Hotel hazards: Why you should never put your suitcase on the bed

Many hotel guests place their suitcases on the bed immediately after checking into the room, then unpack them and put clothes right next to them on the bedding. Experts remind us that this is not a good idea.

Before we start laying out our belongings, including clothes and cosmetics, on the bed, it is worth checking for unwanted, small guests, such as bedbugs. Experts share practical tips on how to protect yourself from them effectively.

If we place our baggage and other personal items on the bed without first checking for bedbugs, they can quickly enter our suitcases.

Such behaviour provides bedbugs with free transport to your home. Until we ensure the room is clean, it's best to keep our luggage close to the hotel room door, advised Martin Seeley, director of MattressNextDay, a mattress production company.

So, how do you check if there are no bedbugs in the hotel bed? The expert explains that you should remove the bedding to expose the mattress. Adult bedbugs have flat, brown bodies the size of apple seeds.

When inspecting the mattress, look for red, rusty, or dark stains, as well as eggs or their shells about one millimetre in size. Although they can be difficult to spot, they usually appear in larger groups, making them easier to detect. Seeley also recommends examining the bottom of the mattress, bed drawers, and the space between the headboard and the wall.

It is also worth searching around the curtains with the light off. A flashlight on your phone may prove useful. Bedbugs are nocturnal and only come out after dark in search of their victims.

Another method to check for bedbugs is to use an iron. With its help, thoroughly heat the mattress. If they are there, they will come out.