Living much of my life in mosquito territory, I have picked up a few other tips and hints not previously mentioned here.

One of the first things is bugs particulary flying ones are attracted and repelled primarily by scent. So it's a good idea to NOT wear perfume, rinse an extra time in the shower too to wash off all those perfumes in your shower products.

Spray repellants are fine and actually a good idea as long as you spray them only on your clothing. This is important because most aerosol or otherwise repellants contain DDT (not sure of the exact chemical name but I'll post it when I do), among other nasty chemicals. In moderation none of these nastys is likely to harm you, but there is a high enough chance (again I don't have specifics) of a horrid allergic type reaction why take the risk? For the exposed skin I suggest a repellant lotion preferably one that also has a sun screen. Kill two birds with one stone thereby not having to put on another lotion that has some unwanted scent.

Clothing also plays an important role when the little pests are in overabundance. If their swarming it'd be wise to cover as much of your body as possible.

The surrounding area can be somewhat controlled if you are going to be in one spot for awhile. There's always entertaining blue lights a.k.a. bug zappers. Then there's the citronella plants and candles which are more humane and cheaper too. There is also these devices (can't describe them because I have never seen one) that use sonic waves of some sort to keep the little buggers away. For night time parties, camping, etc. a fire particularly smoke is always a good way of keeping them away. If their really bad add some wet bark or some leaves to make the fire smoke more, your eyes may be bothered but at least you won't be taking care of fifty mosquitoes bites the next day, hopefully. hehe

Speaking of those bites, here's a few tips on how to deal with them. I suggest something like Stingeaze one that has a combination of ammonia and camphor (? I think that's the other active ingredient or it's one that has similar effects) in it. This is effective for the immediate relief of an initial bite. Then later on if needed apply some of the before mentioned cortisone (use caution with this one folks this is really good though when there is several bites in one area), caladryl or calamine lotion. If there are lots of bites (forgot the repellants and such) an warm oatmeal bath (Aveeno has a nice product made specifically for this or you can use some regular or instant oatmeal in a cheese cloth), or a cool baking soda bath (lots of baking soda get ready to use the whole box) can be very soothing. You'll still need something else though afterwards. Bandages can be used for small children or those with low self control for scratching.

That's all I can think of for now, but as you see from above I have a little homework to do. I'll add more suggestions as I think of them