Sharing some tips about how to avoid b_ _ bugs while traveling. I’m not an expert — just sharing things I’ve learned from my experiences. I wouldn’t wish these on my worst enemy. Be prepared! Travel smart. Save yourself some major headaches. 😉
- Search Reviews. Before you stay somewhere, it’s not a bad practice to search the reviews for mention of the bugs. If anyone has mentioned them in the reviews, especially recently, I would turn up my nose and not stay there. If you’re broke and traveling and staying in places that probably have the Unnamables, I guess you could always bring a large plastic trash bag with you to put your suitcase in while you sleep. 😛 (I, in fact, did travel around for awhile with a large plastic bag folded up in the bottom of my bag after encountering b_ _ bugs, just in case I needed it.) You can also talk to the front desk when you get there and ask directly if they’ve ever had a problem with the Unnamables. If they take your question seriously, then I would take that as a good sign that the hotel / hostel is educated / well informed and takes necessary precautions. Still, you should always….
- Inspect. When you get to the room and before you open your stuff, inspect the bed. Take the the linens off, lift up the mattress, use your phone’s flashlight to look for dark, smear-able poop marks. Also look at the wall / bedboard / baseboard. Most likely, unless there’s an awful infestation, you will not see a live bug. You’re looking for their poop. Yeah, you might look crazy staring intently at a white mattress, but LEARN FROM MY MISTAKES. If you see anything that gives you the slightest pause, high-tail it out of there, my friend. It’s not worth it. Both times where I inspected the bed and there ended up being an infestation, I had brushed aside the evidence I had found as “probably just dirt.” I wish I had listened to my gut and not stayed there. Anyways, there’s plenty of guides on the internet that describe how to inspect a room. Even then it’s a good practice to always….
- Keep Things Away From The Bed. In general, even after you’ve inspected, it’s good practice not to keep your luggage / stuff near or on the bed or floor. I try to avoid setting anything on the bed. Put your luggage on the luggage rack, hang up your jacket, and for the love of god, don’t strew your clothes everywhere in the room and on the bed / floor. I also don’t sleep with my phone or laptop on the bed anymore (which is also just a good habit anyways!). Keeping your things in one place and away from the bed (the bed is the most likely place for the bugs to live, although they can also live in chairs and stuff) greatly reduces the chance that anything would accidentally crawl into your luggage and camp out there.
- Ziplock. Ziplock plastic bags are your friend. Not only do they keep valuables dry if your bag happens to get wet, but they make your life much easier if you’re traveling. Nowadays, when I travel, I tend to put my sketchbook / book / headphones / wallet / pens / chargers in a plastic Ziplock bag. Anything that’s small, valuable, and that I couldn’t wash or inspect easily gets sealed off. It’s also great for organization–no more digging around for my charger. If you do encounter the Unnamables, you’ll breathe easy knowing that most of your stuff was already sealed off and protected. They can’t chew through plastic and they don’t like plastic, so this is probably the best tip I can give you.
- Seal It. Zip up / seal your luggage when you’re not using it. Zippers might not be foolproof, but they reduce the likelihood that something would make the effort to crawl into your stuff.
- Laundry. Even if you think your trip is free of the Unnamables, it’s not a bad practice to throw your clothes in the wash / dryer at high heat right when you get home after a trip. Sometimes b_ _ bug bites can take several days to appear, so you never know. If you travel with any kind of washable luggage (like a duffel bag), wash that too. Otherwise, consider shaking / wiping off your luggage before bringing it inside.
- Inspect again. It’s also not a bad practice to be in the habit of quickly inspecting your bed twice a month or so (or whenever you wash your sheets). Not everyone reacts to the bug bites, so checking for bites isn’t always a foolproof way of knowing if you have them or not. Fortunately, it’s not that bad of a problem to deal with if you catch them early on, and even if you haven’t been traveling, it’s still possible to accidentally pick the Unnamables up from a movie theater, a couch, public transportation, or someone visiting your home. Again, they’re not attracted to dirt — they’re attracted to human blood!
In short: inspect rooms, keep your luggage organized and off the floor and away from the bed. Put your non-washable items in Ziplock bags, and do laundry first thing upon returning. Obviously, if you encounter the bugs, you’d want to take some extra precautions to clean your stuff before you bring it home (like doing laundry before you get home or bagging your stuff up before you get home).
So there you have it. I don’t want to cause mass pandemonium, but being a little more aware and prepared while traveling may save you some massive headaches down the road. The good news is, I’ve stayed in a lot of hostels (as have a lot of my friends), and the majority of them — even the gross ones — did not have b_ _ bugs.
The truth of the matter is, and what I’ve started to accept, is that you can never protect yourself 100% from these bugs. However, if you follow these practices, I think you would have a marginal chance of bringing any unwelcome visitors home with you. And the lighter you travel, the less stuff you have to clean…..so it’s a good lesson in minimalism. 😉
Happy travels!
xo,
Sarah
Sarah the Adventurer 