little or no reaction.
Physical evidence around the room is a better indicator. Knowing how to identify bed bugs makes it easier to spot a potential problem before you spend the night.
What Should You Do If You Find Signs of Bed Bugs?
If you find a live bed bug, shed skins, dark spotting, or other convincing evidence of an infestation, avoid unpacking your belongings and notify hotel staff.
You may want to request different accommodations rather than staying in a room where you have found signs of bed bug activity. Keep your luggage closed and separated from potentially infested furniture while you make arrangements.
Avoid using store-bought sprays or trying to treat the hotel room yourself. Bed bugs can hide in areas you cannot easily reach, and DIY bed bug removal may not address the entire infestation.
Take Precautions When You Get Home
Your bed bug prevention routine should not end when you check out.
After returning home, inspect your suitcase carefully before storing it. Whenever possible, unpack clothing away from your bedroom and place appropriate items directly into the laundry.
A high-temperature dryer cycle can kill bed bugs that may be hiding in clothing. Washing alone may not be enough, which is why the drying step is important.
It is also a good idea to store luggage away from the bedroom rather than underneath the bed, where any unnoticed hitchhikers would be close to a sleeping area.
A Quick Hotel Inspection Can Help Protect Your Home
Bed bugs are easy to overlook, but spending a few minutes checking the mattress, headboard, furniture, and luggage rack before settling into your hotel room can help you catch warning signs early. Being careful with your luggage during and after your trip can also reduce the chances of bringing bed bugs back home.
If you return from a trip and notice bites, dark spotting, shed skins, or other signs of an infestation, professional help can determine whether bed bugs made the trip with you. At Bed Bugs Arizona, we specialize exclusively in bed bug inspection, treatment, and removal throughout Phoenix, Tucson, and communities across Arizona. We offer free, no-obligation in-home inspections, and our Pro-Treat Plus treatment includes a second service approximately two weeks later and a one-year warranty. Contact us to schedule your free inspection today.