Bed bugs at timeshare

[timeos2]

I'm a little disturbed by people so willing to let the resort off the hook. If the attitude is, "Oh well, it happens," then hotels and resorts have no incentive to stay vigilant against it.

I'm not saying the resort was negligant in this case. But if an infestation could happen in a matter of hours, that is all the more reason to do everything they can to stay vigilant. The owner base should encourage that.

If owners end up having to foot the bill, the owner base will put pressure on the resort/mgmnt company. That may ensure against the "Oh well, it happens" attitude if they are held accountable in that way.

On another note, I was surprised to learn heat kills them, considering hot climates are where most of the problem is. I had no idea it was such an simple fix.

It is not at all "letting the resort off the hook". The simple fact is no resort wants a bedbug problem. The owners DO end up footing the bill - they foot any expense that the resort incurs. Making them pay some trumped up and unwarranted compensation for what was an unavoidable incident doesn't teach them anything or make them more vigilant as short of banning any incoming luggage or other personal items they cannot stop it.

When there is a problem being ignored then it is proper to take steps to force action or make them pay excess as a lesson. If a problem is being addressed as best it can then piling on bogus penalties does nothing to help improve things but may unfairly enrich a few at the expense of many. There are too many things now days that people use in attempts to make money rather than actually handle a problem. There are certainly areas of guest services, comfort and safety that deserve to carry stiff monetary penalties if ignored. But situation like bedbugs that are way beyond the control of any hospitality operation (even the very best can suddenly find a unit unexpectedly infested after a single exposure from another guest) doesn't call for any punitive penalties unless it can somehow be proved that they knew of the issue and chose to ignore it. That isn't the case here.

 

[vacationhopeful]

...I didn't know you could actually SEE bed bugs. I thought they were like mites that were hard to see.

Bedbugs are VERY small but if you know what to look for, can be seen ... but the blood stains are not.

I encounter bedbugs in Quebec City hotel in 1976. My college roommate and I were driving down the NY Thruway when I most BOTH of us were scratching out heads behind our ears. I noticed I had some RED bumps which itched and asked why she was scratching. I pulled over and went looking in the suitcases in the trunk -- saw the bedbugs.

After dumping enough chemicals into the car to kill a cat, stripping clothes off in the driveway, taking everything in the car directly to a coin laundry, straying my house & car for a week solid ... I would still get the "Oh CRAP" thought on every insect bite for a good year.

 

[rleigh]

I’m not saying “Resort’s guilty, sue ‘em!” We don't have enough info to determine whether they're negligent or not. This whole "Shhh! Our dues might go up!" reaction is just weird.

The people who want higher reimbursement seem to be missing the point - the money comes out of the owner's pockets - that means YOUR pockets. Do you really want to increase YOUR maintenance fees like that?

So maybe you feel that management is not doing their best to handle the problem - but making the owners compensate you, doesn't impact management... If you really think the management is not doing all that they can do - write letters to everyone on the board of directors - but don't punish yourself, and other owners by expecting big bucks in reimbursement..

As I said, owners footing the bill would probably put pressure on the resort/mgmnt company. Being held accountable would encourage resorts to be more vigilant.

TS owners encouraging fellow owners to do nothing or it might hurt them? LOL this isn't the mafia. I'd be willing to shell out a few extra $ a year if it means more bed-bug vigilance. That's a "duh" for me.

.............unless it can somehow be proved that they knew of the issue and chose to ignore it. That isn't the case here.

We don't know that. That's my point. Most people here were ready, willing, and able to excuse the problem and not hold them accountable, all because they're terrified the dues might go up. Case in point, you assume they were not negligent. I'm not talking about actions after the fact. I'm talking prevention and being vigilant.

 

[DeniseM]

As I said, owners footing the bill would probably put pressure on the resort/mgmnt company. Being held accountable would encourage resorts to be more vigilant.

I am sorry, but this is completely naive - how will owners have any idea that their maintenance fee went up because of large bed bug settlements?

You are punishing the owners instead of addressing the problem with the board, and with management - who can actually do something about it.

An email/letter writing campaign to the resort manager and board would be the most effective. I have spearheaded efforts to resolve problems at Starwood resorts using this method, and this works very well, and costs nothing to implement.

Get 20 owners to send letters/emails of concern to resort management, send a link to this post, and cc the board - and you will definitely get everyone's attention.

