Mosquitos

Mosquitos are particularly serious in the tropics.

If you manage them you will be fine if you do not manage them in the tropics you can expose yourself to …..Chikungunya, Dengue fever, Malaria, West Nile virus and Zika virus .

Systral

Do you know about Systral?? If you get bitten, or worse get bitten a lot you will want Systral. Systral is a topical antihistamine that functions like a topical anesthetic. It stops pain and itching on the skin and it does it quickly.

It is very unlikely you can buy Systral (or any other product that is this effective) in your country. Buy some Systral. It can save you a very miserable night or two. Its inexpensive and no prescription necessary in many tropical countries especially the Caribbean! (Systral is also used to treat sunburn and jellyfish bites but be careful about applying to large areas especially for children) It would be wise to read the Systral warnings before applying it.

Sand Fleas at dusk

Watch for the sand fleas on the beach at dusk. We like to douse our feet and ankles right when the sun starts to go down this is when they come out. Sand fleas are devastating.

After Dark

You wont see mosquitos or sand fleas out during the day. They both come out after dark. Plan accordingly.

Repellent wont be inexpensive in the tropics so bring a lot of it with you. But bring it in your checked bag, many countries do not allow you to fly with these in your carry on. Check with your airline.

Window screens

Make sure you have good window screens where you stay. Inquire about them before you come and inspect them for holes or tears when you show up.

Ceiling Fan

Check that your bed has an overhead (ceiling) fan when you are booking. A fan over your bed will stop mosquitoes from attacking you on even a low setting. They are a powerful tool to have.

Mosquito Netting

Some people use mosquito netting around beds and this can work well we prefer fans. Ideally have no mosquitoes in your place at all. Just keep it cool with air conditioning if its in the budget.

Mosquito Racket

And finally another very useful tool to fight mosquitoes is the tennis racket swatter. It looks like a tennis racket but has batteries and is electrified. Pick one up and your anti mosquito arsenal will be complete.

Following is a list of tropical countries where these tips are most effective.

Tropical Caribbean

Anguilla
Antigua and Barbuda
Aruba
Bahamas
Barbados
British Virgin Islands
Cayman Islands
Cuba
Dominica
Dominican Republic
Grenada
Guadeloupe
Haiti
Jamaica
Martinique
Montserrat
Netherlands Antilles
Puerto Rico
Saint Barthélemy
Saint Kits and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Martin (France)
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Trinidad and Tobago
Turks and Cacaos Islands
United States Virgin Islands

Tropical West Africa

Benin 
Burkina Faso 
Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) 
The Gambia 
Ghana 
Guinea 
Guinea-Bissau 
Liberia 
Mali 
Mauritania 
Niger 
Nigeria 
Saint Helena 
São tomé and Principe 
Senegal 
Sierra Leone 
Togo

Tropical Central Africa

Angola 
Cameroon 
Central African Republic 
Chad 
Congo 
Democratic Republic of Congo (Zaire) 
Equatorial Guinea 
Gabon 
Sudan 
Zambia

Tropical East Africa

Burundi 
Comoros 
Djibouti 
Eritrea 
Ethiopia 
Kenya 
Madagascar 
Malawi 
Mauritius 
Mayotte 
Mozambique 
Reunion 
Rwanda 
Seychelles 
Somalia 
Tanzania 
Uganda

Tropical South East Asia

Brunei 
Burma (Myanmar) 
Cambodia 
East Timor 
Indonesia 
Laos 
Malaysia 
Philippines 
Singapore 
Thailand 
Vietnam