How to avoid bringing bed bugs home from a hotel or trip

The large majority of home bed bug infestations begin somewhere else. Bed bugs are expert hitchhikers: they climb into luggage, bags and clothing in hotels, hostels, trains and other people’s homes, then travel back with you and settle in. The good news is that a few simple habits dramatically cut the odds of bringing them home.

Check the room before you unpack

When you arrive at a hotel or rental, spend two minutes checking the bed before you settle in — regardless of how smart the place looks (bed bugs have nothing to do with cleanliness and are found in five-star hotels as readily as budget ones).

• Pull back the sheets and inspect the mattress seams and piping, especially at the head of the bed
• Check the headboard and the joints of the bed frame
• Look for small dark spots (droppings), rusty blood smears, pale shed skins, or live apple-seed-sized brown insects
• Glance behind the headboard and inside the bedside drawer if you can

Keep your luggage off the bed and floor

Use the luggage rack (ideally away from the wall), or the bathroom — hard surfaces with no fabric are the least attractive to bed bugs. Avoid putting your open suitcase on the bed, the upholstered chair, or the carpet. Keeping your case zipped when you’re not using it helps too.

If you find signs, act immediately

Don’t tough it out. Tell reception, ask to change rooms (ideally to a different floor), and keep your luggage away from the bed in the new room as well. Report it so the hotel can deal with it before the next guest.

When you get home

This is the step most people skip, and it’s the most important one. Treat everything that travelled with you as potentially carrying a stowaway.

1. Unpack outside the bedroom — ideally in a bathroom, utility room or even the garden
2. Put all washable clothing straight into the washing machine on the hottest setting the fabric allows, or tumble-dry on high for at least 30 minutes (heat is what kills them, not just washing)
3. Keep the suitcase out of the bedroom — store it in a loft, garage or shed rather than under the bed or in a wardrobe
4. Vacuum the empty case thoroughly and consider wiping down hard surfaces

Second-hand furniture: the other common route

After travel, second-hand furniture — especially beds, mattresses, headboards and upholstered sofas — is the most common way bed bugs arrive in a home. Inspect any used item thoroughly before bringing it indoors, checking seams, joints and the undersides. If in any doubt, don’t take the risk.

Think you’ve already brought them home?

If you’ve spotted the signs, don’t reach for a shop-bought spray — it rarely works and can scatter the infestation. Use our free matching service to get connected with a vetted local specialist who can confirm it and treat it properly, often within a few hours of your request.