This is how the Easter wreath becomes – VG

– We are approaching Easter, and it is a holiday where many people usually go abroad to celebrate. That won’t be the case this year, says Justice Minister Monica Mæland (H).

The government has introduced a requirement that all people returning home after unnecessary pleasure trips abroad be quarantined in quarantine hotels until they present a negative test.

– This is the third day at the earliest. It is strict and some will react to the fact that they cannot be quarantined at home, he says.

She emphasizes that the government advises against all travel abroad.

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– The main objective of quarantined hotels is to ensure that the quarantine is carried out in a suitable place and to prevent import infection, says Mæland.

Until April 7, the government will see if it can be opened to a few selected groups.

– Those who make strictly necessary trips for healthcare reasons must follow the usual rules. The same applies to business travel, says Mæland.

She says the rules apply from night to Wednesday.

Recommendations for Easter

– We fear for life and health and the congestion of the health service. A year ago we had no vaccines and we did not see the end of the pandemic. Now we see the end of the pandemic, says Health Minister Bent Høie.

– Exactly when is difficult to say.

The now dominant variant of the virus spreads much more easily and leads to more severe disease than the variant that dominated a year ago, he continues.

Easter means that more people meet and travel and that is how the infection spreads, so we have to travel less and meet less, says the Minister of Health.

– Even if travel to leisure properties in Norway is not deemed necessary, people can still go to the cottage at Easter if they take additional infection control considerations. Then we recommend shopping ahead of time, avoiding public transportation if possible, and keeping your distance from others, Høie says.

If you are sick, you should stay home for Easter. If you get sick in the cabin, you must go home. If you are in quarantine or waiting for test results, you should also stay home. People living in areas with a lot of infection, such as Oslo, should avoid going to hotels and lodgings where many gather.

These are the recommendations for the Easter holidays:

Usually

• Stay home if you are not healthy and get tested as soon as possible if you think you are infected with Covid-19.

To travel

• Traveling abroad is not recommended unless strictly necessary. Avoid unnecessary travel in Norway.
• Travel to a leisure property (owned / borrowed / rented) can still be done if you take extra care with infection control along the way and in the resort. Then travel with your relatives or close people, preferably do the shopping before departure and stay away from others.
• It is important to investigate what measures are applied in the municipality where you are staying, for example through the municipalities’ websites or helsenorge.no.
• If you travel to a municipality with less strict measures than your municipality of origin, as a general rule you should follow the recommendations that apply to your home.
• If you are in quarantine, or waiting for test results, you should not go on Easter holidays, not even to your own cabin.
• If you are in the cabin and you get sick, you should go home. If you are called and quarantined, you must go home.
• You can travel to hotels within the country, but stay away from other guests and limit your stay in common areas. If you come from an area with a high level of contagion and strict local measures, you should not go to hotels or similar accommodation where many people gather.
• Going from cabin to cabin is not recommended as this carries a significantly higher risk of spreading the infection.
• If unguarded cabins are to be used, it should be possible to reserve in advance so that there are no more households / fellow travelers at the same time
• If the cabins are difficult to access and the need for medical attention and the possibility of quarantine / testing can create challenges for local health authorities, it should be considered locally whether to recommend the closure of such cabins.
• In the case of strictly necessary trips abroad (for example, children who are going to visit their parents in another country), it is very important to be careful on the trip and to comply with the quarantine regulations and the requirements for tests when returning.
• Tourism stakeholders should consider limiting access to common areas in order to reduce the risk of infection and facilitate compliance with infection control recommendations.

Socially

• You should avoid more than 10 social contacts a week.
• You should avoid visiting more than 5 people in your own home. If your municipality of origin recommends avoiding visits, you should follow this advice, whether you are at home, in a cabin or elsewhere.
• If you come from an area with a high level of contagion and strict local measures, night visits are not recommended during Easter. Children and young people under the age of 20 who live alone can receive overnight visits from 1-2 regular friends.
• Preferably choose outdoor activities. Avoid visiting places where many people are gathered and where it is not easy to keep your distance, such as restaurants, ski rooms, heating rooms, playgrounds, water parks and the like. You can visit the resorts, but avoid the crowds.

Worship services and other celebrations

• In services and other religious celebrations and philosophical gatherings at Easter, rules, guidelines and recommendations for events apply. You should not attend these types of meetings outside of your own municipality.

Extend strict entry restrictions

The Norwegian Health Directorate and the NIPH have assessed the need to continue to apply strict entry restrictions, which in principle should last until March 19.

On Friday morning, the Norwegian Health Directorate announced that strict entry restrictions will be maintained until further notice, initially until mid-April, they wrote in their assessment to the Ministry of Health and Care Services.

They recommend that no exceptions be made to entry and quarantine regulations for top athletes.

The case is being updated.