You can stop most bed bugs hitching a lift home with three habits. Check the room when you arrive. Keep your luggage off the bed and floor. When you get home, unpack straight into the washing machine and finish with a hot dry. None of this is foolproof, but together these steps cut the risk a great deal.
This guide covers each stage of a trip, from the first look at your room to the first load of laundry. It also explains what to do if you find something.
Why travel is the usual route
Bed bugs travel in luggage, clothing and bedding. Councils warn that bugs come home this way after trips, and the US Environmental Protection Agency links the rise in infestations partly to more travel. Any place where people sleep can be a source, so the habits below apply to hotels, hostels and spare rooms alike.
A tidy, expensive room does not guarantee a bug-free one, because bugs are small and hide well. So treat every bed the same way, and spend a few minutes checking it.
What to do when you arrive
Look before you unpack. The EPA advises inspecting the room, using a torch if you have one, and checking the mattress and headboard before you sleep. Check the luggage rack as well. Then look for the signs the NHS lists: small brown spots on bedding or furniture, which is bedbug mess, and blood spots on sheets.
Keep your cases off the bed and the floor. The EPA recommends using a luggage rack to hold your bags while you pack or unpack, and keeping the luggage away from the bed. Inspect the rack itself first, since it is part of the room too.
If you do see signs, take a photograph and tell the staff straight away. Ask for another room, and keep your luggage zipped and off the furniture while you sort it out.
What to do on the way home
Pack worn clothes into sealed bags before you leave. A bag stops a stray bug from reaching clean items, and it makes unpacking faster. Also keep the case closed and away from the bed until you are home.
Next, do not carry the case into the bedroom. The EPA says to store suitcases away from the bedroom and never to store them under your bed. A garage, utility room or hallway cupboard is better. Check the case on the doorstep first, looking at the seams, pockets and wheels.
Unpack straight into the machine
The EPA advises unpacking directly into a washing machine and inspecting your luggage carefully. The NHS advises a hot wash at 60 °C and a hot tumble dry for at least 30 minutes. Our post on washing and drying clothes explains why the dryer matters most. According to the EPA, washing alone will generally not kill bed bugs, whereas time in a hot dryer will.
Use the dryer even for clothes you did not wear, because anything that sat in the case could carry a bug. Dry items that cannot go in the wash, such as a dry-clean-only jacket, on high heat for 30 minutes if the label allows. Seal the clean clothes in fresh bags until you put them away.
Then deal with the case itself. Empty it completely and vacuum the lining, seams and pockets. Seal the vacuum contents in a bag and put it in the outside bin. If you wonder what steam can reach on a hard case, read our guide to steam treatment first. For items that cannot be washed or steamed, our post on whether freezing kills bed bugs covers what a home freezer can and cannot do.
If you find bugs at home
First, stay calm and contain the problem. Photograph any bugs, and avoid moving items from room to room, because the EPA warns against carrying items from an infested area to a clean one. The NHS says to contact your local council or a pest control service, because bugs are hard to find and may resist some insecticides. Our treatment comparison shows what each approach involves.
Do not reach for a fogger. Our page on why foggers fail explains the evidence. Instead, read do shop-bought sprays work before you buy anything else. Our DIY guide covers the steps that are safe to try, and the safety and label guide covers what to check on any product.
Early action matters, because researchers generally agree that light infestations are easier to control (Cooper, Wang and Singh, 2015). For example, a trap under each bed leg can show you whether anything is still active. When you are ready to judge the result, read about signs a treatment has worked.
A short checklist
At the hotel, check the room, use the rack and report any signs. On the way home, bag the dirty clothes and keep the case out of the bedroom. Then, at home, unpack by the washing machine, wash hot and dry for 30 minutes.
If you later book a professional, then our post on how long heat treatment takes sets expectations. Chemical-free dusts also have a place, as our post on diatomaceous earth and other dusts explains. In either case, our guide on preparing a room for treatment will save time. After the visit, the page on aftercare shows what to monitor.
Sources
- NHS. Bedbugs: how to get rid of them.
- US EPA. Tips for travel.
- US EPA. Preparing for treatment against bed bugs.
- US EPA. About bed bugs.
- Cooper R, Wang C, Singh N (2015). Effects of various interventions, including mass trapping with passive pitfall traps, on low-level bed bug populations in apartments. Journal of Economic Entomology.
- Norwich City Council. Think you have bedbugs?