Tourist standard hotels agree to government rate for quarantine

KATHMANDU, JUNE 1

Tourist standard member hotels of the Hotel Association Nepal are ready to provide quarantine service at Rs 2,000 per night with four meals a day.

Disclosing member hotels’ decision today, Binayak Shah, first vice-president of HAN, said, “Our proposal was to charge Rs 3,000 to Rs 16,000 based on the category of hotels, but tourist standard hotels are ready to adjust the price as per the government’s offer. Star-rated hotels, however, are still waiting for the government’s response.”

As the government was preparing to bring back stranded Nepali citizens on priority basis, it had requested HAN to provide hotels that could be used as quarantine centres by those who could afford to pay certain fees. Subsequently, HAN had offered to provide rooms at Rs 3,000 to Rs 16,000 per night, depending on the category of the hotel, while the government had quoted a flat rate of Rs 2,000 per night.

While the government will take responsibility for people who stay in designated public quarantine centres, those staying in hotel quarantine will have to foot their own bills.

“We have been informed that the government is holding discussions on our proposed rates,” he said, adding, “Considering the situation, we are ready to make some adjustments and the government also needs to come up with a reasonable rate for star-rated hotels.”

HAN has offered 3,500 rooms for quarantine. The Federation of Hotel Entrepreneurs, meanwhile, has already provided 700 hotel rooms to quarantine doctors and nurses working on the frontline for treatment of COVID-19 patients.

While agreeing to provide their hotels as quarantine centres may provide some relief during the ongoing crisis, hoteliers are also anxious about the decision affecting the appeal of their hotels after the situation normalises.

“Since the virus is quite unpredictable, hotels are worried about losing business later on,” HAN first vice-president Shah added.

As such, HAN has requested the government to provide security and medical facilities to regularly disinfect the selected hotels. And once things settle down the government has to provide a green card to all the quarantine hotels as proof that they are safe to accommodate normal guests.

A version of this article appears in e-paper on June 2, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.

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