Those pesky bed bugs are crawlers or hitchhikers. They crawl on their ride when the traveler is still. And they end up travel with various belongings, clothing, purses, backpacks, and luggage.
Bed bugs have traditionally been notoriously hard to get rid of. And they don’t distinguish between a budget or a luxury hotel.
The hotel industry is particularly vulnerable to occurrences of bed bugs because of the power of social media, and how people respond when they find or think they find a problem in a hotel room.
Travelers and hotels hate those pesky bed bugs! Sleep tight don’t let the bed bugs bite has become more than just an expression in many cases.
What you should know about bed bugs
In the U.S. bed bugs are found in every state. About 17% has been reported in the northeast, 20% Midwest, 20% in the south, and 19% were reported in the west.
In the U.S. hotels spend on average $6,383 per incident. This cost includes the replacement of goods, treatment, and lost business. A report from Orkin also shows that half of the hotels have been subject to litigations with costs rise to an average of $17,177 per incident.
Today hotels want to create unique experience offers with more sustainable travel without material waste and toxic pesticides and contribute to stopping the spreading of bed bugs.
What if there was an automated system working around the clock capturing these pesky bed bugs before they become a problem?
New advanced technology introducing travelers to hotels safe from bed bugs
Image: Courtesy of Valpas
Valpas has designed the world’s first fully autonomous preventive system for bed bugs. Using new technology that works by combining the industry-standard pitfall trap with wireless technology and a bioengineered design.
Hotels just have to replace their existing bed legs with Valpas’ bed legs. It is during the night when travelers sleep in the hotel bed that the pesky bed bugs come out from their hiding.
The special dark coating on the smart legs triggers the natural behavior of bed bugs and lures them into the legs.
Each leg contains a pitfall trap which is a proven method for capturing bed bugs. When a bed bug climbs on the leg, it falls inside and is trapped.
A notification is immediately sent to the hotel staff. A staff member can empty the trap at their convenience.
Every hotel room is monitored 24/7 with wireless technology.
“Bed bugs are a problem all over the world. As a hotelier, you just must face it that they might get here sometime. Travelers are more and more anxious about them, too.
With Valpas, we increase our guest experience by communicating that at the F6 you can stay carefree, before even booking a room.”
– Roni Saari, Owner, Hotel F6 Helsinki
“I’ve worked with a lot of hotel tech. I was really surprised how easy Valpas was to install and use – it’s nothing like the tech we normally use that can be hard to install and time-consuming to maintain.
When we have groups that visit, I often tell them about our Valpas system. Sometimes they think I’m joking because it just sounds too good to be true.”
– Henrik Lind, General Manager, Hotel Royal Gothenburg
“Bedbugs have become one of the main problems of the hospitality industry – they can be a real nightmare at a property.
Thanks to Valpas, this is not a problem anymore. The team are real professionals and make your life easier. I recommend Valpas to everyone in the hospitality industry.”
– Julien Tisle, General Manager, Esprit de France
Finally, a good night sleep without worry about those pesky bed bugs
Image: Courtesy of Valpas
Hotel F6 owner Roni Saari values the concept of thinking ahead: “We keep questioning established practices and try to run the hotel as smartly as possible. Thinking ahead ensures we keep creating the best guest experience over time.”
With Valpas it positions the hotel to communicate that at their hotel everyone can stay carefree, even before the guest made a booking.
This is a high-value concept for all hotels and will help increase your TripAdvisor ratings.
Becoming a Valpas member hotel will give you an edge over your competitions.
Travelers will find several tips on how to avoid bed bugs. Here are tips provided by EPA (the United States Environmental Protection Agency) when traveling;
- Inspect any room where you will be staying for the presence of bed bugs. You generally can do this without any extra tools but a flashlight can be useful.
- Check the mattress and headboard before sleeping.
- Inspect luggage racks.
- In hotel rooms, use luggage racks to hold your luggage when packing or unpacking rather than setting your luggage on the bed or floor. Try to keep the luggage away from the bed.
- Upon returning home, unpack directly into a washing machine and inspect your luggage carefully. Remember that time in a dryer at high temperatures kills the bed bugs (just washing will generally not kill bed bugs).
- Store suitcases away from your bedrooms, such as in the basement or garage. Never store suitcases under your bed.
Travelers staying at Valpas member hotels don’t have to worry about this. According to Valpas’ research, 97% of guests have a preference to stay in a Valpas hotel for their next travel destination, should one be available in their location.
If you are interested in learning more about Valpas then contact them today!
Credit
Valpas Hotels is a new kind of a hotel network – we bring together travelers and trustworthy hotels that are safeguarded from bed bugs.
A big thank you to the Valpas team for a great product and insight!
We are in this together!
I need to let you all know that we are in on this together. If you need to vent, talk, cry, or just have some to talk with then I am here listening. Since I am working part-time at the local Kroger, I will to the best of my ability to work it out around my schedule.
But you can reach me here:
Email: hotelblogger@aremorch.com
Also, join us at our Facebook Group – Hotel Social Media Community
We will get through this unprecedented event together! #hotelstrong #hospitalitystrong
For any specific information on COVID-19, I recommend go to CDC, WHO, AHLA, AAHOA, and HSMAI. Also, follow information from your local authorities.
NOTE
We are starting to reopen some hotels again (Yay!!!). Make sure you follow their guidelines and say THANK YOU to those that now show a unique spirit to serve, and helps us all get through this!! #hotelstrong #hospitalitystrong
About Are Morch
Hi, I am Are Morch. Your Digital Marketing Coach and Customer Experience Expert that specializes in creating effective digital customer experience offer for hotels while growing and scale customer acquisition and revenue.
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