A pest control Web site has named the Las Vegas hotels with the worst bed bug problems, and we’re itching to dive into the cringe-inducing results.
Based upon online reviews, the Las Vegas hotels with the highest risks of bed bugs in 2021 include Excalibur, Bally’s Las Vegas and Flamingo.
In the category of “Distinctions You Don’t Want to Hold,” Bally’s is the only top-ranking hotel that received more bed bug complaints in 2020 than 2019.
The top 10 Las Vegas resorts with the worst bed bug problems (bad to less bad):
- Excalibur
- Bally’s
- Flamingo
- MGM Grand
- Luxor
- Planet Hollywood
- Venetian
- Rio
- Paris
- Caesars Palace
Six of the top 10 Las Vegas hotels with bed bug issues are owned or operated by Caesars Entertainment.
It’s worth noting, “Bedbugs can be found worldwide, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and are not a reflection on the cleanliness of any accommodation (so, yes, even a five-star hotel can have bedbugs).” Learn more.
On the bright side, if there is one, the report from Pest Strategies is based upon 673 online bed bug complaints between 2008 and 2020. Which doesn’t sound like a lot given Las Vegas has more than 150,000 hotel rooms, but for someone discovering bed bugs, once is too often.
About 41% of the total bed bug complaints happened between 2010 and 2012.
The reviews were gathered from Web sites like Tripadvisor, Bed Bug Reports and Bed Bug Registry. Yes, there are Web sites devoted to bed bug complaints.
There are about 47 bed bug complaints a year at Las Vegas hotels, according to the pest control company that compiled the data, PestStrategies.com. (Yes, we know such reports are a Search Engine Optimization strategy, but that doesn’t make the information any less useful or interesting.)
If you’re unfamiliar with bed bugs, they’re insects that feed on human blood. So sexy.
Bed bugs cling to clothing or hide in belongings (like luggage), and can live up to 16 months.
Thankfully, reports of bed bug problems is trending downward over time. The height of bed bug activity in Las Vegas peaked in 2011.
Given the number of people who visit Las Vegas (more than 40 million in a typical year), bed bug complaints are relatively rare.
Often, guests think they see a bed bug, but it’s actually a silverfish, gnat or ant.
Silverfish are actually adorable once you get to know them.
If you think your room has a bed bug issue, notify hotel staff immediately (be nice).
The hotel will move you to another room, and get busy addressing the problem.
As mentioned, bed bugs are brought to hotels by guests, so resorts are faced with endlessly managing and mitigating the problem, and the investment of resources to detect and prevent bed bugs and other pests is substantial.
Some Las Vegas hotels even use bed bug sniffing dogs to help avoid infestations.
Other Las Vegas hotels have redesigned their rooms to minimize the number of places bed bugs can hide. Read more.
As an overall preventative measure, guests should keep their luggage zipped and off the floor, away from walls and furniture.
We’ve stayed at dozens of Las Vegas hotels (including those listed in the top 10 with the most bed bug reports) and never encountered any sort of pest, bed bug or otherwise.
Know before you go, but also understand the odds of having a bed bug issue are small, the critters aren’t dangerous and they don’t eat much.
