If checking into your hotel is on your vacation itinerary, checking the mattress seams might be, too.
A new data analysis has revealed the US destinations where travelers are most likely to come home with an unwanted souvenir: bed bugs.
The new study by Casino.ca found that Michigan is America’s biggest bed bug hotspot, where travelers face odds of roughly 1 in 57 of encountering the blood-sucking pests.
That’s about one unlucky traveler on a packed coach bus.
The Midwest dominated the rankings, with Ohio (1 in 59) and Maryland (1 in 60) close behind. In other words, the difference between first and third place is barely enough room to fit a bed bug.
Pennsylvania and Wisconsin rounded out the top five, followed by Texas, Illinois, New York and Washington, DC.
That means some of America’s biggest travel destinations aren’t just drawing tourists — they’re apparently attracting tiny stowaways, too.
The rankings also show the Empire State isn’t exactly bug-free.
New York finished eighth overall, while Yonkers ranked as the country’s fourth-riskiest city, with travelers facing odds of 1 in 69 of running into the creepy crawlers.
And if you thought bright lights meant fewer bites, think again.
Los Angeles also cracked the top 10 cities, with the study joking that visitors headed to the City of Angels “may have a better chance of encountering a bed bug than a celebrity” — especially with tourism expected to surge ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
At the city level, Warren, Michigan, claimed the dubious distinction of America’s top bed bug hotspot, where travelers face odds of 1 in 59 of encountering the pests.
North Las Vegas wasn’t far behind at 1 in 63.
“Usually, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas,” the report quipped. “Bed bugs, unfortunately, have other plans.”
Madison, Wisconsin landed in third place with odds of 1 in 65, followed by Yonkers and Flint, Michigan, giving the Wolverine State two cities in the national top five — a title no tourism board is rushing to advertise.
Cleveland, Huntington, West Virginia, Los Angeles, Bridgeport, Connecticut, and Gaithersburg, Maryland rounded out the top 10.
Fortunately, there’s some good news for squeamish travelers.
Thankfully, the odds remain low, and most travelers will return home with souvenirs and sunburns — not bed bugs.
At the opposite end of the rankings sits Hawaii, which earned bragging rights as America’s most bed bug-resistant destination.
Travelers there face odds of just 1 in 1,667 of dealing with the pests.
Oregon followed as the country’s second-cleanest state, with odds of 1 in 1,111.
Casino.ca compiled the rankings by combining the latest bed bug treatment data from Orkin and Terminix with TripAdvisor hotel reviews mentioning bed bugs across the three largest cities in every state.
Researchers also analyzed social media posts discussing bed bugs before calculating each state’s and city’s overall risk.
The creepy-crawly rankings come as Gotham’s officials are pushing for more transparency about infestations on public transit.
As previously reported by The Post, state lawmakers are backing legislation that would require the MTA to alert riders within 24 hours whenever bed bugs are discovered on a train or bus.
The bill, sponsored by Assemblymember William Colton (D-Brooklyn), would require the transit agency to post notices online or notify riders by email or text.
“The MTA – for no good reason – has been resistant about alerting its customers when an infestation has been detected,” Colton previously said.
“Millions of New Yorkers use our critically important trains and buses regularly. They should not have to add ‘will I bring home bed bugs?’ to their list of concerns as they go about their daily life.”
The legislation passed the Assembly last month and is now before the Senate’s Transportation Committee.
Read the full article here
