Tips for dealing with insects on your Baltic Sea camping holiday

If you follow these tips, you can reduce your chances of being disturbed or stung in nature and enjoy your Baltic Sea holiday at ostseequelle.camp to the full.

Remember, however, that you are visiting nature and are a guest there. In most cases, insects may be a nuisance, but they are not harmful and are worth protecting. We are committed to providing natural sanctuaries for these animals on our slopes. See also our contribution on sustainability:

Wear long, light-coloured clothing. Beetles, especially rape beetles are attracted to bright colours, so it’s better to wear white, grey and brown shades when you go camping. Long clothing also helps cover your skin and keep mosquitoes away.
Avoid light outdoors at night. Flies, moths and spiders are attracted to light, so it’s better to avoid wide-area and very bright light sources. Artificial light plays a special role in attracting flies, so prefer candles, paraffin or gas lamps, but be aware of the fire hazard. So dim your electrical appliances and use spot lamps with a strong light angle.
Keep your camp clean. Ants and flies are particularly attracted to food scraps and rubbish, so it is important to keep your camp clean. Dispose of food waste and rubbish in closed containers and tidy up your camp regularly.
Rubbish is separated at the central rubbish area near the south sanitary facilities. Water used for cooking should also be disposed of in the kitchen. Hot water destroys our lawns.
Avoid certain smells. Wasps, flies and beetles are attracted to certain smells, such as alcohol, citrus fruits, meat and sweets. Avoid eating or drinking these foods and drinks when you go camping. There’s also nothing wrong with taking a shower every day ;-) Our sanitary buildings are modern and clean.
Keep shelters and buildings closed. Insects can get through small openings in your tent, so it is important to keep your tent well closed. Make sure all zips are closed and that there are no holes in the tent wall. In sanitary buildings and bungalows, keep doors and windows closed without nets.
Use mosquito nets. Mosquito nets can help protect you from bites at night. Attach mosquito nets to the windows and doors of your camper, caravan, tent or sleeping bag.
Use insect repellent. There are many different types of repellents on the market that can protect you from mosquitoes and ticks. Be sure to use a local product that is suitable for outdoor use. The Fruit Source has a small selection available at our local minishop.
Use natural insect repellents. There are many natural repellents you can use. Some popular natural repellents are:
- Citronella candle
- Lavender oil
- Lemongrass oil
- Tea tree oil
- Basil
- Mint

Severe infestation in an accommodation.

Your accommodation is affected by a heavy infestation because you left doors and windows open during the day, left the lights on until late in the evening and did not cover the table or clean the kitchen after meals. Now you are enormously affected by insects and don’t know what to do? Please avoid a fly swatter, which would make it necessary to paint the accommodation afterwards. In this case we offer the rental of an electric insect trap.

Further tips on special insect species:

Ants: Ants are attracted to food scraps and rubbish, and are particularly attracted to sweet and fruity foods. Keep your camp clean and dispose of food scraps and rubbish in closed containers. In shelters you can use ant bait to keep ants away. We do not recommend this outdoors. In case of heavy infestation, ask us for a pitch alternative.
Flies: Flies are attracted to food scraps and rubbish. Keep your accommodation clean and dispose of food scraps and rubbish in closed containers. Heat and light also attract flies. Keep your accommodation closed and use nets to keep flies out.
Mosquitoes: Mosquitoes are attracted to body heat, CO2 and smells. Wear long, tight clothing and use insect repellent. You can also use mosquito nets to protect yourself from mosquito bites at night. Good to know, although we have many bodies of water here, we suffer little from mosquitoes, as mosquitoes tend to avoid the sea and winds.
Spiders: Spiders are attracted to light. You can easily catch spiders with a glass and cardboard and lead them outside.
Ticks: Occur very rarely in our country. There are no known cases of TBE. Avoid our insect protection areas, i.e. ditches and slopes, but also the boggy floodplain forest east of the campsite and stay on the lawns. The mown lawns are avoided by the ticks. We have tick cards and tongs in the office which we are happy to provide you with disinfected.
Wasps: Wasps are attracted to sweet and fatty foods. Seal food and drinks immediately after eating and keep your pitch and accommodation clean. You can easily catch wasps with a glass and cardboard and escort them outside. Do not hit wasps. Close your mouth, breathe slowly and wait until the wasps lose interest. While doing this, move out of the way of the wasp(s).
If you find a wasp, bee or bumblebee nest in a building, please inform us so that we can quickly and safely eliminate the danger.
Rape beetles: Rape beetles are attracted to rape plants, they love the colour yellow. So dress in unobtrusive shades of white, grey and brown and avoid bright colours, especially neon. Then you won’t have any problems with our rape beetles.
Thunderflies: Thunderstorm animals are attracted to light. Before a thunderstorm, these animals land near the ground. These very small and thin animals 1-3mm long itch a little. In our experience, it is best to ignore them, as they do not cause any damage. They disappear after a few days.
In one respect, however, these animals are very annoying. They get through the smallest cracks and are often permanently visible behind the screen when it can no longer be left. In our office we can show some examples ;-)

Insect bite

If you get stung by wasps, bumblebees, bees, horseflies or mosquitoes despite all your precautions, there are a few things you can do to relieve the itch:

Wash the area with cold water and soap.
Apply a cold compress to the area.
Take an antihistamine.
If necessary, use a cream containing hydrocortisone.

If you have an allergic reaction to an insect bite, seek medical attention immediately. For emergencies, you will find a list of doctors and hospitals at the information desk and on the large map opposite the entrance.

Insects are important and useful because they:

are pollinators of plants. Without insect pollination, many plants would not be pollinated and there would be no fruit, vegetables or cereals.
They are the food source for other animals. Insects are food for birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians.
Natural remedies are. Insects contain many active substances that are used for medicine.
Biological pesticides are. Insects can be used to control pests such as aphids, caterpillars and beetles.
Habitat for other animals are. Insects provide habitat for other animals such as spiders, mites and worms.

As campers we can protect ourselves by:

Keeping our camp clean. Food scraps and rubbish should be disposed of in closed containers.
Avoiding using artificial light. Insects are attracted to artificial light.
Use natural repellents, such as citronella candles, lavender oil, lemongrass oil, tea tree oil, basil and mint.
Support insect hotels, these provide them with a good habitat keep our nature in balance.
Learning. The more we know, the more we can protect them.

This article was originally created by artificial intelligence (Google Board). The article was enriched with personal know-how and adapted to our region. We also highly recommend the following experience report by Nadine.