Senior Travel Writer HLM, Tampa FL: It happened to us once, and in of all places, a posh Las Vegas resort. The morning after our first night, we had itchy, bloody bites and saw little specks on the bed sheets. When we called the front desk, they sent up a guy with a camera, but nothing to help us. They offered us a room down the hall, but we checked out pronto.

After we flew home, we didn’t take our bags inside. We placed them in the back yard, then put all our clothes from the trip immediately in the washer, set on very hot. We sprayed the empty bags with bug killer several times over two days, then washed them inside and out with soapy water.

The old saying still haunts us today: Good night; sleep tight; don’t let the bedbugs bite. Now, whenever we check into a hotel room, we first pull the covers down and expose the sheets and pillows to bright light. If there’s any indication of infestation, we’re immediately on our way to another hotel.