Family cuts staycation short after getting room on same floor as quarantined guests
A family’s staycation plans went awry after they discovered their hotel room was on the same floor as other guests serving isolation notices.
Mr Wong Kok Leong, 34, told AsiaOne on Monday that he and his family had checked into the M Social Singapore hotel on Nov 27 to celebrate his wife’s birthday.
Mr Wong, who works in facilities management, said his room floor’s corridor on the 7th floor was obstructed by luggage racks – with bento boxes and rubbish bags – that were intended for quarantined guests.
"We had to pass by all the quarantine guest rooms before reaching our room at the very end of the corridor," he said, adding that there were "(no) proper safe management measures and no physical segregation of rooms".
After raising the issue with the hotel’s management, he was told that physical segregation between leisure and quarantine guests was not required.
For his family's safety, he decided to check out early without a refund. And, to compound his frustration, he checked and noticed that levels three and four did not have any luggage racks placed outside the rooms.
Mr Wong felt the hotel could have accommodated their request of having a safer environment during their stay.
"We booked the staycation back in October," he said. "If we knew this was (to be) the arrangement, we would not have gone ahead with it.
"Imagine if we are booking a stay with our elderly parents or vulnerable groups of people such as those with chronic illnesses, we would be exposing ourselves to unnecessary danger."
In response to the matter, general manager of M Social Singapore Guillaume Places told AsiaOne: “Following the recent relaxation of safe management measures in November, there are no longer any floor segregation requirements across different groups of guests (such as those serving isolation notice, on vaccinated travel lanes or local staycation).”
Mr Places said the regulation was issued by the Ministry of Health and Singapore Tourism Board via the Singapore Hotel Association.
"M Social Singapore has provided luggage racks outside each room so as to minimise points of contact for employees delivering items to room guests. This measure is part of the Infection Prevention & Control protocols we have in place, which is in compliance with guidelines issued by the authorities," he said.
He also said guests who are serving isolation notice are strictly confined to their rooms for the duration of their isolation and they have isolation monitoring measures to ensure this.
"We fully understand the guest’s concerns, and assure that we have in place strict protocols that are in compliance with government guidelines to ensure the safety of all guests and employees," Mr Places added.
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