Do you unpack your suitcase and use the drawers, closet, etc? with poll

[Disneylover99]

I would imagine the odds of a live one getting into your home to infest your bed, etc, would increase with the more bedbugs you possibly bring home. So I always equate clothing in the drawers to increasing the odds of bedbugs having a place to hide. I don't keep clothing or suitcases on the bed or under the bed for this reason. When I stayed at the GF last April, someone had them in their room. I heard the person talking in Gasparilla's. I saw the bedbug dog on property. But even prior to that, I check any hotel I go to before I bring my items in. For me, I just feel it's a bigger gamble to take to use drawers (especially under the bed). I wish I wasn't put off by it because it would make my trip much easier not having to go in and out of my luggage so much. This thread has been an eye opener for me. I am relieved to hear people do this and clearly taking home bed bugs happens little in comparison to the amount of people unpacking daily.

If you are concerned about bedbugs but want to use drawers, pack your clothing in large, clear, sealable ziplock bags and throw those into the drawers. Toss them at the end of your trip.

 

[Disneylover99]

All our clean clothes are in big ziploc bags (one full outfit per bag) so I don’t mind placing them in the drawers and in the morning no fighting with the kids on what clothes to wear, they simply pick a ziploc that includes everything they need for the day.

You beat me to it! I posted before I read your post.

 

[Disneylover99]

I don't understand packing cubes. Mini suitcases that you have to pack inside your suitcase.

It just helps to keep us super organized and it’s really quick to pack and unpack. There are four of us and we each have our own colour of packing cube, so when we have to share drawers, we can quickly find our clothing or grab a bag.

We all pack a bit differently as well. I tend to separate my items into different bags. Socks in one cube, T-shirt’s in another cube, etc.... while my daughter might pack complete outfits in her bag so when she gets ready in the morning, or if it’s dark and she doesn’t want to turn on the light to wake people, she grabs her cube, heads to the washroom to change. She has socks, underwear, shirt, shorts altogether. Then she tosses her cube back into the drawer.

 

[snappy]

Since they are all adults, when we travel wth our kids now, we have separate rooms. But I still think the different color cubes for different individuals is brilliant when sharing drawers.

 

[Disneylover99]

Since they are all adults, when we travel wth our kids now, we have separate rooms. But I still think the different color cubes for different individuals is brilliant when sharing drawers.

It’s been especially helpful for us since 75% of our wardrobe is black clothing. When we used ziplocks, we wrote our names on each bag with a sharpie.

 

[Mome Rath]

I don't understand packing cubes. Mini suitcases that you have to pack inside your suitcase.

Or as DH calls them "Tupperware for your clothes".

I used to think they were useless (how could adding something to my carry on actually make everything take up less room?), and why waste the money? But, then I got a new carry on that didn't hold as much as my old one, so I went ahead and gave them a try and they really do work. There's two things I think helps; there is a mild compression effect and the material behaves better when you put them in a suitcase/carry on. They aren't miraculous, but they are definitely worth the money for me because of the way I travel sometimes (with just a carry on).

 

[snappy]

Yea we try to do carry on only too for Disney trips. Doable with the stuff we keep in our Owner’s locker. We don’t try to pack food, rather order amazon prime now delivery and/or go to a grocery store in Orlando.

 

[jsmla]

Now that I’m either solo or with just DH I do a combo of hanging/suitcase. We camped at Ft Wilderness back when the kids went with us but I imagine we would have had to unpack with four of us.

I use packing cubes too.

 

[TNickell27]

We only stay at the value resorts, so I'm all about maximizing space. haha! I bring a collapsible shoe rack for my husband and I's toiletries.. that way the counter space stays clear. I also bring a pop up hamper for dirty clothes. But as for unpacking, we don't. We leave all of our clothes in our respective suitcases. I plan all of my outfits in advance (lol) so i put whatever outfit i've planned for my MK day etc in individual large ziploc bags. End of trip, i dump all my dirty clothes from the hamper back into my suitcase (often without folding... i mean, they are just going in to the washer first thing when i get home!), transfer any leftover clean clothes to my husband's suitcase so they stay separate... and off we go! I did purchase some packing cubes on black friday this year... so i'm happy to see that so many people use them and like them! I got them to use instead of the ziploc bags! The packing cubes just feel fancier

 

[Deb & Bill]

You do realize that if they are in the room, none of those things are going to prevent you from bringing them home. Unless you only go in your room naked, your clothes are still in contact with them.

And if you fly or use other than personally owned vehicles, you might be the one bringing them in with your luggage.

 

[Deb & Bill]

I would imagine the odds of a live one getting into your home to infest your bed, etc, would increase with the more bedbugs you possibly bring home. So I always equate clothing in the drawers to increasing the odds of bedbugs having a place to hide. I don't keep clothing or suitcases on the bed or under the bed for this reason. When I stayed at the GF last April, someone had them in their room. I heard the person talking in Gasparilla's. I saw the bedbug dog on property. But even prior to that, I check any hotel I go to before I bring my items in. For me, I just feel it's a bigger gamble to take to use drawers (especially under the bed). I wish I wasn't put off by it because it would make my trip much easier not having to go in and out of my luggage so much. This thread has been an eye opener for me. I am relieved to hear people do this and clearly taking home bed bugs happens little in comparison to the amount of people unpacking daily.

We have Disney trip number 48 booked for March 2019. Never brought home any bugs; always unpack using the drawers, closet.

