This new hotel in Finland promises you a bedbug-free stay
Few two-word combinations can instill such a tremendous amount of fear into travelers, city dwellers and, well, anyone quite like "bedbugs" can.
TPG's director of travel content, Summer Hull, and her family recently brought the infernal pests back with them after a trip and dealt with the bugs for months.
I, too, encountered bedbugs in a previous New York City apartment where I was living, and ended up being forced to move out after trying in vain to exterminate them for several months. Long story short: These things aren't fun.
For more TPG news delivered each morning to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.
While there are a seemingly infinite number of ways you can find yourself dealing with the plight that is bedbugs, picking them up in a hotel and bringing them home with you is one of the most common scenarios. No hotel -- no matter how much you spend on the room per night -- could claim to be bedbug-safe.
Until now, that is.
A soon-to-open Marriott Autograph Collection hotel in Helsinki, Finland is the first new-construction hotel that claims to be entirely bedbug-safe.
You may be thinking: "How, exactly, can a hotel make such a claim against these menacing creatures that have tortured humans for thousands of years?" Well, same.
The answer -- according to Hotel U14, a Marriott Autograph Collection hotel -- is that the property is designed in collaboration with a Finnish startup known as Valpas, which was founded in 2013 after CEO Martim Gois caught bedbugs while traveling in Asia. He set out on a mission to eliminate bedbugs in hotels -- without using pesticides or throwing furniture away. Now, Valpas holds four patents in technology and design, and has set a standard for hotels to achieve in order to be known as bedbug-safe. Hotel U14 claims that it will "reduce [bedbug] infestations to zero compared to other modern hotels, but it also ensures people travel and return home safe without carrying bedbugs along."
Specifically, in-room technology is leveraged to prevent an infestation of bedbugs. Primarily, this consists of "smart" legs on the bed frame that attract and subsequently capture these vermin before they're able to implant themselves in the bed. Once a bug is caught, the hotel staff is immediately notified, and then they can take steps to further protect the hotel.
If this claim holds true after the property opens in Helsinki's city center in March of this year, it will be an answered prayer for travelers everywhere who have (totally legitimate) fears of bringing bedbugs home with them after a trip. It seems like Valpas is really on to something, too. Over the last two years, the company has partnered with hotels in a dozen cities across eight countries in Europe to make them bedbug safe, though U14 is the first new-build hotel that's been designed to the Valpas standard.
If this hotel is successful and Valpas's expansion continues, we're optimistic these preventative measures could become standard at more and more hotels worldwide. With more people crisscrossing the globe at a given time than ever before, it's all too easy to pick up these nefarious insects in one location and bring them home with you, where they can easily spread to infest every corner of your home.
Enjoying a hotel stay without living in fear of picking up bedbugs would certainly be a welcome development for all travelers.
TPG featured card
at American Express's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 3X | Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases. |
Pros
- Delta SkyClub access when flying Delta
- Annual companion ticket for travel on Delta (upon renewal)
- Ability to earn MQDs through spending
- Various statement credits for eligible purchases
Cons
- Steep annual fee of $650
- Other Delta cobranded cards offer superior earning categories
- Earn 100,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $6,000 or more in purchases with your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership and an additional 25,000 bonus miles after you make an additional $3,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 6 months, starting from the date that your account is opened. Offer Ends 04/01/2026.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members receive 15 Visits per Medallion® Year to the Delta Sky Club® when flying Delta and can unlock an unlimited number of Visits after spending $75,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year. Plus, you’ll receive four One-Time Guest Passes each Medallion Year so you can share the experience with family and friends when traveling Delta together.
- Enjoy complimentary access to The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. and select international locations (as set forth on the Centurion Lounge Website), Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. (see the Centurion Lounge Website for more information on Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge availability), and Escape Lounges when flying on a Delta flight booked with the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card. § To access Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 90 minutes of their departing flight (including layovers). To access The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 3 hours of their departing flight. Effective July 8, 2026, during a layover, Card Members must arrive within 5 hours of the connecting flight.
- Receive $2,500 Medallion® Qualification Dollars with MQD Headstart each Medallion Qualification Year and earn $1 MQD for each $10 in purchases on your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card with MQD Boost to get closer to Status next Medallion Year.
- Enjoy a Companion Certificate on a Delta First, Delta Comfort, or Delta Main round-trip flight to select destinations each year after renewal of your Card. The Companion Certificate requires payment of government-imposed taxes and fees of between $22 and $250 (for itineraries with up to four flight segments). Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. Delta Basic experiences are not eligible for this benefit.
- $240 Resy Credit: When you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card for eligible purchases with U.S. Resy restaurants, you can earn up to $20 each month in statement credits. Enrollment required.
- $120 Rideshare Credit: Earn up to $10 back in statement credits each month after you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card to pay for U.S. rideshare purchases with select providers. Enrollment required.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
- With your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card, receive upgrade priority over others with the same Medallion tier, product and fare experience purchased, and Million Miler milestone when you fly with Delta.
- Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees. Enjoy international travel without additional fees on purchases made abroad.
- $650 Annual Fee.
- Apply with confidence. Know if you're approved for a Card with no impact to your credit score. If you're approved and you choose to accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.
- Terms Apply.
- See Rates & Fees