People in Ho Chi Minh City who choose to spend mandatory COVID-19 quarantine at hotels, rather than free quarantine centers, should expect to pay an average fee of VND13.5 million (US$583) for the service.

A total of 371 people had paid for quarantine at three- to five-star hotels in the southern metropolis as of Thursday, according to the municipal Department of Tourism.

Most of those quarantiners are investors, technical experts, skilled workers, and business managers who are in Ho Chi Minh City for work.

Eight hotels in District 1, District 4, District 5, District 7, Tan Binh District, and Can Gio District have been reserved for paid quarantine, boasting a combined capacity of 1,485 rooms.

A 14-day quarantine period at these hotels costs an average of VND13.5 million per person.

More experts and foreign workers are expected to arrive in Ho Chi Minh City as Vietnam works with local companies to import workers for filling shortages.

Per procedures, the entry of new arrivals must first be approved by the Immigration Department under the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security.

The municipal Department of Health will then ensure these arrivals undergo thorough health check sat Tan Son Nhat International Airport before being transported to local quarantine facilities. All will be tested for COVID-19.

Statistics from the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism showed that 207 accommodation facilities in 25 localities across the country are now approved to offer paid quarantine services.

These facilities provide a total of 18,486 rooms with 23,248 beds.

Vietnam is currently quarantining 178,451 people who had close contact with confirmed patients or entered the country from virus-hit regions.

The nation has kept its borders closed to foreigners since March to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Foreign experts and skilled workers are still allowed to enter the country, though they are subject to government approval and mandatory quarantine.

Vietnamese returnees from abroad arriving on government-sanctioned flights must undergo compulsory collective isolation as well.

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