After mosquitoes, bed bugs are a traveler’s mortal enemy and are despised all over the globe.

They are however a fast-breeding species and are usually found in most backpacking spots in Asia, South America, and even Europe when the weather isn’t too cold.

Try as we might, sometimes there is no evading them and it is to win this battle against the bed bugs that we wrote this article for you.

Thank you later.

How to identify them?

Bed bugs are usually brown or red in color and come in varying sizes depending on their maturity. The mature ones will be the size of a small apple seed while the smaller ones might be the size of the period at the end of this sentence.

How do I check for them?

Bed bugs usually leave two tell-tale signs of their existence.

Stains- bed bugs leave fecal matter wherever they stay and this is usually black and easily visible on mattresses. You might also find some red splotchy stains after bed bugs have been accidentally killed.

Shells – bed bugs as they matured release their shells and these slightly yellow shells found in beds or other areas are a dead giveaway of their presence.

Bed bugs love to hide in nooks and crannies of beds, making a detailed inspection of them quite important. Don’t be afraid or shy about flipping a mattress and shining a torch on it to inspect for bed bugs when in a new location.

It’s better to be safe and bed bug-free than sorry!

What can I do about them?

Ask for a change of bed

Never leave your backpack or clothes on the bed. They might spread onto them and be with you throughout instead of the one night you will spend being bitten.

Use a bed liner. Do however make sure you inspect it thoroughly before putting it into your bag the next morning as it might be teeming with bed bugs and spread to your other belongings.

I’ve been bitten. What do I do now?

The bed bug does not carry diseases so you need not be worried.

You must, however, refrain from scratching the skin that’s bitten as it might lead to an infection.

We recommend washing the skin with some cold water and applying some antihistamine cream or any over the counter anti-itch cream to have relief from the urge to scratch.

Don’t forget to change your sleeping arrangement!

What do I do if the bed bugs have spread to my belongings?

1. Bag it all up

Bag any material you think is infested with bed bugs and isolate them.

2. Heat it up

The best cure for bed bugs is heat. It is, therefore, a good idea to wash the suspected clothes at the highest temperature, several times.

3. Dry it up

As with the washing, the suspected clothes must be dried under high heat.

No high heat? Use a hairdryer!