Vacationers should avoid unpacking their luggage in the bedroom after returning from vacation to avoid bed bugs in their own four walls.
Most vacationers are eager to put their apartment in order after returning from vacation and unpacking their suitcase on the bed seems to many to be the most efficient solution. A British mattress manufacturer is now strongly advising travelers against doing so, as “Mirror” reports.
Travelers should definitely avoid unpacking their luggage in the bedroom after returning from vacation as they may have brought home unwanted guests.
As Martin Seeley, managing director and mattress expert at MattressNextDay, explained to the Mirror, unpacking in the bedroom could lead to bed bugs that have been hiding in luggage finding their way into the bed at home. It’s best to unpack your luggage in a room other than the bedroom, ideally on a hard floor, as bed bugs are difficult to spot on carpet.
The expert recommends inspecting the suitcase closely and using a flashlight to look inside the suitcase’s seams, folds and pockets. In addition, Seeley recommends thoroughly vacuuming luggage before storing it to remove possible bed bugs so that the animals cannot move onto the bed, curtains or other soft furniture.
Seeley also warns against making mistakes when arriving at the accommodation: “Never put your suitcase on the hotel bed,” he emphasizes to the Mirror. It is common practice to immediately put the suitcase on the bed and unpack it without checking for bed bugs. However, this offers the pests a free return ticket home. Holidaymakers should leave their suitcases as close as possible to the hotel door or leave them on the luggage rack.
According to the UK’s National Health Service (NHS), bed bugs hide in many places, “including on bed frames, mattresses, clothing, furniture, behind pictures and under loose wallpaper.” Signs of bed bugs include bites on the skin, which usually occur during sleep, blood stains on bed linen or small brown spots on bed linen or furniture.
Germany is also increasingly struggling with bed bugs. “The bed bug situation in Germany has gotten worse in the last ten years,” confirms Kai Scheffler, federal chairman of the German Pest Control Association, to FOCUS online. The pests have spread further, especially since the increased travel activity after Corona.
Nevertheless, it is unlikely that bed bugs would nest in private households: “Only one in ten cases is actually a private household,” explains Scheffler. Rather, the animals would appear in shared accommodation and overnight accommodation such as hotels. The expert believes that it is unlikely that the virus will spread in subways and cinemas, as was reported from Paris last summer.
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