Far and away without food stalls – how Innsbruck’s Christmas markets take place



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Die Innsbrucker Christkindlmärkte finden heuer unter Corona-Auflagen statt.

© Daniel Zangerl

Innsbruck – It was not clear for a long time if the Christmas markets could take place this year and what. On Friday, the organizers of the Innsbruck Mountain Christmas gave the green light. However, because of the Crown, concessions had to be made: there will be no food stalls with mulled wine, Kiachl and Co.

You can only eat and drink while sitting in the gardens of the surrounding restaurants, so here too all hygiene and distance rules can be observed. Stalls with regional products, gift ideas and decorations remain, but are placed at a much greater distance.

This is what the adapted security concept provides, which according to those responsible “goes far beyond the official requirements”. Minimizing risk comes first. “Health, safety and sustainability are the parameters that determined the planning,” said Karl Gostner, President of Innsbruck Tourismus.

The digital system is intended to record visitor flows.

In addition to a series of conceptual changes that made approval possible in the first place, the organizers rely on the technical management of visitor flows. Here a digital system is used, which uses fine sensors to register crowds so that the flow of visitors can be actively directed. According to Deputy Mayor Johannes Anzengruber, this was successfully tested in the summer.

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He explains: “This technology will be used in the old town, on Maria-Theresien-Straße and on the market square. With frequency figures in real time, both organizers and visitors get an overview of the most and least frequented markets, and this allows to control the flow of visitors if necessary. “

The focus is on tradition and slowdown

It was very important for the city to make the Innsbruck Christmas markets possible also in this exceptional year. Despite all the safety requirements, the organizers agree that tradition, slowing down and contemplation should not be lost as central values ​​of the Christmas season. (TT.com)

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