Good night, sleep tight, don’ t let the bed bugs bite. Sounds cute, but what can you actually do to ensure that sing-songy good night wish comes true?

Although most major hotel companies have strict and effective policies on how to deal with bed bugs once an outbreak has happened, there is little they can do to prevent new cases from occurring. Bed bugs are lazy bloodsuckers that have a terrible habit of travelling in people’s luggage or purses in search of their next meal, and are therefore unknowingly checked in along with the regular guests. And it’s not just hotel rooms. Bed bugs can be found almost anywhere there is fabric or wood from department stores to movie theatres to hospitals.

There are steps you can take to protect yourself. When you check into your hotel room, hang your coat in the closet and place your luggage in the bathroom, where it can sit on tiles while you inspect the bed. Strip back all the bedding and look at the corners of the bed and under the mattress. At three to four millimetres in length, bed bugs are visible to the naked eye. They are brown or red (if they have recently eaten) and if you don’t see the bugs themselves look for little black dots, which indicate recent activity. Bed bugs hang out close to their food supply so make sure to check the headboard where your neck, head and arms are exposed as you sleep. The telltale odour of overripe raspberries is another indication that you may not be alone.

A typical bite takes the form of red itchy bumps in series of threes, but could also just present itself as an inflammation. You could just end up with one bite or in some cases you could be covered in them. The good news is that unlike mosquitoes, bed bugs do not carry any diseases like Lyme Disease or West Nile.

If you do fear that you have been bitten by bed bugs, make sure to place your luggage in the garage when you get home and have your clothes dry cleaned and steamed or at least washed in water temperatures of 123 degrees F or higher; the heat will kill all bed bugs and their eggs. Let the hotel know immediately what you suspect has happened so they can investigate and treat the room as required.