wow, I don't know what kind of chemical is in dog flea collars, but I would not want to have chemicals on me 24/7. And definitely not on kids.

I have heard good things about Avon's bug guard (deet free). I have also read several comments swearing that plain lemon juice works the best. I took a bottle of lemon juice with me in February, but I didn't experience any bite problems so never used it. Left it for housekeeping. But I'm taking bug guard, skin so soft and lemon juice with me for my upcoming trips, you never know, as the OP stated, the first couple of trips there were no problems, but not so on the last one.