Updated 4.50pm

Enora Besnier was just about to return to France after six months studying in the University of Malta when she tested positive for COVID-19. 

Her rental contract for her appartment was up and she says she faced a bill of €1,200 after being advised to quarantine in a four-star hotel.

"I am a student! I don't have the money to pay a quarantine of €100 a night," the 20-year-old said.

The Marina Hotel Corinthia Beach Resort in St George's Bay is approved as a quarantine hotel by the Superintendent of Public Health.

"So they drop you off here. Not just any hotel: the four-star marina hotel, the place where all the positive tourists are taken to finish their quarantine, and then I learn by calling the hotel reception that the quarantine is on us," she said.

According to government guidelines, travellers who arrive in Malta without the required COVID-19 documents must pay €100 every night for mandatory quarantine accommodation. The fee does not include food, drink or other servies and anyone who breaches quarantine can face fines of up to €10,000.

MTA says student will not pay for hotel

However it is less clear what the guidelines are for foreigners who have been living and studying in the country and contract the virus.

Hours after Times of Malta highlighted the student's case, a Malta Tourism Authority spokesperson insisted that she would not have to pay the bill.

"Kindly note, that upon further confirmation with the hotel itself, the student in question has in fact not been billed by the hotel, and she is only paying for food and beverage, as it is always the case in such cases," it said.

The Erasmus student said it was unacceptable to expect students to pay for expensive quarantine accommodation. 

The Marina Hotel, St George's Bay, is approved as quarantine hotel. Photo: Corinthia Hotels

"Is this normal? We don't have a choice of where to be quarantined and they take us to the most luxurious hotel in the area. And in the end we have to pay?" she asked.

Besnier had been studying education at University of Malta, and said no one informed her of the prospect of having to pay such a hefty bill if she got infected with COVID-19.

She had come to the end of her tenancy and was packing up to go back home when she got the positive test results on July 6.

While she spent the first few days of her quarantine in her apartment, she struggled to get information on what to do next.

"During these three days, all the numbers I was advised to call to find a solution, in turn gave me a new number. No one helped me, or told me that I was not allowed to change my accommodation," she said.

"It took my landlady calling to get things sorted out one day before I ended up on the street," she continued.

She is still in quarantine at the hotel, as quarantine periods last at least 14 days for those with COVID-19.

She says is in contact with others who have endured similar experiences and said it was important to raise awareness about the "unacceptable" treatment they were receiving.