Surrey couple stuck on hold trying to book quarantine hotel

SURREY (NEWS 1130) – A woman from Surrey says her husband is stranded in India because of troubles with Canada’s quarantine hotel booking system.

Kamal Dhaliwal says her husband — who went to India to attend a wedding — is stuck in Delhi because his flight home was rescheduled after new measures came into effect, and the couple hasn’t been able to get through on the phone line for booking Canada’s mandatory hotel quarantine.

“Every time it reaches three hours and two minutes, [the call] drops. It’s a bit of a frustration. I think the government should open up more sources, like maybe online booking or more phone lines,” she tells NEWS 1130.

Dhaliwal says the government website is no help, and with only the one phone number to call, it seems the company handling this doesn’t have the resources it needs.

Nationally, there are 18 federally approved hotels where air travellers can book their minimum three-day quarantine while they are tested for COVID-19. There are five around Vancouver International Airport, all in Richmond.

RELATED: Some travellers to Canada face long waits to booking mandatory hotel stay

But Dhaliwal isn’t alone when it comes to struggles booking in an approved hotel, which travellers have to pay for. Other Canadians have had to wait hours or even days before securing a room through the system.

The issue is that the government has contracted a single company — GB Travel Canada — to run the quarantine booking system and rooms can only be secured over the phone through its agents. Travellers cannot book their quarantines directly with the hotels.

Without being able to book the necessary room, Dhaliwal doesn’t know what will happen if her husband can even reach Vancouver International Airport.

“It’s very uncertain what’s going to happen. Will they allow him to board the flight without the information? Or if he reaches Vancouver, how is he going to get out? Will he have to stay at the airport until he gets a hotel?”

She feels the government was not fully prepared to make changes, despite assurances the system would be ready this week.

-with files from Dean Recksiedler

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