What You Should Know About Airbnb And Bed Bugs
Published on March 15, 2017 by Alana Korol
Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past five years, chances are you’ve heard of Airbnb. This online accommodation-sharing platform has revolutionized the travel industry in recent years. Rather than forcing travelers to pay for small hotel rooms in their destination city, Airbnb provides an affordable and arguably more exciting alternative.
Bed Bugs Are A Real And Present Danger For Travelers
Through the Airbnb platform, ordinary people with a guest bedroom, vacation property, or entire house to share can rent their unused space out to people who are looking for accommodations in that location. The website offers everything, from villas in Italy to tiny studio apartments in Chicago. It may seem weird, but millions of people have embraced the idea. It’s often far cheaper than a hotel, and you usually get more space and unique amenities. For another, it’s just more relaxed, especially in the eyes of today’s adventurous hipsters.
“...The opportunity to stay in someone’s charming home feels like a more authentic way to experience a new city, as opposed to checking into a cookie-cutter chain hotel,” explains Yahoo Travel.
Here’s the big, often ignored problem with Airbnb: You don’t know about the hygienic practices of the people renting out their rooms and homes. While the Airbnb platform goes a long way to ensure that you’re not renting from an ax murderer and that the property looks as advertised, these factors are only skin deep. In several cases, exhausted travelers have woken up in an otherwise clean-looking Airbnb only to discover that their limbs were a midnight snack for bed bugs.
“Our host in Los Angeles had terrific reviews. He also had bedbugs. Our first morning, we woke up and saw a critter the size of an apple seed crawling on the duvet. A frantic Google image search later, we had booked a hotel, sent the host a series of as-yet unanswered messages, and abandoned the apartment,” continues the author of the Yahoo Travel piece.
And that’s not even the worst part of the story.
Every traveler should know that Airbnb offers little recourse for guests with a negative experience with bed bugs. Suppose you discover that the apartment or condo you booked is infested with bed bugs. In that case, Airbnb has no policy requiring the host to refund your money.
The best way to protect yourself from this scenario is to check for bed bugs before you unpack one item of clothing or even sit on the furniture. The good news is that the Bedbug Store offers several products that make this process easier.
Your naked eyes are not up to the task of spotting bed bugs alone. We’re proud to offer this UV light for bed bug detection. This bed bug detector light uses a specific UV frequency that causes bed bug droppings and eggs to glow in the dark. Using this light to check for bed bugs makes the entire process quick, easy, and, most importantly, fail-proof.
If your bed bug light doesn’t reveal any droppings or eggs, but you’re still skeptical about the presence of bed bugs in your Airbnb, our bed bug travel spray will help ease your mind. Once you’ve thoroughly inspected the dwelling, apply a liberal dose of our eco-friendly, natural bed bug killer spray. We’ve created a travel-sized option that fits perfectly in your bag, empowering you to bring your favorite plant-based bed bug treatment wherever you go.
We can’t all stay in our houses daily and are scared to go out because we might encounter a bed bug. Travel is a great way to expand your mind and learn about other cultures. Still, we have to balance this experience with our safety. You can’t easily pack a large spray bottle or a 2 lb bag of crawling insect control dust into your carry-on bag. The folks at Bed Bug Patrol realize this, which is why we’ve created an entire line of products designed to protect you no matter where you lay your head.
Bed Bug Killer Traps
Trap bed bugs before they can bite or hitchhike a ride home with you.Traps can be one of the easiest and most economical ways to prevent bed bug bites in your home or while in a hotel room.
Bed bug traps are easy to use, chemical-free, non-toxic, disposable, and child-pet-safe. They can be placed at the base of the bed posts, the furniture legs, or even under the chair legs.
Our natural, plant-based Bed Bug Patrol Killer Spray provides an all-natural solution to infestations of bed bugs, as well as fleas, spiders, and other common indoor bugs. Our 100% natural solution is made in the USA. It relies on the power of natural ingredients like citric acid, clove oil, and peppermint oil to naturally deter these bugs from living in your furnishings and upholstery. Just spray our solution on affected surfaces twice per day, and it will get to work on exterminating your bed bugs and preventing their return. To keep you safe from bed bugs on your travels, arm yourself with our Bed Bug Blasting Travel Spray, which comes in a handy, TSA-approved travel-size bottle for your convenience.
