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Original poster

To be freaking out about bedbugs in premier Inn....

88 replies

FeatherySquawkington · 31/08/2019 22:08

I'm staying in a premier Inn - tonight is the second night. Bedbugs would be one of my worst fears and whenever we go away I always check the beds and area around them just in case. Anyway, saw a little louse/beetle type thing on duvet earlier - DH chucked it out the door before I could get a proper look. It did look quite small, only a few mm and was running pretty fast. Anyway, freaking out about it being a bedbug now..... If this hotel had them there would have been reviews complaining, right?! Or do I need to burn all the suitcases and belongings, just in case.....

OP posts:
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womaninthedark · 31/08/2019 23:09

My gran said use damp soap and run it around the seams of mattresses to collect up bedbugs and eggs. She was born in 1909 and had some experience of bugs.

Chalfontstgiles · 31/08/2019 23:09

I don't think it's very fair of you to go casting aspersions on any named business OP, til you've got your facts 100% straight. We stay at Premier Inn all the time and never had an issue. Reason we like them is because the beds are pretty good and they renew them frequently so I wouldn't see PI as a prime culprit for bed bugs at all.

User728462536 · 31/08/2019 23:10

Long like the pictures of the ones that have fed? They are round when they haven't fed yet.

User728462536 · 31/08/2019 23:11

Well, I've just had the misfortune to stay in a Premier Inn that most definitely did have bed bugs.

Factual statement.

Moonshake · 31/08/2019 23:15

the beds are pretty good and they renew them frequently so I wouldn't see PI as a prime culprit for bed bugs at all

Bed bugs don't just live in beds though - they can hide anywhere in the room - so even if they replace the beds every day, they could STILL have a bed bug problem.

Pringlemunchers · 31/08/2019 23:15

Tumble drying a bin bag ? Is that wise ?

venusmay · 31/08/2019 23:16

We got bed bugs from an air bnb and it’s was horrible. You will know if it’s bed bugs because they bite in threes or in a zig zag pattern and in clusters.The bites are extremely itchy.

We got rid of them with vacuuming and a product called diatomaceous earth which causes them to weaken and eventually die. If the little critters hitch hike home on your luggage (as they did with us) I would try to get rid of them ASAP.

Pringlemunchers · 31/08/2019 23:18

Doh ! I think I get what you mean. Not putting the actual clothes in a bag, but closing them up until the dryer ?😆

gilliansgardenbench · 31/08/2019 23:20

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

SleepIsForTheWeeak · 31/08/2019 23:29

It's impossible to say for sure if it is them or just the other bug other posters have mentioned. If it is though you need to be very careful you don't take them home in your case/clothes. If I was you once home I'd empty my bag in the garage/shed and wash everything in the bag and dry on high heat, anything that can't be washed stick in the freezer. Leave the bag in the garage.

I backpacked for a year all over, I had the misfortune of experiencing them quite a few times (se Asia and Australia were terrible). At one point they were so bad at one place I could see them running along the zips in my bag. When I got home from travelling that bag was never brought back in the house! My parents were clearing their shed last week (I moved out of home years ago) and asked me did I want my travel bag (it was bloody expensive) I said bin it!! It's been 10 years, that's how bad my paranoia is! Horrid things which are v hard to get rid of though.

bluetongue · 31/08/2019 23:30

Poor you OP. I feel your bedbug anxiety Sad

Last time I was on holiday I was covered in what looked like (according to the internet) classic bedbug bites. It was the itchiest I’d ever been from anything apart from chickenpox.

So I took it upon myself to do a thorough inspection of my hotel room. No sign off any bugs and the mattress was spotless, cleaner than mine at home. So I realised I couldn’t speak to the hotel as I had no proof but I was still convinced that I was going to transport bedbugs to the next hotel I was staying in on my trip.

The itching continued and internet searches convinced me that unless I burned all the contents of my suitcase I would end up with an infestation in my house.

I eventually ended up at a French pharmacy for some advice on how to soothe the Terrible itching. Their verdict on the ‘bites’? Hives from an allergic reaction! I realised the it itching had started exactly at exactly the same time my shampoo from home had run out and I’d started using hotel shampoo.

I can confirm my house is definitely still bedbug free.