 

[MFT]

"Case in point, you assume they were not negligent. I'm not talking about actions after the fact. I'm talking prevention and being vigilant."

How are you preventative against bed bugs? Short of heat treating or spraying each guest and their belongings with chemicals as they check in, there is very little a resort can do to prevent this situation.

If bed bugs are found at the resort, of course they are going to work to resolve it ASAP. The reasons:

• Lost revenue from comping rooms and other expenses
• Possibility of showing up in a review.
• Word of mouth, or posted on a forum.

You can see that avoiding the issue is just not good business.

Having a pest infestation is not fun. But it happens. Bed bugs would be towards the top of my "ya, my vacation sucked" criteria, but would be way below anything life threatening, or like being stranded on a cruise ship! Just above a bad sunburn, or that it rained all week...

The resort comping the room, covering your out of pocket expense, and throwing in some restaurant comps or a future room comp should be sufficient.

 

[kwindham]

"Case in point, you assume they were not negligent. I'm not talking about actions after the fact. I'm talking prevention and being vigilant."

How are you preventative against bed bugs? Short of heat treating or spraying each guest and their belongings with chemicals as they check in, there is very little a resort can do to prevent this situation.

If bed bugs are found at the resort, of course they are going to work to resolve it ASAP. The reasons:

• Lost revenue from comping rooms and other expenses
• Possibility of showing up in a review.
• Word of mouth, or posted on a forum.

You can see that avoiding the issue is just not good business.

Having a pest infestation is not fun. But it happens. Bed bugs would be towards the top of my "ya, my vacation sucked" criteria, but would be way below anything life threatening, or like being stranded on a cruise ship! Just above a bad sunburn, or that it rained all week...

The resort comping the room, covering your out of pocket expense, and throwing in some restaurant comps or a future room comp should be sufficient.

As someone who finds the thought of bugs in the bed with me near horrifying, I put bed bugs way above a bad sunburn. It would really ruin my vaca. With that being said, I ALWAYS check mattresses and walls near beds before I ever unload ANYTHING from my vehicle. I don't even bring my purse or kids in until I check. Im just that paranoid. I have never had bed bugs, and I sure don't want to bring them home with me or have a ruined vaca. Im not scared of your typical yard bug, but the thought of bedbugs just runs my blood cold.

As for the OP's questions/concerns on how to handle it after the fact? I don't have an answer to that. Denise's comment on the letter/email sounds like a good one. I always walk into a room prepared to walk right back out if I find evidence of bed bugs, but have never had it happen.

 

[Space Coast Laurie]

... maybe an offer to come back another weekend.

I'm confused. You wanted a compensatory offer to come back another weekend to a resort about which you said "I don't think I can ever stay there again"?

 

[FishingGoddess]

More Bed Bug Tips

Count me in as being really paranoid about the little critters. I travel a lot, and make sure I check the beds thoroughly!

A friend of mine manages rentals, and had the misfortune to rent to someone that brought them with her when she moved in. After complaining, she moved out, but the bed bugs didn't make the move with her. Not only was her room affected, but also the room next door.

After much research, I found the solution: Diatomaceous earth. Not the kind you use in swimming pool filters, but either food grade, or organic. The food grade you can find online, and the organic (if you are lucky) can be found at local independent garden centers.

He began by taking the mattress and box springs outside in the sun for two days, sprinkled them with the diatomaceous earth and encased them in zippered plastic covers which were duct-taped, just to be sure they couldn't get back in there! Then he sprayed and wiped down everything in the room with alcohol, and (wearing a mask) sprinkled the diatomaceous earth all around the baseboards, and rug. After that was done, he closed the door and duct-taped all round it. In the occupied room, everything was bagged in black bags and put outside in the sun, then laundered.

After a week, he opened the room, vacuumed thoroughly and re-wiped everything again with alcohol. Problem solved!

 

[JanB]

What about mattress covers

We are renting out the condo that we just purchased in Hawaii. The management company requires "bed bug" plastic covers on all mattresses. Does anyone know if this is effective?

 

[DeniseM]

We are renting out the condo that we just purchased in Hawaii. The management company requires "bed bug" plastic covers on all mattresses. Does anyone know if this is effective?

It may help, but bug beds can hide anywhere there is a tiny crack.

