BED BUGS

[DramaQueen22]

2 hours ago, Cruiseman38 said:

I saw an article about this video.  Someone proved that the cabin shown was not a Carnival ship as the bedding and decor do not match Horizon or any other Carnival ship.

I thought that too.  The decor certainly does not match anything I've seen on the Horizon.  

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

11 minutes ago, Pyxie said:

 

I know this is kind of a joke, but it is actually a good idea. Bed bug sniffing dogs are a real thing.

 

Yes, it was primarily meant to be funny (but at the same time - dogs can pick up on so many things, when properly trained).

 

Tom

[staceyglow]

2 hours ago, hard_eight said:

We always store luggage under the bed on a cruise...now I guess that's over! My Wife takes this HUGE suitcase with us that barely fits. Will have to get creative with that one.

Bed bugs, in theory, can crawl into a suitcase from just about anywhere in your room. 

 

Think of it this way: If bedbugs were a significant issue on Carnival ships, there would be WAAAY more threads about it on Cruise Critic. 😁

[Butterbean1000]

3 hours ago, Cruiseman38 said:

I saw an article about this video.  Someone proved that the cabin shown was not a Carnival ship as the bedding and decor do not match Horizon or any other Carnival ship.

I noticed it didn't look like Carnival's bedding also.  What's up??

[UGACamper]

18 hours ago, gotscrapz said:

I would freak out. LEGIT. 

 

I do check every hotel, cabin, etc we stay in. My daughter knows- she waits until I "do my checks" to bring anything into the cabin/room and then she also knows we don't put bags directly on the carpet etc. The whole family knows when we return from a trip anywhere - nothing comes inside until it has been cleaned and temperature treated.

 

We change in the garage and then proceed... is this overkill?

Maybe.

 

 But we have a friend that ended up with bed bugs and it cost about $3k to treat her home (including the follow-up treatment) and then buying all new beds and pillows etc and having to toss so much stuff and then one child had horrific bites and a reaction. They had to stay with family for the 1st week of the treatment and disrupt morning bus/work travel. It was a lot.

 

My fear is that one day I will find some on a cruise and freak out because they may not have another cabin to move us to? 

 

So I will continue with my "routine" and just hope for the best! I do really feel for anyone who has to deal with this, truly. I do realize even with my "system" it's still possible but I try.

 

Agree with all.  We look in every crevice of bedding, furniture, especially curtains. We are garage-changers as well.  Luggage does not come in the house. And we also do the black contractor bags to whomever made that comment.  

 

Sadly, we brought them home once from a luxury PRIVATELY-OWNED beach condo...  I don't wish them on anyone.  The lay-person does not understand what you have to go through to truly get rid of them.

 

I miss the pesticides of the 70s.  But I think (hope, pray) that cruise ships must use something with DEET or stronger because you really only hear of the rare case of bedbugs on a ship.

[kdr69]

3 hours ago, DramaQueen22 said:

I thought that too.  The decor certainly does not match anything I've seen on the Horizon.  

Maybe im blind but all i saw in the video was a quick shot of a corner of a bed and a small picture of what could be a striped sheet so im not sure what decor is beiing talked about? 

[Pyxie]

1 hour ago, UGACamper said:

I miss the pesticides of the 70s.  But I think (hope, pray) that cruise ships must use something with DEET or stronger because you really only hear of the rare case of bedbugs on a ship.

 

Are you thinking of DDT? DEET is just insect repellant and isn't particularly strong. It's what you find in mosquito repellant so it's mild enough to spray on yourself.

[Elaine5715]

8 hours ago, Cruiseman38 said:

I saw an article about this video.  Someone proved that the cabin shown was not a Carnival ship as the bedding and decor do not match Horizon or any other Carnival ship.

 

6 hours ago, crewsweeper said:

The cabin shown in the video isn't the cabin or ship where the bed bugs were found. The guy is just giving everyone a warning and explaining the situation.  I have empathy for the passengers affected by the bed bugs. You would have thought Carnival would have fumigated the room or ditched the offending mattress, or gave the folks a different cabin. 

Nevertheless, always good to be cautious when traveling but all the obsessive worry and fretting over what's a relatively rare occurrence is a bit overboard.

He is clearly suggesting this is Carnival.  See the tiny Carnival ship on the night stand and the headline

[tidecat]

That video was recorded on P&O's Iona. The bedbug story he reported on allegedly ook place on Carnival Horizon.

 

A Google search for Carnival Horizon bedbugs yields The Ship Life's video, a page on Carnival.com outling their response plan, this thread, and some Tik Tok videos on it. This isn't a big deal outside the cruising community.

 

[eas2225]

For those of you suggesting that bedbugs will get into luggage no matter where it is stored, this is what the exterminator who treated my house for two weeks told me.  Bedbugs live primarily along the seams and corners of mattresses and box springs.  They feed on their hosts...YOU!  As long as they have food, they have no need to travel anywhere else, so we store our luggage in the closets on a cruise.  

