Review of Kids Bugwatch – Eco-Friendly Insect Repellent
Bugs are the bane of my travels. I am one of those people that attract mosquitoes and other biting bugs over everyone else. And my kids seem to have inherited this tendency too! T also seems to have the same problem that I do that we react to the bites with blisters and huge bites. So we were in need of some kid and eco-friendly insect repellent to pack for our Mexican Road trip. We picked up a couple of Kids Bugwatches and decided to test them out alongside the eco-friendly insect repellent we were using as a family. So now we are back here’s our review of the Bugwatch for Kids so you can see how they performed against the bugs in the Mexican Jungles, Lake resorts and beaches.
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Bugwatch for Kids
We bought the kid’s insect repellent Bugwatches in Boots ourselves here’s the link to their online store Bugwatch products in Boots Online but they are also available on Amazon in the UK. I couldn’t find them anywhere else easily!
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The Bugwatch for Kids is an eco-friendly insect repellent band that does not contain DEET and is reusable just replacing the “tablet” inside.
Made like a watch it is easily adjustable for kids wrists (although not recommended for under 36 months) and a refillable “tablet” is inserted into the gap.
This “tablet” slowly releases the natural insect repellent Citriodiol® and proclaims 360-degree protection for the wearer.
There are two models – a pink and a blue available for kids and at present only the white version is available in the UK for adults.
And to be honest, I was a little sceptical, to say the least, but knowing how the kids attract the bugs and react I decided it was worth a try.
Using the Kids Bugwatch
So inside the box, you have a watch strap, and a foil packed “tablet”.
The instructions are pretty clear and once the foil is opened there is “15 days protection” in that tablet.
When we arrived in Mexico at the first hotel I opened the box, ripped open the foil and inserted the tablet which is a solid tablet with quite a pleasant smell into the gap and pressed down.
We then strapped them onto the kid’s wrists and headed off to the jungle at Punta Laguna to explore. If we are going to test them we’re going to give them a proper test for you!
Our Test Drive of the BugWatch for Kids
We were away for 14 days on our Mexican Road Trip and all apart from 1 night the kids wore the Bugwatches unless they were swimming.
Although they say that the water-resistant we left them off when submerged and replaced them when we got out of the pools, cenotes, lagoons and sea.
In that time we explored jungles before, during and after rainstorms, lots of sites with still water where there were many mosquitoes and other biting insects, the beach with sand fleas, mangrove swamps and heading out to restaurants on an evening.
The kids even wore them to bed every night apart from 1 as they weren’t great at keeping the screens close we knew that there were mosquitoes in our rooms most nights.
The verdict on the Bugwatches!
So what’s our opinion.
Well – apart from the 1 night that the kids decided not to wear them they really didn’t get many bug bites at all.
The night they skipped – the competition in the car the next year was to see who had the most bug bites (T won with over 48 on her legs alone!).
We’ve already stocked up on replacement tablets and I have sent them off to summer camp at Camp Wilderness in Kent wearing them this week!
The “watches” were really comfortable – the fact that both kids that don’t normally wear anything were able to sleep with them on is a true test.
They worked – at times we didn’t use the roll-on or spray insect repellent on them especially at night or after they had come out of the pool. Then the insect repellent was all down to the watches.
Combined with sensible clothing e.g. long trousers for evenings and lightweight pairs to sleep in and the bug watches night times weren’t an issue either.
Because there are no nasty chemicals even when T joined in with a turtle nest excavation and release I knew that these eco-friendly insect repellent bands weren’t going to harm the hatchlings.
NOTE – I was a sea turtle biologist prior to having kids and checked out the facts before allowing her to wear it to help with the excavation and release.
We are now getting the adult Bugwatches for ourselves especially as the same “tablets” fit in all which as the replacement tablets come in packs of 2 make them much more budget-friendly considering how well they work at protecting the kids.
However, for Jungle and Mangroves, we will continue to combine the bugwatches for the kids and us with the eco-friendly incognito insect repellent as well for added protection.
More Eco-Friendly Products for Travelling Families
We are hunting out and looking for eco-friendly products for you to use on your travels and testing them out.
Why not read our guide on Reef Safe Sun Screen in the UK to protect the underwater environment both in the sea, rivers, lakes and if you head to Mexico the Cenotes that you visit.
