Bed Bugs: 10 Hotel Chains With the Worst Reputations

With winding lines backing up at security checkpoints, travel-weary children and all the other hassles that taking a vacation can entail, the last bedevilment you need is for a colony of bed bugs to hitchhike a ride in your luggage — or shoes! — and infest your home.

You do not want to bring these teensy parasitic nightmares home. You just don’t.

No. 1, they will suck your blood and leave behind unsightly welts that can become infected. No. 2, they can fast for long periods of time, which presumably makes them all the hungrier when they do discover your lusciousness. No. 3, they’re nocturnal and their cryptic nature in the daytime makes it difficult for housekeepers to spot them. No 4, they’re a devil to kill. A devil.

And No. 5, there’s the horror of it all, the psychological stress of the whole ordeal, a kind of a PTSD that is likely to haunt you if you bring them home. Yes, it’s a real thing.

But how can you know where the stealth insects are most likely to crawl into your suitcase without an invitation?

Hotel Hall of Shame

Bedbugregistry.com, which is sort of like the Yelp of the hotel industry in that it invites guest reviews, offers tens of thousands of unverified reports of bed bugs. The database is free and public, and it has been a repository for about 20,000 bed bug reports in the United States and Canada dating back to 2006.

The number beside the hotel chain’s name — budget properties like Motel 6, but also luxury hotels like Hilton — indicates the total number of the chain’s locations with at least one bed bug report. From there, you can filter the results by state.

So, what are the 10 buggiest hotels? According to customer reports — and again, they’re unverified — you don’t even want to lay your suitcase anywhere but on the vanity in the bathroom at these properties:

1. Holiday Inn (732)
2. Days Inn (560)
3. Super 8 (550)
4. Best Western (519)
5. Hampton Inn (505)
6. Comfort Inn (503)
7. Marriott (395)
8. Hilton (338)
9. Motel 6 (314)
10. Quality Inn (305)

The database also tells you in which cities you’re most likely to encounter bed bugs. No. 1 on the list is the New York metro area with more than 4,000 hotel bed bug reports on file. Compare that with Chicago, with 500 bed bug reports. Feeling better now, Chicago, Orkin’s worst bed bug-infested city two years running? Don’t gloat, Detroit, you’re No. 7.

Going to the Mattress, Literally

So, how do you know if your hotel room has bed bugs before they put the bite on you? Here are some tips for scouting them out:

• First, park your luggage in the bathroom, the least likely place for bed bugs to hide in your hotel room. The luggage rack may not be a safe place to put your luggage, because bed bugs may have caught a ride in a previous traveler’s suitcase.
• Start with the mattress, where bed bugs are most likely to hide. Gently remove the sheet and mattress pad, then take a close look at the four corners of the mattress and box spring.
• If you want to do a more in-depth inspection, check along the edging, seams and other small areas of the mattress and box spring. Most headboards are attached to the wall, so use a flashlight to inspect the crack between the wall and headboard.
• Inspect the furniture around the bed and pictures on the wall, which are among bed bugs’ favorite hiding places. Be sure to inspect all the cracks and crevices of the night stand, including screw holes, joints and drawers.
• Now, go on to the other furniture, especially upholstered chairs. You’re most likely to find them along seams.
• If you find bed bugs, notify the hotel staff immediately and ask to be moved to another room in another part of the hotel.

Outsmart the Little Blood Suckers

• Bed bugs are attracted to your smell, so bring a large plastic bag to double as a dirty-clothes hamper.
• Wipe down your shoes with a damp cloth and hot water.
• If you’re worried that you brought them home, do your laundry immediately, or seal your dirty clothes until you have time to wash them.
• Vacuum your suitcase inside and out, place the contents of the vacuum in a plastic bag that can be tightly sealed and then put it in the trash.
• Store your suitcase in a large plastic bag or tub to ensure that any bed bugs that may have hitched a ride home cannot move from the suitcase.

Image credit: AJ Cann via Flickr / Creative Commons