USVI-On-Line

My girlfriend who is staying at the Westin has a room that is infested with bed bugs! Yesterday she had lines of bites from head to toe after two nights at the Westin. Thinking it might be mosquitoes they checked their room before bed and didn't find one flying. The next morning when they pulled their covers off there were dark spots all over the sheets where the bugs were feeding and ummm- pooping. A check under the mattress found the critters. I know bed bugs can happen anywhere but it was a bit shocking for her to wake up to a bed full of them. She was staying in a beach front room. Still working on the details of what to do with their luggage and other items as the bugs hide inside them.
Just posting this as someone may be staying there and should really check their room out.

With that said, my girlfriend was moved to another room and there were no bed bugs and she had a great night sleep.

ick. this is awful.

bed bugs are a growing problem everywhere.

hopefully the hotel will be vigilant about dealing with the infestation and reimburse her for the costs associated with cleaning or replacing her luggage and clothing.

ick.

Gromit wrote:ick. this is awful.

bed bugs are a growing problem everywhere.

hopefully the hotel will be vigilant about dealing with the infestation and reimburse her for the costs associated with cleaning or replacing her luggage and clothing.

ick.

They bombed the room to get it ready for the next guests! She is getting ready to go meet with the hotel manager as nothing is being done for them accept to move them to another room. My girlfriend travels for her job and stays all over the world and has never had a chance encounter with these critters.

I would DEMAND that ALL my luggage, cloths, ect get cleaned down there. Bed bugs can cling and travel right back home with her and infest her house. I was talking with my Orkin man yesterday about this as we travel so often, and he told me to be very careful. He said it is about $700 PER ROOM to have them cleaned out. He alsdo said when they have to treat hotel rooms, they have to treat the rooms on either side of the infested one as well as the ones directly above and below. I will now ALWAYS pull the sheets and matresses off any hotel bed before I bring any luggage in. These little buggers are beginning to be big problems all over. Your friend needs to stand up for herself and get things taken care of while she is there.....trying from home via phone &/or e mail may not bet any results. I wish her luck!

I'm not a paranoid or squeamish person, but bedbugs just freak me right out, because they are almost impossible to get rid of -- they can live for up to a year without feeding!

I'd demand new luggage, absolutely.

Maybe, Pipanale can help her craft her letter to the Westin

Seriously though, that is horrible and I hope she gets it fully resolved.

I was just listening to the Diane Reahm show on NPR the other day that was about bed bugs. Ick!

One of the things the expert said was that the eggs are insanely sticky so they are had to get off of clothing and luggage.

It doesn't take a whole lot of heat to kill the bugs and eggs though, they die at something like 108 degrees so washing and drying (on high) will kill them.

The only bug that we ran into at the Wentin {Back then the Hyatt}was the love bug!It was our honeymoon. Parafins

I am glad they were able to confirm the presence of bedbugs by seeing the telltale stains on the mattress, sheets, etc. Some hotel managers try to blame those “bites” on the no-see-ums.

From a Memphis newspaper article today:

Scientists now say bedbugs are present on a scale not seen since before WWII, probably due to the rise in international travel. New York City tops the list followed by Philadelphia, Detroit, and Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton, and Cleveland, Ohio. In NYC bedbugs were found in movie theaters, clothing stores, office buildings including the Empire State Building, public housing units, and apartments.

Be Vigilant When Traveling!

Everytime I hear another bedbug story I start to itch all over!! The only bad experience we've ever had in a villa was on our first trip nearly 20 years ago and we woke up with bites that turned out to be tiny little (hungry) ants. That was bad enough. I sure wouldn't want to find bedbugs!!

spindrift wrote:From a Memphis newspaper article today:

New York City tops the list followed by Philadelphia, Detroit, and Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton, and Cleveland, Ohio.

AAAAAhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!

Here's the actual list of 2010 most bedbug-infested cities:

1. New York
2. Philadelphia
3. Detroit
4. Cincinnati
5. Chicago
6. Denver
7. Columbus
8. Dayton
9. Washington D.C.
10. Los Angeles
11. Boston
12. Indianapolis
13. Louisville, Ky
14. Cleveland
15. Minneapolis, Minn

This is the most current list that came out today from Terminix. That other article mentioned above obviously didn't have the whole list in proper order. I find it interesting that the Memphis newspaper writer left out 5 cities on the list from Dayton thru Cleveland and jumped right to Cleveland. Shows you how easy it is for news writers to manipulate the facts.

Most of the hotter climate areas usually aren't as infested because bedbugs don't multiply well in heat. The Westin obviously had a previous guest in that room that brought the bugs with them probably from a cooler climate. Although, they certainly can live and multiply in any room that is well air conditioned.

I'm curious, was that beachfront room on the ground floor?

This is really disgusting. Hate the fact that my luggage may be next to somebody who is carrying them. Then...I bring them home.

It would be good to know what room she was staying in. ???? Any way to find out??

I guess this is why Costco has/had a travel light that finds bedbugs??? might be something to look into