Bedbug update

> According to some entomologists and travelers, the reality is a bit more nuanced: While bedbugs of course exist – and very well may be resurging in tourist hubs like Paris following yet another summer of blockbuster travel – the actual situation, while unpleasant, feels considerably more overblown in the media than it does out-of-control on the ground.
“I expect that somebody happened to notice it, and for one reason or another, probably at the time because it was Fashion Week, the right things aligned and it just happened to bring this to the media,” Zach DeVries, assistant professor at the University of Kentucky’s entomology department, told CNN Travel.
*Bedbugs, more than any pest, kind of grab people’s attention, and I think it’s more likely that it just got the attention [of the media] rather than being an actual outbreak.**
DeVries also said he wouldn’t advise travelers to cancel an upcoming trip to Europe or anywhere else based on bedbugs. However, travelers can use the latest headlines as a reminder to be more diligent about their surroundings.*

Probably the best summary I have seen. ( from the OP link)

mango tree: The bedbugs have definitely jumped the shark.

Considering the French government are set to hold emergency crisis meetings on the bedbug problem it would appear that the issue is more than media (social or otherwise) exageration.

We just got back from Paris. Air BnB for 6 nights. First night my partner wakes up in the morning....4 bites....me....none. Next night 2 bites vs me....none. Then we notice the door to the patio has been open all night. So mosquitoes or BB? Based on me not being bit & the other being next to the door outside I'm saying skeeters

We got home & stripped in the garage. Undergoing BB protocol measures at the moment (aka DefCon 11) High heat in the dryer for an hour then wash & dry again. Luggage wrapped in plastic bags & sitting in the sun on the back porch right now. A few items at the dry cleaners

However, travelers can use the latest headlines as a reminder to be
more diligent about their surroundings.*

In what way?

In what way?

Use a flashlight to check edges of the mattresses and any upholstered furniture, don’t put suitcases in bed or carpet until you are certain, etc. The things I always mean to do but never remember.

So far in our travels we are bedbug-less and Covid-free. 😉

Ever since I started walking the Camino, where bedbugs are feared by everyone, I check mattresses everywhere I sleep. It can be the nicest hotel, but I still check. Hopefully it is a hotel with duvets and fresh covers and not those nasty wool blankets that you know, never, get washed. Metal frames for the bed, and use a. luggage rack. Put your suitcase in the bathtub til you are ready for it. No luggage rack? Use the desk or the chair for your bag.

Scariest are the fact that they are in buses, trains, planes, and theaters.

Not sure if they are bed bug bites? They usually bite 3 in a row or a cluster of 3. Look it up online if you are not sure. Skeeters do not do this.