Bed Bugs- has anyone had experience- need advice

[maxiesmom]

But then again, I have been in Disney World resorts a lot (over 60 trips) and have never had a bed bug problem at all. So, while bed bugs exist, I think the original question is why didn't Disney do something immediately for the OP?

Has the OP clarified what they said to the people at the resort? Did they mention they thought they had bedbugs or make a more general comment?

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Honestly, Florida itself is like a theme park paradise for insects and lizards. If OP just said "there were bugs in the room," Disney don't treat that with urgency. There are bugs EVERYWHERE in Florida. Literally everywhere. So a "bug" complaint is treated with non-urgency, as most bugs are non-harmful but non-Floridians get weird about it.

 

[Average Joes]

If Disney knows there was a bedbug problem but waited to inform a family after they returned home it could result in unknowingly bringing bed bugs into their home. I would want to consider my options vs. Disney for not letting me know that I could be bringing bedbugs into my home so I can take precautions. Here however the husband thinks it is bedbugs and maybe does not report it so perhaps they should have taken those precautions regardless. Not enough info here to critique anyone.

 

[lilkitty819]

Another thing to do if you encounter bedbugs 91% alcohol in a spray bottle will kill them. It's not the way to get rid of them in your home , but you can spray your luggage down with it when you come home to be on the safe side.

 

[got15]

Thank you all. We did report it the next morning to the manager on duty- the day after we checked out (when the welts and bites appeared all over him) to both the BWI (where we had just transferred) and also to the manager @ POR (we drove there to report). BWI did an inspection and bedroom refresh immediately and we received a report a day later that we were cleared. POR on the other hand, went quiet. We drove back again, after we checked out and spoke to another MOD and he said that another family was in the room and they couldn't do an inspection until they checked out. It wasn't until we had been back at home for 2 weeks that we received a phone call letting us know that the room was positive for bed bugs. Our suitcases had already been in our home, and unpacked. We have an exterminator coming out on Tues (due to the holiday) to do an inspection. If I had known sooner, I would have been able to take precautions. I feel that Disney has left us in an ignorant bliss instead with their poor communication and response.

 

[disneyseniors]

I know several PP's have stated to never bring your suitcases into the room until it is inspected. Well, we have always had our luggage delivered to our room while we were in the parks waiting for our room to be ready. In that case, there's nothing you can do about the luggage. Ick!

 

[MustangPrincess]

I'm assuming that you stayed at BWI in second, correct? Just curious - what section did you stay in there? I would hope that BWI would inspect the room that you stayed in there, too! I wish you the best of luck.

 

[maxiesmom]

Thank you all. We did report it the next morning to the manager on duty- the day after we checked out (when the welts and bites appeared all over him) to both the BWI (where we had just transferred) and also to the manager @ POR (we drove there to report). BWI did an inspection and bedroom refresh immediately and we received a report a day later that we were cleared. POR on the other hand, went quiet. We drove back again, after we checked out and spoke to another MOD and he said that another family was in the room and they couldn't do an inspection until they checked out. It wasn't until we had been back at home for 2 weeks that we received a phone call letting us know that the room was positive for bed bugs. Our suitcases had already been in our home, and unpacked. We have an exterminator coming out on Tues (due to the holiday) to do an inspection. If I had known sooner, I would have been able to take precautions. I feel that Disney has left us in an ignorant bliss instead with their poor communication and response.

Unfortunately I think you are a little to blame with regards to poor communication too. You didn't report your concerns to the resort right away. You waited, and then they had another family already in that room that they had to deal with. No way of knowing how long that family was in that room. Doesn't make it any easier for you to deal with, hopefully your home will be clear!

I guess the moral of the story is to not wait if you suspect bedbugs. Go down to the front desk asap! Don't switch resorts until it is dealt with.

 

[WEDWDW]

and they couldn't do an inspection until they checked out.

WOW!

I can't understand why they didn't immediately move that Family and inspect everything(their stuff and the room) out of an abundance of caution at least!

 

[Micca]

Honestly, Florida itself is like a theme park paradise for insects and lizards. If OP just said "there were bugs in the room," Disney don't treat that with urgency. There are bugs EVERYWHERE in Florida. Literally everywhere. So a "bug" complaint is treated with non-urgency, as most bugs are non-harmful but non-Floridians get weird about it.

So that whole "It's Tough To Be A Bug" thing is just malarkey?

 

[Accident]

My first concern is my house.. you may have introduced them to your house and it does't take long until your in a nightmare experience to get rid of them. My neighbor before we moved took 3 years of treatments almost monthly after throwing out anything they could live in (basically all carpets, beds, clothes, etc) several times. It's the type of thing you can end up selling a home and then have to still pay more money because the new buyers are claiming lemon laws and you didn't disclose you once had bed bugs..

When getting an exterminator, you want to find one that used a bed bug dog. They are hands down the best way to find out if you have them, they will smell them through walls and will be able to detect them long before you get any sign they are in your home..

My second concern is my cars, I had to get from airport to home, there is carpets in a car, especially the trunk where my luggage was. I'd ask the exterminator and their dog to also do a once over on the cars.