Fleetheart · 31/08/2019 23:45

Premier Inn will take any reports of bed bugs very seriously. If you actually had them I would expect you to have been bitten last night.
Bed bugs are a massive problem for all hotels and PI are very active in taking action against them. From what you have said it doesn’t sound like it though. If you see a big take a picture and report to reception immediately.

venusmay · 31/08/2019 23:49

If you peel off the bedding and look at the mattress and seams you will see if there are black dots (bed bug faeces) there.

pallisers · 01/09/2019 00:16

No aspersions on PI -they are endemic in hotels - a real problem. guy who de-bedbugged our house told me you can pick them up in ubers/taxis/anywhere.

OP, I've relatively recently gone through the de-bedbugging thing and I wouldn't wish it on anyone. I think they came into our house through my son - who is off at university, often stays over in dodgy student housing (his own place is probably clean enough because the management company does regular extermination runs). Or it could have been the dog sitter who slept in our bed - she goes from house to house. Or one of us could have got an uber with a bed bug in it from the last person riding. They only found them in 2 rooms but ...

The thing is we had to bag up every single item of clothing, bed clothes, towels, soft toys, dog toys, etc etc in our house and put them in sealed bin bags and then run them through tumble drier at high temp for 30-40 mins at the very least (from rooms with actual sightings I did high heat sanitise wash too). Then the exterminators did their thing. Then every single thing - like everthing in my house - had to stay in sealed bin bags - we lived out of them for 2 long weeks - until they did the second go around. It was horrific.

I'd rather err on the side that this bug was a bed but than presume it wasn't if I were you.

When you get home, OP, take everything off and take everything out of your bag. Put it in bin bags you can close/seal and put it in your dryer or a laundrette dryer at high heat for 30=40 minutes. That will kill anything that hitched a ride with you.

Aroundnabout1 · 01/09/2019 00:33

Did you thoroughly check mattress corners for tiny black droppings?

HarrietSchulenberg · 01/09/2019 00:39

This is why I go camping in my own sleeping bag and tent. Not great for city breaks, though, Grin.

NotWavingButMNing · 01/09/2019 00:49

Just puzzled at putting plastic bin bags in a tumble dryer...?

pallisers · 01/09/2019 01:05

Just puzzled at putting plastic bin bags in a tumble dryer...?

You decant everything you wear into a bin bag and seal it. Then take it to your tumble dryer. Because if you don't the bugs will launch off before you get them to the dryer. you don't put the bin bags in the dryer - you put the clothes in the dryer. I honestly didn't think I needed to explain the step between putting in bin bag and putting in dryer (take out of bin bag and discard). Live and learn.

pallisers · 01/09/2019 01:07

maybe I didn't make it clear - sorry. Just never occured to me that people would think putting bin bags in a dryer was a thing. Sorry.

Apollo440 · 01/09/2019 02:01

I've stayed in Premier inns numerous times and they are spotless. I believe they use memory foam mattresses which are sterile (i.e bed bugs can't live in them). In fact I thought most hotels used these types of mattresses these days for that reason.

dastardlybugs · 01/09/2019 03:48

Oh god bedbugs are my worst nightmare. I've just read an article mentioning how you can get bedbugs from trains, park benches, Ubers etc - all you need is just one clinger-on from someone else's backpack or trouser fold or something along those lines. Awful stuff.

DumpTrump · 01/09/2019 04:22

Those of you saying that Premier Inns are spotless and not to cast aspersions- it's not a cleanliness issue! The most expensive five star hotel can have bed bugs. Every hotel chain will have experience with bed bugs.

dastardlybugs · 01/09/2019 04:30

Those of you saying that Premier Inns are spotless and not to cast aspersions- it's not a cleanliness issue! The most expensive five star hotel can have bed bugs. Every hotel chain will have experience with bed bugs.

Exactly! All you need for a potential bedbug infestation is ONE PERSON with a bedbug in their bags, clothes etc. Said bedbug can be picked up from trains, airport benches, park benches, buses, or anywhere with a high turnover of people tbh. Just because a place is clean doesn't mean it couldn't possibly have a bedbug problem.

Original poster
FeatherySquawkington · 01/09/2019 06:49

I checked the mattress seams/headboard, skirting board and carpet a few times during the night and haven't seen anything. Mattress and pillows look practically brand new with not a spot on them. No bites on me or DS so far (who is sharing the room). I think I'm going to presume it's all ok and it was just a rogue creepy crawly. Having said that, I will tumble dryer everything anyway - won't do any harm. Tumble dryer is in the garage anyway so stuff doesn't have to come into the house first.

OP posts:
fluffiphlox · 01/09/2019 11:49

I think you need to relax and enjoy your holiday.