Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
‘At some point bed bugs are inevitable’
An Airbnb owner has told how she had to carry out a deep-clean after shocking footage was shared on social media showing bed bugs crawling over sheets. Video clips and photos taken earlier this year also show the tiny, biting insects emerging from headboards at the Black Horse Inn in Orchard Street, Canterbury.
Owner Caroline Hill admits they have also had rats at the bed and breakfast – but the rodent problem has been dealt with and the venue now has a five-star hygiene rating. Ms Hill believes the bed bugs may have been unwittingly carried to the Black Horse by visitors from France, where numbers of the creepycrawlies rocketed this year. The grim footage recorded between August and September shows the insects – which cause itchiness with their bites – in multiple bedrooms, with several filmed being put in a glass.
Other images sent to the Gazette show rust and dirt in the venue’s kitchen, stained bed sheets and dirty showers. Ms Hill, who has owned the Black Horse for the past 15 years, claims “bed bugs are inevitable” in the hotel industry but says “they are always dealt with quickly”. She says they had issues with pests during August and September, but says it has now “been resolved”.
“We sorted out the bed bugs immediately and had a pest control company come,” she said.
“In this business, bed bugs are unfortunately inevitable at some point.
“We have taken all sorts of actions to prevent bed bugs, including special mattresses, lavender oil and other chemic
als.”
Ms Hill admits the kitchen does get “messy during busy hours” but says it is “always cleaned to immaculate standards”.
“We have recently had an environmental health inspection and we passed,” Ms Hill said.
In 2023, there has been a 65% annual increase in pest control visits for bed bugs in France – and Ms Hill suspects the infestation at the Black Horse came as a result of people visiting from across the Channel. “There was a bed bug infestation in August and September in Paris and this is when we had our issue,” she said.
“We had loads of French people come over during August.
“We have to close our rooms when we have this issue and we lose a lot of money.”
The videos and photos were shared on social media by a former employee at the hotel, Kelly Groombridge.
She told the Gazette: “I have personally seen bed bugs in three different rooms.
“A guest brought down the glass full of them to me and told me they picked them off the bed.”
Ms Groombridge says she “wants people to be aware of what the hotel is really like”. “There was also a rat infestation,” the ex-staff member said.
“I remember smelling dead rats in one of the airing cupboards. It was so disgusting.” Ms Hill admitted there was an issue with rats at the hotel, which has a rating of 3.5 on Tripadvisor, but says they too were dealt with quickly. “Rats have been in our hotel,” she conceded.
“The rats were dealt with immediately but when they are killed by pest control unfortunately some of them aren't seen right away.”
Ms Hill added: “The hotel is in no way dangerous for the employees or our guests.” Airbnb did not wish to comment on the matter, when contacted by this paper.
‘We have taken all sorts of actions to prevent bed bugs; special mattresses, lavender oil...’