Kswl2

Emd I checked your post topics and did not see one that seemed it would be about your bedbugs ordeal in the list. Could you tell me which one it is? I have a friend who thinks the problem is over hyped ( okay, maybe) and no big deal ( not if you get them, IMO ). I'd like to read your first hand account and send her a link.

Sorry for the hijack, daschmo.

emd3

If you click on my name emd3 and look at the posts I have commented on (not posts I have started, but ones commented on), it is the 7th or 8th one down, titled, "NYC Hotels and BedBugs." In my Feb. 1 post on that thread is where I described my recent ordeal.

mclaurie

emd3's posts on bed bugs from this thread http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...d-bed-bugs.cfm

emd3 on Feb 1, 11 at 6:16pm
I am currently suffering greatly from bed bugs I got at the Hampton Inn Soho a wk. ago. I stayed there the previous wk. without a problem. But the morning after this stay I woke up with a red rash on my hand and over the next several days have developed 25-30 large mean red welts on hands, feet and buttocks, with little bite marks in the middle. Some of the welts are the size of a quarter.

They itch intensely, like nothing has ever itched before, even poison ivy. I am having a hard time concentrating on anything else but the itching. Steroid creams are not helping and I have another medical condition that prevents me from taking oral steroids. It is very anxiety-provoking to have this much itching, and it is also preventing me from sleeping, going on 7 nights now.

The general manager returned my call after two voice mails over two days telling him there was a health issue at the hotel and that he needed to block off the rm. I had slept in. He said they had never had a complaint like this and he refunded the cost of my stay. I just hope no one else has had to stay in that room if the management did not get rid of the bed bugs in there. This is worse than any illness I have had in a long time.

I suspect all the people on fodors who just laugh at this topic and say "if you are concerned about bed bugs, don't travel, " etc. have never been bitten by bed bugs. If they had, they would also be concerned and understand. It is a nightmare. I am not sure I can stay in a hotel for awhile after this. Maybe after I get over this awful situation I am in now and can educate myself better on how to detect bedbugs. What I am going through now is very debilitating and I am scared to death of having possibly brought bed bugs into my home since I did not realize it was bed bugs til after I got home and had brought my suitcase into my home bedrm. and unpacked.


emd3 on Feb 8, 11 at 10:14pm
FYI, I went to the dermatologist late last (2 wks after getting bitten by the bed bugs, adn still in much discomfort and not sleeping well due to itching) and got a cream that really made a big difference. It is Triamcinolone topical. I tried two other steroid creams prescribed by my primary care dr. in the previous 10 days and neither did anything to help the welts and itching. But the Triamcinolone worked remarkably well after one application and after a few days I have had much relief.

Bowsprit

I don't think anyone is minimizing the agony of going through this ordeal. I'm certainly not.

I'm simply saying the best one can do is to check the room following the suggested guidelines OR stay home and not visit places where the bugs have been present (theatres, movies, dressing rooms, retail stores, inns, hotels, motels, b&b's, etc.) There's simply not a 3rd choice. If there is, I'd like to know what it is.

millie2112

I am really sorry emd3 that you have suffered from these bites. I was concerned before our visit too. We stayed in San Francisco, Las Vegas and Los Angeles before our week in NYC. On the west coast I did check each mattress, much to the amusement of my husband and son who thought I was being ridiculous. I didn't check in NYC although I always check the beds and sheets. We came home after 2 weeks with no problems. I am afraid with more people than ever travelling, this is something that will continue to occur. I had never heard of bed bugs in hotels until our trip. However, I was reading our newspaper and bed bugs are now being found in Queensland hotels. So they are everywhere.

Kswl2

Thanks for that. Unfortunately the bedbugs situation is starting to take on an "urban myth" vibe that belies its harm to the individuals who are affected by it. Sorry you had such a rough time, emd. I will certainly check my next hotel room thoroughly.

ldman30

I find the Upper East Side to be way convenient, actually. You mentioned the Museum Mile, but there's also MOMA, Central Park, which are staples if you're in New York on holiday. And if you're shopping, there's Barney's, Bergdorf's, Bloomingdale's. Really great fine dining (JoJo's, Daniel and now Rouge Tomate). Good access to subways (6,N,R,Q,F).

I used to live on the UES, and honestly, I found it more convenient than living in Tribeca or even the Upper West Side.

nytraveler

The upper east side is convenient if you live near Fifth Aven. I used to live on York for a while and then on East End- either is as PIA unless you want to stay far east -since it's a trek to the subway.

iluvny62

I was a little surprised to read the above comment about the upper east side being inconvenient. Nothing could be further from the truth. I live in the East 60s close to Central Park and can't imagine living anyplace else. The subway (F,4,5,6,N,R) are a one or two block walk. The FDR drive and 59th Street bridge are easily accessible so I'm out of the city in 5 minutes when I want to be. Besides the great department stores that are in the neighborhood, there are many boutiques in the area. Add museums and restaurants to the mix and the fact that Taxi's are easily found, I can't think of a better neighborhood for an out of town visitor/tourist. One can walk to museums, mid-town Manhattan the Park and terrific shopping. The commenter was most probably referring to the outer reaches of the upper east side like York Avenue, East End Avenue, etc. which are definitely out of the way and annoyingly far from the subway.

ellenem

Many posters here often query about the Courtyard New York Manhattan-Upper East Side. . . its location on East 92nd St is more than half a mile to the closest subway station. The equivalent location on the Upper West Side offers two different subway stations and six different train lines. Once you are discussing options above the 60s on the Upper East Side, transportation options are much more limited.

nytraveler

East 60's is only the very beginning of the upper east side. Most people live in the 70's, 80s and 90s or up - and the subway is inconvenient in many of the middle class (versus very upscale) residential areas between Fifth and Park. And that hotel on 92 st is notorious - difficult to get to anywhere from there.

On the west side there are 2 subway lines and the area is only 5 blocks wide. On the east side there is only a single line and from Central Park to the River is 8 long blocks.