Empty city hotels welcome forced quarantine
All international arrivals are now considered an “unacceptable risk” to public health and face two-week quarantine in city hotels.
State governments who have been criticised for being too slow to take action are understood to have negotiated commercial rates with some hotels given up to three-month contracts.
If you would like your property to be used for quarantining purposes, you should contact your state health department and register interest. They will reach out to you if they require your services.
To stop the spread of coronavirus, the new rule came into effect from midnight on Saturday and is expected to affect thousands of travellers for the foreseeable future and will be enforced by state police forces backed by the Australian Defence Force. The industry expects the number of people needing to be housed will rise from 7000 on Saturday, with most expected to arrive in Sydney, which had a vacancy rate nearing 100 per cent.
Tourism Accommodation Australia (TAA) CEO Michael Johnson said Australian hotels stand ready to facilitate the quarantining of arrivals into Australia’s international airports as mandated by Prime Minister Scott Morrison.
“Tourism Accommodation Australia has been working closely over the past week with State and Territory Governments in their planning to ensure arrangements can be made immediately to accommodate incoming arrivals,” Mr Johnson said.
“Hotels across Australia have the capacity to play a central role in ensuring guests and local residents arriving into Australia are quarantined effectively, which will help arrest the spread of COVID-19.”
“Many hotel operators have expressed an interest in facilitating guests in their properties for quarantining purposes and this will greatly assist an industry which has faced unprecedented challenges in recent months.”
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