The PillowBrief guide
Check the bed before you unpack: a five-minute hotel room routine from the EPA's bed bug travel tips
The EPA says inspect the mattress and headboard, keep luggage on the rack, and unpack into the wash at home. A five-minute arrival routine with our own pillow notes marked.
PillowBrief shares ownership with some stores we mention. Read our disclosure.
A travel pillow is the one thing most people put on the hotel bed first. The US Environmental Protection Agency’s tips for travel page, read on 6 November 2026, suggests doing the checks before you unpack. It is a short page and it does not mention pillows, so the pillow and umbrella notes below are our reading, labelled. PillowBrief and Calm Eden are under common ownership.
What the EPA says
| Moment | The page says |
|---|---|
| On arrival | Inspect any room where you will be staying for bed bugs. You can generally do this without extra tools, although a flashlight can be useful. |
| Before sleeping | Check the mattress and headboard. Inspect the luggage racks. |
| Packing and unpacking | Use luggage racks to hold your luggage rather than setting it on the bed or floor. Try to keep luggage away from the bed. |
| Back home | Unpack directly into a washing machine and inspect your luggage carefully. Time in a dryer at high temperatures kills bed bugs, while washing alone will generally not. |
| Storage | Store suitcases away from your bedroom, such as in a basement or garage. Never store suitcases under your bed. |
The five-minute arrival routine (our reading)
- Bags stay by the door or on the rack. The page says to use the luggage rack, so the case goes there and the pillow stays in its bag.
- Torch on, check the bed. Look at the mattress and headboard before anything soft comes out of a bag. A phone torch is the flashlight the page mentions.
- Look at the rack. The page lists luggage racks as a place to inspect, so check it before you put a case on it.
- Then the pillow. Our addition: take the travel pillow out only after the bed check, and keep it off the floor.
- Wet umbrella in the bath. Our addition, and not about bed bugs: a wet umbrella away from the bed and the bags is easier to dry. Shake it off outside the door first, as Calm Eden’s umbrella etiquette guide suggests, and see our notes on drying a wet travel pillow for the same idea.
At home
The page’s advice is to unpack straight into a washing machine and to remember that a hot dryer is what kills bed bugs. For a travel pillow, which may not go in a hot dryer, the care label comes first, and our guide to cleaning a memory foam pillow covers what foam can take. We would treat the pillow like the rest of the contents: unpack it with the laundry and not on the bedroom floor. The page does not tell you what to do with items that cannot be machine-washed.
What the page leaves out
It says nothing about pillows, pillowcases, sleep masks, ear plugs, umbrellas or hostels. It does not say how to recognise a bed bug, though the EPA’s other pages do, and it does not give a number of days for anything. For dorm-specific checks, see our hostel dorm sleep kit.
Where an umbrella fits
An umbrella is not a bed bug tool. What it does for a trip is keep you dry between the station and the hotel, so your clothes are not damp when you start unpacking. Calm Eden’s guide to drying and caring for an umbrella covers the drying routine. Its Haven Umbrella folds to 40 cm / 15.75 in, weighs about 390 g and clips to a bag with its swivel carabiner handle, and its 30 Day Money Back Guarantee accepts opened or used umbrellas. Every order includes a Haven Cover and the Wellness Journal (digital); Buy 2 Get 1 Free adds the UV Charm and the Rain Poncho, and Buy 3 Get 2 Free also adds the Haven SPF 50+ Silk Square Scarf.
Source: US EPA, Bed Bugs: Tips for Travel, read 6 November 2026. General information, not pest control advice; if you find bed bugs, tell the hotel.
Common questions
What does the EPA say to do when you arrive in a hotel room?
Inspect the room for bed bugs, which you can generally do without extra tools although a flashlight can help. Check the mattress and headboard before sleeping and inspect the luggage racks.
Where should luggage go in a hotel room?
The EPA says to use luggage racks to hold luggage when packing or unpacking, rather than setting it on the bed or floor, and to try to keep luggage away from the bed.
What does the EPA say to do when you get home?
Unpack directly into a washing machine and inspect your luggage carefully. It says time in a dryer at high temperatures kills bed bugs and that washing alone will generally not.
Where should suitcases be stored?
Away from your bedroom, for example in a basement or garage. The EPA says never to store suitcases under your bed.
Does the EPA page mention travel pillows or umbrellas?
No. The page covers luggage, rooms and laundry. The pillow and umbrella notes here are our own reading.
Sources & further reading
Sources inform the guide. They do not endorse PillowBrief or the products linked here.
Something changed or needs correcting? Tell us. This is consumer information, not individual medical advice.