Hong Kong’s abrupt quarantine end triggers new crisis for hotels
HONG KONG – Hong Kong’s former quarantine hotels are awash with empty rooms after the city axed its dreaded mandatory isolation rule for arrivals but kept other Covid-19 curbs likely to repel inbound tourists. The Ovolo Group’s Southside and Central properties had just four bookings left on Monday after logging some 1,500 quarantine cancellations over the weekend, said Mr Mael Vastine, director of operations in Hong Kong. “Business has been impacted and it will take some time to recover,” he added, noting that neither hotel had taken a new reservation in recent days. The Landmark Mandarin Oriental’s manager, Mr Christoph Schauer, said the “vast majority” of its guests cancelled after Chief Executive John Lee announced on Sept 23 that international arrivals would no longer need to spend three days isolating in a hotel. Some 26,200 rooms across the city had been reserved for quarantine before the move. Hong Kong’s abrupt elimination of the hotel quarantine programme, which has