Oh, my dear friend, if there is one thing that can quickly turn a wonderful, relaxing vacation into a stressful nightmare, it’s bringing home uninvited guests!
At 73, living alone, I cherish my peaceful, cozy home as my absolute sanctuary. Between keeping a proactive eye on my circulation, researching early warning signs for my health, and monitoring those sudden, unexplained purple blotches on my arms, the very last thing I want to deal with after a trip is a pest infestation. And as we know, the stress of dealing with pests spikes our cortisol levels, which constricts our blood vessels—the absolute last thing we want when we’re trying to keep our circulation steady!
So, before my next trip, I put the kettle on, brewed a calming cup of my favorite ginger tea (wonderful for keeping the blood flowing after sitting in a car or airplane!), and looked into the science behind this famous travel hack.
Grab your favorite cozy sweater, and let’s talk about how to protect your home and your peace of mind while traveling!
The “Kitchen Science” Reality: Why the Bathtub?
The reason you should place your suitcase in the bathtub the moment you enter a hotel room comes down to one tiny, resilient hitchhiker: the bedbug.
Bedbugs are notorious for hiding in hotel rooms. They love dark, tight crevices near where humans sleep. They hide in mattress seams, behind headboards, in upholstered chairs, and—surprisingly—on the folding metal luggage racks that hotels provide!
Here is why the bathtub is the ultimate “safe zone” while you inspect your room:
1. The “Porcelain Fortress”
Bedbugs are incredibly small, flat, and excellent at hiding in fabric, wood, and carpet. However, they are remarkably bad at climbing smooth, hard, slippery surfaces like polished porcelain, ceramic, or fiberglass. By placing your luggage in the tub, you are putting it in an environment where bedbugs simply cannot climb up to reach it.
2. The Visual Contrast
Most bathtubs are white or very light-colored. Bedbugs are reddish-brown and about the size of an apple seed. If a stray bedbug happens to be in the tub (which is very rare, as they prefer to stay close to their human food source in the bedroom), you will spot it instantly against the bright white background.
3. Away from the “Danger Zones”