Hannah Stephenson, a 31-year-old travel blogger, woke up covered in more than 100 bed bug bites after spending a night at a Travelodge in Cambridge. The incident has left people fearing she has a disease.
Nightmare at Newmarket Road
Stephenson, who has traveled extensively in Asia and Africa without issue, stayed at the Newmarket Road branch on July 26 after a day out with a friend. The next morning, she felt itchy and discovered red spots on her arms. She soon found blood stains and black dots on her pillow, along with bed bugs crawling in the bedding.
The bites spread across her chest, back, face, and legs. She complained to reception but was allegedly told to contact customer services by email. The hotel assured her the room would not be let that night.
Travelodge Apologizes
Travelodge has since apologized for the "distressing" incident and claims to have "resolved the matter to her satisfaction." They confirmed bed bugs were present in her room and are retraining housekeeping at the hotel.
Stephenson, from Bassingbourn, Cambridgeshire, said: "I was horrified and shocked. I didn't expect it from a Travelodge, I always thought they are pretty reliable. The swelling has gone down. Now it looks like I have chicken pox. People have been horrified, they've said I look like I have a disease. Everyone is saying how bad it looks."
Wedding Embarrassment
The incident left her "embarrassed" to attend her cousin's wedding earlier this month. She covered the bites with foundation and switched to a long-sleeved dress, despite the hot weather. She said: "I felt really embarrassed going to a wedding. They're on my hands, which are hard to cover up, I feel very self-conscious. People are going to think I'm dirty or something. I don't usually wear foundation but I went to buy one to cover up for the wedding, I couldn't wear my original outfit which had no sleeves."
Medical Advice and Aftermath
She called 111, who advised her to visit a pharmacy, where she received steroids and antihistamines. A week later, she is still scratching and is now wary of staying in hotels, especially other Travelodge branches.
A Travelodge spokesperson said: "We are deeply sorry for Ms Stephenson’s experience and recognise how distressing an incident like this can be. The safety of our customers is our priority and we maintain stringent, expert-led measures to prevent and manage pest issues, including training our housekeeping colleagues to be vigilant and to spot early signs wherever possible. Bed bug activity affects the wider hospitality sector and is completely unrelated to hygiene or cleanliness standards. In the rare instance that an issue is reported in one of our hotels, we immediately take affected and surrounding rooms out of service for inspection and treatment by independent pest control experts. We have apologised directly to Ms Stephenson and resolved the matter to her satisfaction."