 

[Childs1stTime2Disney]

We have Disney trip number 48 booked for March 2019. Never brought home any bugs; always unpack using the drawers, closet.

So glad to read this. Thanks for your post. Unfortunately as I said, it was just our second trip as a family last year and another person at our resort (GF) had bedbugs. I always check my room anywhere we go, but it hit close to home to know this. Do you check your room for bedbugs beforehand or no? Do you do anything special when you come home to prevent bedbugs?

 

[Deb & Bill]

So glad to read this. Thanks for your post. Unfortunately as I said, it was just our second trip as a family last year and another person at our resort (GF) had bedbugs. I always check my room anywhere we go, but it hit close to home to know this. Do you check your room for bedbugs beforehand or no? Do you do anything special when you come home to prevent bedbugs?

Don't do anything at all. We seldom remember to even check the bed. All I do is unpack when we get home, nothing else. The person at the GF who currently has bedbugs may have brought them with them from their transportation mode.

 

[AngiTN]

All our clean clothes are in big ziploc bags (one full outfit per bag) so I don’t mind placing them in the drawers and in the morning no fighting with the kids on what clothes to wear, they simply pick a ziploc that includes everything they need for the day.

I use the ziplock bags for DGD too. Always have. I put everything needed in each bag, from the skin out. So all I have to do is toss her a bag and she can get dressed. It was quite the depressing day when she got so big we had to graduate out of the gallon bags and start using the oversized ones., LOL

So glad to read this. Thanks for your post. Unfortunately as I said, it was just our second trip as a family last year and another person at our resort (GF) had bedbugs. I always check my room anywhere we go, but it hit close to home to know this. Do you check your room for bedbugs beforehand or no? Do you do anything special when you come home to prevent bedbugs?

I would imagine the odds of a live one getting into your home to infest your bed, etc, would increase with the more bedbugs you possibly bring home. So I always equate clothing in the drawers to increasing the odds of bedbugs having a place to hide. I don't keep clothing or suitcases on the bed or under the bed for this reason. When I stayed at the GF last April, someone had them in their room. I heard the person talking in Gasparilla's. I saw the bedbug dog on property. But even prior to that, I check any hotel I go to before I bring my items in. For me, I just feel it's a bigger gamble to take to use drawers (especially under the bed). I wish I wasn't put off by it because it would make my trip much easier not having to go in and out of my luggage so much. This thread has been an eye opener for me. I am relieved to hear people do this and clearly taking home bed bugs happens little in comparison to the amount of people unpacking daily.

Add me to the list with over 20 trips and never a bug. The odds are so minuscule it's not worth concern. We've never looked, don't plan to start. Thousands stay at Disney and handfuls have anything. Even those who think they see one are wrong more often than they are right. The sight of the dog means nothing. They conduct checks. What you need to watch for is the heater they use. If you see that then you know they've been found.
Actually, the bed, cloth/fabric is where you'll have the most problems, not a drawer. So as I said, unless you sleep naked and never put clothing anything in the room, your odds are the same. Small, basically unmeasurable.
Are you driving or flying? As mentioned above, you have as big a risk to get them flying as you do at Disney. Are you taking precautions for flying too?

 

[TinkSassy]

I use the empty suitcase - zipped partially so it stands in a corner as a dirty clothes hamper. Keeps the room neat and allows for fast packing at the end.

I check the room for bedbugs - but if you think keeping things in your suitcase will help think again. They will get in your suitcase and in the wheels of them. The lack of carpet in many rooms helps some - when I traveled for work I would lift my bags into the bath area until I checked the bed corners. In a room 5 days a week 48 weeks out of the year and had one instance - odds are not good.

 

[Mome Rath]

You take bed bug precautions when you are traveling and when you get home. It's a both/and situation, not an either/or. In hotel rooms the largest threat is the bed followed by other areas highly "trafficked" with bags and/or clothes. Keep your suitcase off the bed and off the suitcase rack unless it's metal. Bedbugs don't like to be "on" moving people in the light, they are attracted to carbon dioxide, hence head toward where humans are breathing when sleeping (the bed in other words). Usually they are brought in via bags, which means they can hitch a ride in folded clothes. Infestations are on the rise in the US, and the bugs are notoriously hard to get rid of, so the best thing to do is to take just a few minutes and a few precautions and don't get them in the first place. I've known two people personally that have had them, one in their apartment and one at their place of work. They were found recently in a nearby movie theater as well. They do happen in Disney. It's just an extra reason I don't unpack at any hotel. And, yes, the bathtub is the safest place. lol

Having said that, I've just never unpacked even before we had the uptick in bed bug issues in the US. I don't view a hotel room as mine I guess, and I'd rather have my stuff in my own suitcase, I know where that suitcase has been.

 

[rstamm]

Clean clothes stay in suitcase, dirty clothes go in the drawers
I have shirts sorted before I leave so the one on top is the shirt I need for the day, I don’t need to search for anything.

 

[bookbunny]

AS soon as we get into our room, we are unpacking. Im on vacation. I want to be able to relax.

 

[ToxicRoyalty]

I always unpack fully unless it's something like a one or two night stay (not happening with Disney!). I find it makes it easier to repack, because when repacking I'm usually adding to the mix and may be using clothes to cushion items.

 

[disneylizzie2011]

We always unpack and use all the closet space. This year we had a refurbed room and that’s only thing I didn’t like was the lack of closet space, I brought a foldable clothes rack to make up for it.