I would probably also throw out the luggage I used and any stuffed animals, even pillows I might have had there.. I would also immediately wash everything looking up online the proper way but I think it's hotter than you normally would use water. you did have your clothes with you, they got put back in with the rest. The throw out part I might wait for the exterminator to confirm but for my sanity, I think I'd have them thrown out right away.

From a family health standpoint I'd at least be on the phone with the doctors to discuss what we should do.

 

[wilkeliza]

My first concern is my house.. you may have introduced them to your house and it does't take long until your in a nightmare experience to get rid of them. My neighbor before we moved took 3 years of treatments almost monthly after throwing out anything they could live in (basically all carpets, beds, clothes, etc) several times. It's the type of thing you can end up selling a home and then have to still pay more money because the new buyers are claiming lemon laws and you didn't disclose you once had bed bugs..

When getting an exterminator, you want to find one that used a bed bug dog. They are hands down the best way to find out if you have them, they will smell them through walls and will be able to detect them long before you get any sign they are in your home..

My second concern is my cars, I had to get from airport to home, there is carpets in a car, especially the trunk where my luggage was. I'd ask the exterminator and their dog to also do a once over on the cars.

I would probably also throw out the luggage I used and any stuffed animals, even pillows I might have had there.. I would also immediately wash everything looking up online the proper way but I think it's hotter than you normally would use water. you did have your clothes with you, they got put back in with the rest. The throw out part I might wait for the exterminator to confirm but for my sanity, I think I'd have them thrown out right away.

From a family health standpoint I'd at least be on the phone with the doctors to discuss what we should do.

Not much doctors do about bed bugs unless you have a bad allergic reaction which is pretty uncommon. The may give you lotion to stop any itching but they are not known carriers. The do seem to cause psychological issue with people feeling them crawling when there are none left.

The torch the house approach is a bit much. 3 years is a long time too. My 1st apartment was successfully treated with 2 treatments and I haven't had a problem now 7 years later at any of my new places. They are hard to kill but not impossible. After 3 treatments even I would start to think I got a crappy exterminater who doesn't want the problem gone so they keep a good check coming in every few months.

 

[Accident]

Not much doctors do about bed bugs unless you have a bad allergic reaction which is pretty uncommon. The may give you lotion to stop any itching but they are not known carriers. The do seem to cause psychological issue with people feeling them crawling when there are none left.

The torch the house approach is a bit much. 3 years is a long time too. My 1st apartment was successfully treated with 2 treatments and I haven't had a problem now 7 years later at any of my new places. They are hard to kill but not impossible. After 3 treatments even I would start to think I got a crappy exterminater who doesn't want the problem gone so they keep a good check coming in every few months.

Well I'm the person allergic to everything so it's what I would need to feel comfortable.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Bedbugs have to get into the room somehow. They come in with other people's stuff or with your stuff if your stuff was out of your control for any period of time during your travel. You could even pick them up in another hotel if you stopped on the way to Disney and brought them with your luggage. So even if you check really good in the room, you won't find them until later on.

Disney has a very good program for checking rooms for bedbugs. They have a special team and a dog that sniffs out bedbugs. And it's best if you don't spray anything in the room if you don't own the room. Tell Disney and let them handle it. You just might cause problems for another guest who might be allergic to whatever you spray in the room.

 

[got15]

@maxiesmom we reported it as soon as we discovered the bites. We were only in the POR room for one night (only in the room for about 12 hours) and the bites didn't show up until the following evening. We reported it the next morning. They checked the BWI room that morning and found nothing. We heard nothing from POR, so we followed up a day or so before the end of the trip. It seemed like they had no clue about the earlier report.

 

[WEDWDW]

While INCREDIBLY awful for any Guest who has to go through this,this is how I "deal" with worrying about it.

I check my room and then forget about it-nothing more I can do at that point.

There are over 25,000 rooms at WDW.

I would think there are days when no rooms have BBs,but let's just say there are 25 rooms each day with BBs-that still gives me 1000 to 1 odds it won't be my room.

 

[Hoosier Mom]

This is freaking me out also. Would you mind to share what building you were in? We are preferred and were planning to request building 14. Now I'm wondering if I should try to switch resorts.

 

[wilkeliza]

This is freaking me out also. Would you mind to share what building you were in? We are preferred and were planning to request building 14. Now I'm wondering if I should try to switch resorts.

Almost every resort has reports of bed bugs. While it may bring you peace of mind it won't guarantee you won't get them.

 

[Govols1997]

I haven't read all the replies. But I wanted to say I know for a fact (hint hint) that Disney will do MUCH more than comp one night to help you with this bed bug situation. You must get on the phone and demand your home treated. Open up an official complaint. This could be very costly.

 

[KrazeeK120]

This is freaking me out also. Would you mind to share what building you were in? We are preferred and were planning to request building 14. Now I'm wondering if I should try to switch resorts.

What good would that do? I'm guessing all of the resorts have had bed bugs at one point or another. And there's no way to guarantee that the people occupying the room immediately prior to you won't bring them in, regardless of where you stay.