Nope, not fleas either. Just bedbugs (Cimex lectularius). Entirely different bugs (though still rather unpleasant insects).

Ewweeee.... Yeuch, blech... all of that stuff. I have personally never seen one thank God. If I am going someplace where there will be mozzies, I usually spray the room with bug killer and leave for a few hours. Now will we have to spray the bed and hope the chemicals dont kill us?

Bedbugs won't kill you (unless you've died from the minor irriation of a mosquito bite).

no, I meant the bug spray on the sheets.

Whatever you do don't watch Arachnophobia! If just talking about bugs gets you going, that movie will freak you out.

Im still trying to get over the bug scene in Indiana Jones a gazillion years ago!

I'm trying to get over a spider in the bath right now.

Yeah, that one was pretty bad too. I would've needed a stunt double.

Apparently if the bites are bad enough you can get septicemia (blood poisoning). Also, you can be disfigured for months and scarred for life, based on some reports I've read.

I know everyone is different, but I like to work through worst-case scenarios for everything. It makes me feel calmer if I've developed a strategy for dealing with that sort of thing.

I just thought of a practical suggestion. Pack a small tube of hydrocortisone cream or ointment. I react very badly to flea bites, and that's what I do. Though now I'm thinking that maybe I'm too conservative about the threat--maybe I should bring a blowtorch and set fire to all the carpets and furniture where fleas might lurk.

I don't mean to say that bedbugs are fleas. I know they're not. I was just reasoning(?) by analogy.

"disfigured"? Oh My GOD!!

Well, if you really want to worst-case everything, don't forget brown recluses, scratches (you can get septiciemia from them if they get infected), sprained ankles from stepping off curbs wrong, hit-and-run drivers, hepatitis A, sunstroke, earthquakes in Italy, looking the wrong way while crossing in the UK, plane crashes, train crashes, vipers.....

...slipping in the shower, electrical fires during the night, getting hit by lightning, vertigo, flying debris scratching your eye, hypothermia, war, pestilence, plague....

Why are we talking about bedbugs? Has anyone EVER encountered them in Europe? Even in hostels? Neither I nor my kids (who do stay in hostels) ever have. The only time I have even heard of them was from people who stayed in the dorm in a mountain climbers' hut in Austria.

Birthdaygirl, if you are worried about the cleanliness of the places you will stay, carry a silk sleepsack; it won't take up much room in your luggage. Putting a sheet over the top of the bed won't do much.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7829176/

"Even upscale hotels are not immune...and bug specialists say the pests can thrive even in a spotlessly clean room."

Since there's really nothing you can do, I wouldn't sweat it.

I certainly would not bother bringing your own bedding. If by some bad luck you do encounter bedbugs, you'll just introduce them into your luggage and end up bringing them along with you to your next destination, and eventually home.

As the article explains, increased travel is why there's a rise in infestations.

No carrying your own sheet and blanket (which is ridiculous IMO) will not do a thing to keep the bed bugs (should there be any) away from you.

What kind of places are you planning on staying anyway?

There are about a million things you can worry about before a trip, this is a particularly weird obsession you've come up with.

What is a silk sleepsack?

Yikes! I didnt think of hepatitis A---i got vaccinated for B, but I think my vacinnation for A didn't stick.

But, you can get hep A anywhere...can't you? And is hep A as bad as hep c ?

Bedbugs can be found in any "level" of hotel (basic to deluxe). They don't seem to be disease transmitters from what I have read.

The only times I have heard about bedbug experiences have been here in the US....so, if you are going to worry, then this is not a "Europe thing."

Yes, it is icky (and I think we had bites from a nice place in Florida, but I'm not absolutely sure) BUT, if I worried about every possible bad thing that could happen, I would never go anywhere. So, be as prepared as possible, then try to relax and HAVE FUN!

Happy travels!

Look in any mail order catalog with travel supplies, like Magellens or something. Silk sleepsacks are what is commonly used by people who stay in hostel dorms.