1 in 4 Montgomery County hotels, motels saw bug, rodent complaints last year

Health and pest control experts say just because a commercial establishment has bugs or rodents does not mean it has poor management and operation; these creatures are tenacious and have lots of ways to get in, often by hitching a ride on guests’ luggage, clothing and personal belongings.

But the presence of pests can shade travelers’ opinions of places they visit and cause reputational harm, and no establishment or community wants to be associated with vermin and creepy-crawlies.

“Pest activity in hotels and motels is not uncommon, even in well-managed properties,” said Shannon Sked, a research entomologist and the national director of Entomological Technical Services for Rollins Inc., which is a pest control business and parent company of Orkin. “Hotels experience constant movement of guests, luggage, food deliveries and housekeeping carts, all of which can create opportunities for pests to enter and establish infestations around the property.”

Local lodging

Public Health - Dayton & Montgomery County oversees 77 hotels and motels in Montgomery County, which combined have more than 7,000 guest rooms.

Health department staff typically perform unannounced inspections of hotels and motels in the county twice a year. But the agency also investigates complaints about health code violations and substandard conditions.

The Dayton Daily News reviewed all 180 hotel and motel inspection reports that Public Health staff completed in 2025. Our investigation found Public Health received 22 complaints about roaches, bed bugs and other pests last year, and inspectors also found evidence of pests during a dozen separate standard or follow-up inspections.

Last year, 20 of the 77 hotels and motels in Montgomery County either had pests or were alleged to have pests by people who contacted Public Health.

Inspectors found dead stink bugs in AC units, mice droppings in cabinets and roaches in guest bathrooms. An inspector in early 2025 found bed bugs on a bed skirt in a hotel in Centerville. In July, an inspector discovered pests in various life cycles in guest rooms in a motel in Vandalia. Public Health staff in October found mice droppings, a roach and a bed bug during a follow-up inspection of a Dayton motel.

Inspectors, of course, also evaluate whether hotels and motels have other kinds of health code violations. Of the 180 inspections completed in 2025, about two-thirds of reports noted health violations, according to a Dayton Daily News analysis. Common violations included stains on carpets, walls and bedding; peeling paint; leaking ceilings; damaged furniture; food or waste debris; holes in the walls; and water damage.

Unwanted guests

Public Health — Dayton & Montgomery County, said the number of complaints the health department has received about pests has increased in the last several years.

Pests are high up on the list of health concerns at lodging facilities because they can carry disease, said Matthew Tyler, Public Health’s director of environmental health.

For instance, he said, roaches can transmit Salmonella and rodents can bring in parasitic fleas.

“No one wants to be in a room where there are live or dead pests — it’s just gross,” he said. “It indicates that the facility isn’t doing all they should be doing to keep those rooms as clean and safe as possible.”

But Tyler said even the cleanest hotels can get pests because travelers can unwittingly bring them in on their persons or luggage. Because there are so many people coming in and out, it’s almost inevitable that at some point hotels and motels will have have to deal with pests, he said.

“I think most hotels do a good job, but there’s definitely some facilities where either the management isn’t doing what they are supposed to do or the businesses’ operations — their policies — aren’t as good as they could be," he said.

Pests also can cause skin irritations and other injuries and damage property.

Keeping pests out of hotels and motels can be more challenging than other types of properties because they operate 24/7 and have multiple entry points, said Sked, with Rollins Inc.

“Early reporting of any pest sightings to the front desk or management helps hotels respond quickly and limits the spread of pests,” he said. “Travelers should inspect their room upon arrival, keep luggage elevated and away from beds or upholstered furniture (the bathroom is a great spot to store luggage) and report any concerns to hotel staff promptly.”

Insects and vermin are a universal problem — not just in the hotel and lodging business, and certainly not just in the greater Dayton area, said Joe Savarise, president & CEO of the Ohio Hotel & Lodging Association.

True insect or pest infestations are extremely rare in most hotel and lodging environments, he said, and reports and complaints of pests can stem from travelers seeing a single insect or fly.

He reiterated that the cleanest of environments can get pests, and guests often are the ones responsible for bringing them in.

“Every professionally run hotel has thorough cleaning, inspection and remediation policies to prevent the problem and to address it when it does occur,” he said. “Guests have a reasonable expectation to a clean, pest free room and experience. In the vast majority of hotel transactions, that is what they receive.”

Tips for travelers about pests