[ad_1]
TURIN. The debate takes place in and around the Alps: skiing yes or no? For now, plants are closed almost everywhere, in Italy, France and Austria. Switzerland is an exception as it invites tourists to ski with them. What today would not be possible for Italians living in the red zones: Piedmont, Valle d’Aosta and Lombardy.
Switzerland
In Switzerland, therefore, ski resorts are escaping coronavirus measures for now. “There is no prohibition on skiing. But the managers of the ski resorts must present a concept of protection and it is up to the cantons to approve it, make sure it is valid and respected ”, explained the spokesman for the Federal Office of Public Health, Daniel Dauwalder. In the Confederation, many provisions to combat the pandemic are adopted at the cantonal level, but to date no canton restricts the practice of skiing.
However, there will be stricter rules on and around the slopes than in previous seasons. Among other things, it implies guaranteeing distances, hygiene measures and the obligation to wear a mask in certain circumstances. A month ago, the director of the Graubünden mountain railways in St. Moritz / Engadine announced a season with some new features. A mask is mandatory for all indoor lifts, for example cable cars, gondolas and mountain railways.
In Zermatt, at the foot of the Matterhorn, the tourist office website advertises that the entire mountain railway and cable car infrastructure “is available to guests this winter, with the necessary safety precautions to ensure guests’ health. “. and employees. “Also in the Bernese Oberland region, protective masks are required on trains and in elevator cars.
France
By announcing a decision “within the next 10 days” on the opening of ski resorts at Christmas, the French government announced that today it had consulted the main organizations in the sector, asking questions “, as well as on outdoor sports activities. in hill stations, about real life in these localities “during the pandemic. “To date the decision has not been made – Matignon informs in a note -, the two options are on the table, there are uncertainties about the evolution of the health situation.” The government has announced that “various scenarios” are being examined, both the “definition of a specific health protocol” and, in the event of the closure of the stations, “methods of economic and social support for the subjects involved, companies and workers. temporary “. The decision will be taken “based on the health situation, which should represent the fundamental criterion” but “with the aim of being as consistent as possible with our neighboring countries.”
Austria
For Austria, ski tourism is an economic factor of primary importance. The country in the heart of the Alps had weathered the first wave of Covid well, only to be completely hit by the second. Austria is currently in a total lockdown with a curfew even during the day. To restart schools, the economy and later also skiing, Vienna is focusing on a massive projection, like last weekend in South Tyrol. The patch tests will take place from December 5, and then they will be extended to the entire population. When it comes to reopening the plants, the government remains very cautious for now, even if the tourism sector still dreams of a recovery by Christmas. The hope is to open the plants at least from mid-December.
South tyrol
In Italy, South Tyrol President Arno Kompatscher expects an at least partial opening in South Tyrol, who told Sky Tg24: “Initially, intermediate solutions can be hypothesized, such as opening facilities for residents and only later Hotels”. Remembering that “tourism, especially in winter, is a fundamental basis of the territorial economy”.
