Quarantine Hotels in the UK: Latest Updates

Staying in quarantine hotels is not mandatory for anyone returning to the UK at the moment, as there are currently no countries on the ‘red list’. All UK Covid travel restrictions are also to be eased at the end of March 2022. Here’s everything you need to know.

How Does the Hotel Quarantine System Work?

More stringent border controls were introduced to protect the UK from new variants of Covid in January 2021. This meant mandatory quarantine in hotels for British travellers arriving back into the UK from a red list of high-risk countries. These returning British residents were required to stay in government-approved hotels. Covid tests then needed to be taken on days two and eight of isolation to enable authorities to track new cases more effectively, according to the Department of Health. It was similar to the model used in Australia.

On March 14, 2022, the UK Health Secretary announced, “As we learn to live with Covid-19, we’re taking further steps to open up international travel once again ahead of the Easter holidays. Given the current state of the pandemic and a move towards global travel volumes returning to normal, the remaining managed hotel quarantine capacity will be fully stood down from the end of March.”

Tim Alderslade, chief executive of Airlines UK said on the same day, “Today’s announcement sends a clear message to the world – the UK travel sector is back. With travellers returning to the UK no longer burdened by unnecessary forms and testing requirements, we can now look forward to the return to pre-Covid normality throughout the travel experience.”

From 4am GMT Friday March 18, all COVID-19 travel restrictions were lifted, including Passenger Locator Forms and tests for anyone who hasn’t been vaccinated.

How Much Does Hotel Quarantine Cost?

Since Thursday August 12, 2021, travellers were charged £2,285 for their stay in quarantine hotels. This amount was for one adult in one room for 10 days (11 nights) and included the hotel, food, transfer from the airport, and testing. Those who didn’t comply were fined. Any international arrival who failed to take a mandatory test was fined £1,000, and those who failed to take the second mandatory test faced a £2,000 penalty, along with an automatic extension of their quarantine period to 14 days, and a £5,000 fixed penalty notice – rising to £10,000 – for arrivals who failed to quarantine in a designated hotel. However, from the end of March 2022, quarantine hotels will be phased out.

How Long Does Hotel Quarantine Last?

The quarantine time in a UK hotel lasted 10 days – and longer if a traveller tested positive. The ‘test to release’ system, which allowed travellers to take a Covid test after five days of quarantine, was not accessible for those in hotel quarantine who returned from a ‘red list’ country. Currently, there are no countries on the red list, and hotel quarantine will conclude in April 2022.