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AOn June 15, the border between Germany and Austria will be fully opened again. Starting next Friday, only random checks will be carried out at border crossings, Vienna was said Wednesday. This news was greeted with relief, particularly in the Austrian regions, which are economically dependent on German tourists. On the other hand, there are the alpine areas in western Austria, on the other hand, cities like Vienna and Salzburg, which generally have a rich cultural offer. However, it is not yet clear when and how concerts and theater can be revisited in Austria.
The conservative green government led by Federal Chancellor Sebastián Kurz (ÖVP) also announced that Austria also wanted to loosen the border regime with other neighboring countries. A similar procedure to that of Germany should be agreed with Switzerland, Liechtenstein and neighboring Eastern European countries, provided that the crown infections “remain there under control”. Tourism Minister Elisabeth Köstinger (ÖVP) will deal with tourism-related aspects.
Before Easter, Köstinger had already opened a border with Germany on the basis of a bilateral agreement before the summer. Initially it found a moderate response from both the Ministry of Health and the German government. The now agreed procedure complies with the principle “as much freedom as possible, as much restriction as necessary” and also follows the recommendations of the EU Commission after a gradual process based on clearly defined criteria, the APA news agency quoted a spokesman for the Federal Chancellery in Vienna.
Austria had closed its borders to virtually all neighboring countries in a few days in mid-March to inhibit the spread of the corona virus, first that of Italy. Since then, foreigners have only been able to enter with a negative coronavirus certificate. Those with permanent residence in Austria have been forced to have a two-week home quarantine. However, this was not enforced forcefully, at least when entering Germany, as some samples of random experiences showed during the course of April: in these cases, immigrants were verified and quarantine reported, but no personal data, but the de facto responsibility left to the traveler was fulfilled. Recently, regulations have also been formally relaxed, for example for family visits, but also for travelers. For foreign workers, such as nurses from Romania, separate transports were arranged, including tests.
“Important message for the entire tourism industry”
Tyrolean Governor Günther Platter (ÖVP) described the fact that the borders with the neighboring country of the northeast should be reopened in mid-June at the latest as an “important message for the whole industry”. “This is the biggest support for tourism in Tyrol. Now you can plan.” In the coming weeks, “mass testing” of tourism company employees should be conducted to ensure the safety of guests. In the case of a positive Corona case, the foreign guest must be taken to their home country in quarantine in the future. Bilateral agreements are needed here. In the case of Germany, a federal working group is currently working on such an agreement. Interior ministers, foreign ministers, and health ministers are involved.
The Salzburg Chamber of Commerce also welcomed the agreement: “This not only allows tourism in our country to take a deep breath, but it is also an important step for commerce and thousands of travelers.” For the tourism industry, this is “essential for survival”. Austrian domestic tourism typically only accounts for less than a quarter of overnight stays, and opening alone would not have been worthwhile for many companies. If guests from Germany were added to the usual extent (40 percent) “there is hope that we can still save the summer season to some extent and come out with a black eye.”
The first smaller border crossings into Bavaria and the Czech Republic were opened on Wednesday morning in Upper Austria to allow for regional business and passenger traffic. In Burgenland, two other border crossings to Hungary were opened to travelers.
