In the midst of the European cacophony of Christmas ski trips, Switzerland, nestled in the heart of the Alps, has launched its winter tourist season all out and could well attract frustrated neighbors to their homes ...
In the north, Bavarian ski resorts will be closed during the end-of-year holidays to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
In the West, it is the French lifts that will be immobilized during the holidays.
In the south, Italians should also be deprived of skiing at Christmas, while in the east, the Austrians are under pressure by Berlin to do the same.
Read also: Ski resorts open: Switzerland, Italy ... what our neighbors are planning for Christmas
In Switzerland, hit hard by the second wave of Covid-19, the authorities and sectors concerned present a united front, after an end of the season cut short in mid-March by the first wave.
"In Switzerland, we can go skiing, with protection plans
,
"
Health Minister Alain Berset assured Thursday, stressing that the government would re-examine the situation before the end of year celebrations.
Because even if the cantons decide on the opening of the stations, the government can have a say.
For the moment, it relies on individual responsibility and respect for the protective measures put in place by ski lifts, ski schools and mountain guides (respect for hygiene and distance rules, compulsory wearing of a mask everywhere except on the slopes).
"In Switzerland, the Federal Council, the authorities and the tourism industry are convinced that the Swiss path is for the moment the right one and that the winter season can take place in complete safety"
, told AFP Véronique Kanel, spokesperson for the national tourist office.
Read also: Without downhill skiing, what you can do in the resort at Christmas
A health protection plan
The launch, Monday, of the winter tourist season was done with the President of the Confederation, Simonetta Sommaruga, who
"counts on the population to help us to ensure that this winter is successful".
And the health protection plan drawn up by the Swiss ski lifts for more than 2,400 facilities (ski lifts, chair lifts, cable cars, etc.) was favorably received by the authorities.
This concept
"including the compulsory use of protective masks in and on all ski lifts, as well as in waiting areas, constitutes a good basis for safe winter sports"
, explained on public television SRF, Rudolf Hauri, President of the Association of Cantonal Doctors of Switzerland.
Everything doesn't always go perfectly, and a photo of skiers huddled together in a queue in Zermatt in November shocked and forced police into it.
Read also: Zermatt and Cervinia, skiing in the shadow of the mythical Matterhorn
"We will ski at Christmas"
For a few weeks now, the Swiss have been able to hit the slopes like in Verbier, Gstaad or Saas-Fee.
In Valais (southwest), one of the country's main ski regions alongside Graubünden (east) and the Bernese Oberland (center), the president of the cantonal executive, Christophe Darbellay, assured the l 'AFP: "we will ski at Christmas".
In the region, hotels are already open, and restaurants are due to open in mid-December.
"More than ever, people need air, snow, space,"
he said, expressing his incomprehension especially regarding the measures taken in France, where the ski lifts will have to remain closed while
"we does not close the RER ”
in Paris.
Read also: Verbier, great spring skiing in Valais
But if Switzerland is likely to be the exception in the Alps, ski areas hardly expect to see hordes of European skiers, if not ski enthusiasts
.
“We don't think we have a lot of Europeans on the Swiss slopes, also taking into account the travel / mobility restrictions in force in European countries.
We must not forget, in particular, that Germany has placed Switzerland on its list of risk areas ”,
Véronique Kanel.
The forecasts for the sector remain quite bleak.
According to a survey carried out by Switzerland Tourism among tourist providers at the end of October, the reservation rate for mountain accommodation for the Christmas holidays is currently 19% lower than the previous year.
The reservation rate for winter sports holidays (February) is, for its part, down 28% over one year.
