Who pays for Covid quarantine hotels and how much will it cost?
THE hotel quarantine scheme which forces all arrivals from 33 'high-risk' countries to pay to self-isolate for 10 days at government-mandated hotels starts from today.
Here is what travellers can expect if they are forced to stay at a quarantine hotel.
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Who pays for the quarantine hotel?
Travellers who have to quarantine at a government-mandated hotel will have to pay the bill themselves.
The mammoth £55m bill for the hotel accommodation opening up to travellers is expected to be paid for by the government, before the money is later collected from passengers.
How much will a quarantine hotel cost?
Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced that the cost per person to stay the full 10 days at the quarantine hotels will cost £1,750.
This includes two negative Covid tests, as well as the room and all food.
The price is steeper than Australia and New Zealand, which already have the restrictions in place, where it costs up to £1,600 per person.
What is included at the quarantine hotel?
Guests will get three meals a day delivered to their rooms, which is covered in the cost.
The two mandatory coronavirus tests, needed to be conducted on day 2 and day 8 of quarantine are also included in the cost.
It's thought security teams will escort guests outside if they need to smoke or get fresh air.
Anyone who is required to quarantine will get three meals a day and unprepared guests can have their laundry done.
Hotels will be close to 10 key airports and ports across the UK including Heathrow, the Eurostar, Aberdeen and Manchester.
28,140 rooms will be needed, according to the plan, as each room will require a 72-hour deep clean after each stay.
Which hotels will be part of the quarantine hotel restrictions?
This is yet to be confirmed by the government but it was revealed that talks were in place with IHG Group, which owns Holiday Inns.
One of the Heathrow Airport hotels taking part in the scheme is Novotel.
Sixteen hotels with 5,600 rooms are to be initially included in the scheme.
PC Agency's Paul Charles has warned that the government needs to give an end date to the quarantine hotel restrictions or the UK faces being cut off for up to a year.
He told Sun Online Travel: “We need the government to put an end date on these measures - what is the exit plan and roadmap for coming out."
“But we need to see an exit plan, otherwise people wouldn’t have confidence to book summer holidays and there is a danger these policies would stay in place for several months.
“But the fear and concern is these would last longer than March.
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“That's why we need an end date and to know what the criteria is for ending the scheme, otherwise Britain could be disconnected from the world for a year or more, which is really what's happening in Australia.”