As thousands of people return to Hong Kong for the holidays, the government has implemented new regulations to combat COVID-19. Among them is a requirement that arrivals will have to quarantine at one of 36 approved hotels.
COVID-19
Except for travelers returning from China, all travelers arriving in Hong Kong must quarantine in a hotel for 21 nights. Until further notice …
Originally, the length of time was two weeks. However, early Christmas morning, it was extended by one week because of a surge in local transmissions.
“The fallout from the late-night decision came as Hong Kong was expected to record around 60 new coronavirus cases on Friday, ” the South China Morning Post reported. .
“The call to raise the quarantine period from 14 days was announced with little more than an hour’s notice, forcing some to rethink travelling to the city entirely while others counted the financial and emotional cost of an extra seven days spent in a hotel.”
While this policy has been in effect for some time now, the list of hotels occasionally changes. And effective 22 December, only 36 hotels have been approved to accept new arrivals.
Furthermore, to prevent cross-infections, these 36 hotels will not be able to accept non-quarantining guests. So forget about booking a room at one of them for a staycation.
Regarding food, most of the approved hotels did not previously include meals in their quarantine packages. But most of the hotels allowed guests to have food delivered.
According to a government spokesman, hotels will now have to include three meals a day in the room tariff.
When evaluating hotels, keep in mind that hotel facilities are off limits. So you shouldn’t be concerned about the quality of such facilities as the lobby lounge, the fitness room, or the spa. Because you won’t be able to use them during your stay …
Since you will have to spend all of your time in your hotel room, that should be your primary concern. And the quality of the food and beverage should also rank highly. You might even want to determine if you can open the windows for fresh air.
Also, keep in mind that you will have to do your own housekeeping during your stay. Clean linens and towels will be left outside your door. But it will be your job to tidy up and make your own bed.
Hong Kong Hotel’s Top 10 List
A total of 36 hotels are included on the list of approved Hong Kong quarantine hotels.
Room rates at these Hong Kong quarantine hotels start from as little as HK$400 (US$181) a night. Does that really include food?
And they run to as much as HK$51,150 (US$6,599) for the 1,798-square-foot entertainment suite at The Landmark Mandarin Oriental. And that means a fortnight at that swish property will set you back a breathtaking HK$716,100 (US$92,390)!
But what a spot to spend Christmas! Will that include a tree?
The Landmark Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong
The Landmark Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong – 15 Queen’s Road Central, Central, Hong Kong Island.
Kerry Hong Kong
Kerry Hotel Hong Kong – 38 Hung Luen Road, Hung Hom Bay, Kowloon Peninsula.
Le Meridien Hong Kong Cyberport
Le Meridien, Hong Kong Cyberport – 100 Cyberport Road, Hong Kong Island.
One Eight One Hotel & Serviced Residence
One Eight One Hotel & Serviced Residences – 181 Connaught Road West, Hong Kong Island.
Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel and Towers
Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel and Towers – 20 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon Peninsula.
Four Points by Sheraton, Hong Kong Tung Chung
Four Points by Sheraton, Hong Kong Tung Chung – 9 Yi Tung Road, Tung Chang, Lantau Island, New Territories.
Crowne Plaza Hong Kong Causeway Bay
Crowne Plaza Hong Kong Causeway Bay – 8 Leighton Road, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong Island.
Mira Moon Hotel
Mira Moon Hotel – 388 Jaffe Road, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong Island.
Hotel Indigo Hong Kong Island
Hotel Indigo Hong Kong Island – 246 Queen’s Road East, Wanchai, Hong Kong Island.
Lan Kwai Fong Hotel @ Kau U Fong
Lan Kwai Fong Hotel @ Kau U Fong – 3 Kau U Fong, Central, Hong Kong Island.
Other New Policies
- From December 15, all inbound passengers arriving at the airport from places outside China will have nasal and throat samples taken by health workers. In other words, they cannot submit their own deep throat saliva specimens.
- Arriving travelers must take government arranged transport from the airport to their hotel.
- Hotel employees must be tested every 14 days.
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