Cherryloft Resorts Faces Fine and Booking Halt After Hosting Large Gathering

Singapore – A resort in Pasir Ris was fined and ordered by the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) to suspend its bookings for 30 days as a result of a 19-person gathering in two adjoining rooms.

Cherryloft Resorts & Hotels, located in 159 Jalan Loyang Besar, Pasir Ris, was fined and directed to suspend bookings for breaching multiple Covid-19 safety management measures, said the STB in a press release on Sunday (Jan 17).

Through a joint operation on Friday (Jan 15), the STB and police discovered that the resort, which also holds a hotel license, failed to impose protocols set to limit the spread of Covid-19 in Singapore.

The resort did not conduct entry screening such as checking guests’ temperatures or performing SafeEntry check-ins which is essential for contact tracing, said STB.

It is required by law for all guests or visitors entering hotels or hostels to be screened before stepping into the premises. Simultaneously, all businesses are directed to log the SafeEntry check-ins of their guests and employees.

On top of failing to conduct safety measures screening, police enforcement officers and the STB discovered a group of 19 guests staying in two adjoining rooms. Currently, public gatherings are limited to eight people, under Phase 3 of exiting the Circuit Breaker period.

It is the hotels’ responsibility to refuse bookings to guests exceeding this limit, even if placed in adjoining rooms unless the gatherings involve those from the same household.

Businesses who fail to comply with safe management rules can risk having their eligibility for government grants, loans, tax rebates, and other assistance cancelled, said the STB in a todayonline.com report.

Cherryloft Resorts & Hotels was fined S$1,000 and had their bookings suspended for 30 days due to the breaches. They are prohibited from accepting new bookings from Jan 17 to Feb 15. Bookings made before Jan 17 will still be entertained.

“Hotel operators and members of the public are required to strictly observe prevailing safe management measures at all times during their hotel stays, such as ensuring that group sizes do not exceed the permissible limit. We take a serious view of any lapse in safe management measures, and will not hesitate to take enforcement action for non-compliance,” said STB Director of Hotel & Sector Manpower, Tan Yen Nee, in a mothership.sg report.

Under the Covid-19 (Temporary Measures) (Control Order) Regulations, first-time offenders can be jailed for up to six months, fined up to S$10,000, or both. Repeat offenders can be sentenced to one-year imprisonment, fined up to S$20,000, or both.

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