• When you enter your hotel or motel room for the first time, place your luggage on the luggage rack. Do not place your luggage on the bed or floor as these areas can be prime locations for bed bug activity.
• Next, inspect your room for signs of bed bugs. Check the mattress and the seams around the edge of the mattress for live bed bugs and their excrement (which looks like clusters of small brown spots or blood smears). Other places to check include cracks and crevices in the bed and headboard area, nightstand, drawers, along the edge of the carpet and baseboards, cracks in wallpaper, electrical outlets, and other small places.
• When unpacking, do not use hotel room drawers. It is safer to keep your belongings and clothing items in your suitcase and keep it zipped when not in use.
• If you need to hang items in the closet, be aware that bed bugs can also hide in cracks in wood hangers. You may prefer to bring your own hangers from home to use for clothes that require hanging.

Even 5 star hotels can have bed bugs. Bed bugs are attracted to heat, blood, and carbon dioxide, not filth. A room inspection as a precaution is an easy way to protect yourself when you travel.