Brit's Benidorm holiday ruined as Airbnb bedbug infestation leaves her scarred

19 October 2023 , 20:39

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Brit's Benidorm holiday ruined as Airbnb bedbug infestation leaves her scarred

A British holidaymaker’s trip to Benidorm left her with bites from bed bugs that were so bad it took six months for the scars to fully heal in ‘one of the worst cases’ her doctor had ever seen.

Natalie Brown was left with more than 100 bites from the grim creatures after just three days sleeping on a sofa during a trip to Spain at an Airbnb with mates last year. By the end of her stay, the 28-year-old had an amount of bed bugs her doctor had never seen before and was even prescribed antibiotics to help her battle the rash. The paralegal from Birmingham saw her bites get worse over time and increase in size after coming back to the UK, leaving her feeling self-conscious and covering up her skin.

Natalie says some people didn't believe the horrific bites had come from the bugs (mediadrumimages / @nataliebrown)

The marks from the small creatures took months to disappear (mediadrumimages / @nataliebrown)

She said her experience last year has put her off from ever staying at an Airbnb again and added: “My bites were incredibly itchy, they were sore, I couldn’t show my legs and arm for around six months until the bites and scars went down. It knocked my confidence and I was embarrassed to tell people, because they were all on one side of my face. I had to tell work that I wouldn’t be able to come into the office until those bites had reduced. I also didn’t want to put my camera on for everyone to see."

Natalie, who loves to travel, is now worried about getting into new beds and says she always inspects the covers beforehand. She said that some people didn’t believe she could have been bitten by the bugs as they have a ‘mythical’ reputation from the saying ‘don’t let the bed bugs bite’. Other people thought the critters were microscopic and couldn’t cause too many bites.

She added: “After the first night I saw a bite on my arm, then I saw a bug on the sofa bed but my friend thought it was a beetle at first so we didn’t think about it. But then the second night I got more bites and saw another couple of bugs on the bed. Sadly there was no other place to sleep so I had to manage for three days on this sofa bed. Travelling is a big hobby of mine and I try to visit as many places as I can, but this was the first time I got bitten by bed bugs, I hadn’t even seen them before.”

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The Mirror understands Airbnb deactivates listings if there is a specific issue until a host can prove it has been resolved by professionals.

An Airbnb spokesman said: "We were concerned to hear this account when it was reported to us over a year ago. We provided the guest with a full refund at the time, and the listing is no longer on Airbnb. Issues on Airbnb are rare and any listings that fall below our high standards may be removed from the platform."

Rebecca Chitolie