Italy caused a stir with the proposal to close all ski slopes in Europe. In Austria they were not very happy about this.
Can we go skiing for Christmas this year? In the popular ski areas, such as Schladming, there is already heavy snowmaking. If the Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has his way, there should be no fun on the slopes at Christmas this year.
Specifically, Italy wants to close the ski areas across Europe and, with the coordination of neighboring countries, work out a joint timetable for opening them. In Austria this does not meet with much approval.
“It is not possible to allow a winter vacation, we cannot afford it,” said Conte in an interview with the television channel “La7” with regard to the corona pandemic. According to the Italian head of government, ski areas should gradually open from January 10th at the earliest. The aim is to prevent another coronavirus wave.
In search of a common solution, Conte had already telephoned French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and also Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, reports the newspaper “La Repubblica”.
Bavaria's Prime Minister Markus Söder agrees. Last week he spoke out against a ski holiday in Austria. “If we want to keep our borders open, we also need a clear agreement on skiing. Otherwise it will be a difficult development,” he said in Munich on Tuesday. Anyone who goes skiing in risk areas has to be in quarantine for ten days.
Tourism Minister Elisabeth Köstinger does not really like the Italian idea: “Winter holidays in Austria will be safe. Our companies already have comprehensive safety concepts for skiing holidays, there will be no après-ski this year, for example,” said the ÖVP politician.
Should there actually be a ski ban over Christmas, Finance Ministers Gernot Blümel and Köstinger immediately demand money from Brussels.
“If the EU actually pretends that the ski areas must remain closed, then that means costs of up to two billion euros. If the EU really wants that, then it has to pay for it,” explains Blümel.
The debate is also causing great uncertainty in domestic winter tourism. “We don't know when to start, but we have to be prepared,” explains Gerhard Pilz from the Schladming Tourist Association to the “Standard”. The slope preparation is therefore carried out as cost-effectively as possible.
Should the strict lockdown end on December 6th, retail and schools will open first. Hotels and lifts have to wait. According to Michaela Reitterer, President of the Austrian Hotel Association, the earliest possible opening date would be December 18th.
Safety concepts for winter tourism were already dealt with in summer. “We have recently been asked very often by operators of ski areas and cable cars and have also developed prevention concepts for several ski areas”, epidemiologist Hans-Peter Hutter from MedUni Vienna told the “Kurier”.
In order to reduce the risk of infection in gondolas, a mask is required, as well as a limited number of people and good ventilation. This helps to minimize the spread of aerosols. “You have to look at it in detail for every area and every type of gondola. There are gondolas with a capacity of four to 40 people. The more people standing around, the greater the risk.”
