Quarantine a boon for some Hong Kong hotels as thousands return

Riot police patrol the usually busy Lan Kwai Fong, a popular drinking area, in Hong Kong on March 23, 2020, after the city’s chief executive announced plans to temporarily ban the sale of alcohol in bars and restaurants as a measure to help stop the spread of the Covid-19 caused by the novel coronavirus. - AFP

HONG KONG: As thousands of Hong Kong citizens and expatriates return to the city, many are seeking refuge in hotels, fearful that cramped apartments in one of the world's most expensive property markets could put families or flatmates at risk.

Social distancing is tough in Hong Kong, where the bulk of the city's 7.4 million population lives in flats that on average are no bigger than 500 square feet (46 square metres).