In our house, after the infestation,we moved out of our bedroom into the guest bedroom and sanitized everything.  Shortly after, my son found them in the corner of his waterbed.  So once we left our bedroom, they travelled to find another host, my son.

Bedbugs may not be a significant issue on a cruise, but trust me, once you have them you'll feel differently.  Call me crazy, but I'll do what I can to avoid another incident with these disgusting critters.  

[Eli_6]

The only time I have ever encountered bed bugs...had a deposition in Philly. Flight delays. Flight from hell in a middle seat delayed again even once we boarded.  Total delay of 7 hours.  Arrived at $700 per night hotel room (near opposing counsel's office) after midnight. Unloaded my boxes of evidence and unpacked. Pulled back covers and there were bed bugs. I didn't have it in me to get a cart and reload all those boxes and change rooms, etc. so I slept on the couch.  

 

Point being: It can happen anywhere. 

[Elaine5715]

2 hours ago, Eli_6 said:

The only time I have ever encountered bed bugs...had a deposition in Philly. Flight delays. Flight from hell in a middle seat delayed again even once we boarded.  Total delay of 7 hours.  Arrived at $700 per night hotel room (near opposing counsel's office) after midnight. Unloaded my boxes of evidence and unpacked. Pulled back covers and there were bed bugs. I didn't have it in me to get a cart and reload all those boxes and change rooms, etc. so I slept on the couch.  

 

Point being: It can happen anywhere. 

But did you win?

[Eli_6]

43 minutes ago, Elaine5715 said:

But did you win?

I was just deposing a witness and not in trial.  I think the case settled. 

[Stick93]

I once had a bed bug on my pillow on Norwegian. I pulled apart the room and found nothing. Had my luggage smelled by a bed bug dog before bringing them into my house. But it happens and it was a bed bug- I kept it  to show the exterminator. I didn’t call their front desk because I was afraid they would spray and put chemicals which I would not want to live with. 

[Itchy&Scratchy]

On 7/9/2023 at 9:15 PM, Chief93 said:

My consuegro (fun Spanish word for your child's father in law) is an exterminator.  I have learned a lot about bed bugs from him, and the advice about not putting your luggage on the floor of a hotel is spot on.  He suggests putting your luggage in the shower/bath tub.

but how are we all to take showers? You have got to put the luggage somewhere, and after the showers the shower stall/bathtub will be wet.

[BuzzBuzzen]

2 hours ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

but how are we all to take showers? You have got to put the luggage somewhere, and after the showers the shower stall/bathtub will be wet.

I had to laugh when I saw Itchy and Scratchy comment on this thread . Cheers, Buzz.

[Stick93]

5 hours ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

but how are we all to take showers? You have got to put the luggage somewhere, and after the showers the shower stall/bathtub will be wet.

go to the spa!

[icft]

On 7/10/2023 at 9:54 AM, pe4all said:

Yes - I pack the bags in my luggage.  They take up literally no room.  And yes - once I put my clothes back in the luggage for debark I throw the bags out.  I do not do anything special besides that - no garage, or putting clothes in hot dryer, etc.  In over 40 cruises we have never (knock on wood) had an issue with creepy crawlies.

Well, to each his own. We've been on well over 40 cruises with never an issue but my therapist gave me a much simpler solution.

Edited July 13, 2023 by icft

[Itchy&Scratchy]

10 hours ago, Stick93 said:

go to the spa!

all three of us with the kid? I don't think so.

[dan4182]

On 7/9/2023 at 1:17 PM, ObstructedView2 said:

 

Hi @Heimey🙂

 

I saw the video as well. This issue occurred to one family on Horizon. For better context, I'll put the video below. 

 

 

 

Jay is not the world’s biggest fan of carnival to say the least. A high per centage of his Shiplife videos are to criticize anything Carnival.

 

 

🍹

 

[Homosassa]

I am posting this information for the many cruisers to Florida and other states that decide to spend their time before the cruise on the beach ,sightseeing, or enjoying a meal on the waterfront.

 

In the situation that is reported on this thread, the cruise was out of Miami the first week in July. That means it was during prime "noseeum" season.

 

The bites didn't show up until several days into the cruise according to the video.

 

Someone who is allergic to a noseeum bite (I am) can be bitten and not  be aware of it. However, it can take several days (36 - 48 hours for me) for the raised red bumps and welts to appear and the severe itching. It can take several weeks for the bites to disappear.

 

The bites in the photo in the video has the typical appearance and distribution of someone who has been bitten by a swarm of noseeums.

 

It would be interesting to know what activities the woman in the video did in the twenty four hours before boarding the hip.

 

https://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/aquatic/biting_midges.htm

 

https://www.coastawhilevacations.com/post/no-see-ums-identification-prevention-treatment