Daniel Clarke, a travel expert and director of the parking app business, Parklink, shares that he has had ants and bed bugs crawl into his backpack when he stored his luggage in hotel closets during two separate vacations.
From these costly experiences, he realized the importance of sanitizing closets. He now carries antibacterial wipes to clean the surfaces of hotel closets before placing his luggage inside or utilizes the bathtub as a luggage storage solution, which saves space and keeps bugs at bay.
Dr. Jason Singh, of StoneSprings Hospital in Virginia, USA, shares similar advice on his Instagram, encouraging travelers to avoid using in-room closets.
Illustrative image.
According to Dr. Singh, wooden drawers or those with crevices and joints are ideal hiding spots for bed bugs. He shares, “Not just the bed, but hotel drawers can also have bed bugs. These areas are often hard to clean thoroughly, making them a high-risk area for bed bugs.”
Experts from the pest control company Terminix also confirm that bed bugs may be present not only in the bed but also in other furniture in the hotel room, including chairs, sofas, desks, and especially drawers. Crevices, seams, and joints are places where bed bugs can easily hide undetected.
Additionally, bed bugs can lurk in unexpected places such as walls, ceilings, behind wallpaper, picture frames, electrical outlets, and baseboards. They can even crawl through walls to move between rooms.
To reduce the risk of bed bugs infesting luggage, Mr. Singh suggests using hangers provided by the hotel to store clothes. A simpler approach is to leave your clothes in your suitcase and take them out as needed.
He also shares a clever trick to lure bed bugs out of their hiding spots. “You can use a hairdryer on its highest heat setting to blow hot air along the seams of the mattress and into the crevices of the bed. The high temperature will force the bugs out of their hiding places, making them easier to spot,” he suggests.
Another safety measure recommended by travel expert Daniel Clarke is to place luggage in the bathtub as soon as you enter the room. The bathtub is a relatively safe space, giving you time to thoroughly inspect the room and ensure no signs of these pesky insects are present.
“My luggage was infested with bed bugs and ants on previous trips. Since I started storing my suitcase in the bathtub, I haven’t had any similar issues. It’s a safe and clean space, especially in small rooms,” Clarke shares.
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