Nicola Sturgeon has said that people travelling into Scotland will soon need to spend time in quarantine at designated hotels.

The UK Government has already announced its own plan to set up quarantine hotels - but how do they work, and what will the cost be?

What is a quarantine hotel?

Hotels will be contracted by the government to house people who are travelling home to Scotland and tourists coming from abroad. 

Instead of going through airports in the usualy manner, incomers will be herded through in groups, avoiding communal areas and then bussed to the designated hotel.

READ MORE: UK Covid quarantine proposals 'leave too many gaps'

There they will stay in their rooms for 10 days, with food provided by room service. 

Deputy First Minister John Swinney has said there should be no limit on the number of people in quarantine at any one time - but space will not be a problem as international travel is low, and hotels are empty due to travel restrictions.

In England, the Best Western hotel chain has confirmed it is waiting on the ‘green light’ from the government, so it can begin to support the new travel quarantine programme.

The Herald:

Who will be on the quarantine list?

The UK Government plans to quarantine people from 22 high-risk countries, which includes South Africa, Portugal and Brazil. 

But Nicola Sturgeon wants to go further and quarantine all arrivals, on the grounds that people may have passed through a high-risk country or been infected by someone who has. 

The high-risk countries already have travel bans in place, meaning there are already few people entering the UK from these areas.

Coronavirus epidemics are present throughout the world in any case, and the plan is to stop further infections being imported. 

The Scottish Government plans to emulate the UK Government's scheme, but further measures may be announced in the coming days.

The Herald: Luton airport

How much does it cost? 

Passengers - regardless of whether they are resident in the UK or a tourist - will be expected to foot the bill, which are estimated to be upwards of £1,000 per person.

This includes homecomers as well as people travelling for other reasons. 

Have quarantine hotels been used in other countries?

The system has been used in Australia and New Zealand to great effect. Arrivals into these countries have been required to isolate at specific hotels for a minimum of 14 days, and up to 24 days if they do not provide two negative coronavirus tests.

READ MORE: Scotland 'close to eliminating coronavirus before travel brought new strains'​

Failing to comply with the quarantine duration is a criminal offence in Australia, at the cost of £6,000 ($10,500) for individuals, six months in prison, or both with an additional £3,100 ($5,500) fine for each day you remain out of quarantine.

The approach has seen Australia achieve no new infections for some weeks, while New Zealand had had no new cases for three months until one person proved positive in mid-January.