 

[hugh6m]

More bedbug info

I haven't run into bedbugs at a TS, but I got bedbugs in my own bed after moving from California to Virginia many years ago. The bugs are certainly visible: they are about 1/4 inch in diameter and look like tiny beetles--dried blood red in color. I had a bed with a box spring that folded in half for transport, and when I discovered the bugs, they were living (when they weren't feeding on me) in the fold of the box spring. The other clues were lots' of tiny, dark dots near the seems, and on pillowcases and sheets (after they have been feeding on you for a while). As unpleasant as it was to find out that I was food, I didn't have a significant allergic reaction to them (although, at first I thought that I had hives--the bites--and must be allergic to something in my new environment).

I liked the helpful information has provided about detecting bedbugs and combatting them on this thread. I used the exterminator/chemical method of combatting them with my limited understanding of 40 years ago--the information I found at that time said that the heat method required heating the room to 140 degrees for 24 hours!

Also, although bedbugs can be found anywhere, they do better in more humid or tropical climates. I don't think they do very well in deserts or other dry locations.

 

[raising]

apology goes a long way...

A formal apology goes a long way. You can never apologize enough in a situation like this. That is so scary!

 

[hintok]

Bedbugs

Has anyone else stayed at a resort that had bedbugs? What did the resort do?

I just came back from a two week stay at a resort I exchanged into through RCI. After 8 days, I woke up with bites all over my hands and arms. I went to see a doctor and he said something bit me and was infected. He prescribed an antibiotic and something for the itching. I returned to the resort and told the front desk. Housekeeping came to the room and found bedbugs at the top of the mattress. They gave us another room with no offer to move us. Two days later the assistant manager called to see how I was doing. I told her I was surprised that I had not heard from the manager before now. The manager was an another resort which had developer sales going on. This is a well known resort chain.

Next time I talked to the front desk they said a company was coming in to clean the room and the room next to us. They had removed the mattress. I told them I was concerned about our suitcases and asked if the company could clean them when they were cleaning the room. They said no and said we could spray our suitcases with pesticide.

I thought that the resort should at least offer to pay my costs for the doctor and medicine and clean our luggage. My suitcase is currently sitting outside on the patio. I am afraid to bring it in the house. I did not mention the bed bugs to anyone else at the resort the remaining six days stay at the resort.

 

[Ron98GT]

I just came back from a two week stay at a resort I exchanged into through RCI. After 8 days, I woke up with bites all over my hands and arms. I went to see a doctor and he said something bit me and was infected. He prescribed an antibiotic and something for the itching. I returned to the resort and told the front desk. Housekeeping came to the room and found bedbugs at the top of the mattress. They gave us another room with no offer to move us. Two days later the assistant manager called to see how I was doing. I told her I was surprised that I had not heard from the manager before now. The manager was an another resort which had developer sales going on. This is a well known resort chain.

Next time I talked to the front desk they said a company was coming in to clean the room and the room next to us. They had removed the mattress. I told them I was concerned about our suitcases and asked if the company could clean them when they were cleaning the room. They said no and said we could spray our suitcases with pesticide.

I thought that the resort should at least offer to pay my costs for the doctor and medicine and clean our luggage. My suitcase is currently sitting outside on the patio. I am afraid to bring it in the house. I did not mention the bed bugs to anyone else at the resort the remaining six days stay at the resort.

So what resort was it. Be nice to know

 

[mjpeter]

Thanks for the pics and the advice! I've always been a bit nervous when traveling, but never knew what to check for. Now I'll make sure we check the beds and walls before unpacking. Yuck.

 

[GregGH]

You can view the documentary that CBC just ran a few days ago on Bed Bugs ...

http://www.cbc.ca/doczone/features/bed-bug-myths

These guys ...called the Doc Zone ... do some nice work on a variety of topics ... go spends hours having fun ...

Greg

ps - took another look at http://bedbugregistry.com/search/n:marriott/ you can search just on the name of the hotel to get an idea ... guess I had never done that before ... well ...knowledge sure helps ...but the thought that you can get them and bring them back to your home ...damm ....

 

[hintok]

Worldmak Palm Springs

So what resort was it. Be nice to know

It was the Worldmark Palm Springs location. Although, I felt the resort was very clean, they were painting the interior and I think this may have had something to do with the bedbugs coming in through the electrical outlets.

There is nothing on the bedbug registry about them, so I will post something.