Just in time for Whitsun, hotels in Bavaria were allowed to receive guests again - an important relaxation for the economy in the southern district.
After all, tourism plays a major role here.
However, the holiday balance in the municipalities also shows that tourism did not go from zero to one hundred immediately.
Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen - From the first day on which the state government announced the opening of the hotels for Whitsunday Saturday, “the telephones did not stand still” in the Tölz Tourist Info, reports spa director Brita Hohenreiter. However, the numerous inquiries related to the planning for the whole year. People couldn't have made any plans in advance for the Whitsun holidays - so spontaneous bookings were at best possible. But due to the bad weather in the first week of the holiday, they weren't quite as numerous. "It was like last year, when it opened shortly before Pentecost: It got off to a slow start," says Hohenreiter and sums up: "Tourism is not running at full speed yet."
Bookings in Lenggries are comparable to previous years, Kochel is still room for improvement
Ulrich Glodowski from Gästeinfo Bad Heilbrunn describes the start of tourism in his community as “cautious”.
And the Mayor of Kochel, Thomas Holz, sums it up like this: "You could clearly feel that tourism is picking up speed again, but there is still room for improvement." Many would currently wait a little longer with their vacation planning, says Holz.
Ursula Dinter-Adolf, head of the Lenggrieser Guest Info, on the other hand, recorded "very good bookings, comparable to other years".
And her colleague from the Sonnental, Sonja Eichbichler, reports: “Jachenau was well booked, we were full.” Even for the summer it is difficult to get a free bed in the community.
"And there are still a lot of inquiries."
Compulsory testing every 48 hours has made one or the other hesitate
The duty that overnight guests had to undergo a rapid corona test every 48 hours did not cause any upheaval from the tourist industry's point of view.
Glodowski believes that this regulation made one or the other hesitate to travel.
But for those who were there, "it worked very well," says Sonja Eichbichler - and that is also Ursula Dinter-Adolf's impression.
The guests were simply happy to be able to travel again, were concerned with safety themselves and appreciated the possibility of testing on the Lenggries festival site.
In Bad Tölz, just in time for the beginning of the holiday, a test station in the vitality center went into operation, just like the one on Isarkai operated by pharmacist Andreas Heinrich.
"That was very well received by the people, it was well organized, thanks to two test locks, there was a higher number of strokes and hardly any waiting times," reports Kurdirektor Hohenreiter.
A negative test result is now sufficient upon arrival
In the meantime, there is no longer any obligation to regularly test, the holidaymakers only have to present a negative result on arrival.
Against this background, the test station in the vitality center will probably shut down a bit, says Hohenreiter.
For the coming weeks, she is preparing for a “very strong summer” - combined with the hope that the season can be extended as far into autumn as possible.
As soon as the weather changes, the season in Bad Tölz is often "abruptly ended" after Leonhardi, according to the spa director - although this year it is not even certain whether the pilgrimage will take place at all.
"But sometimes in November we still had wonderful days with 13, 14 degrees and sun." Then there would also be guests - and it would be particularly good for the Tölz businesses this year.
Day tourism gained momentum more quickly
Ulrich Glodowski also expects strong bookings for Bad Heilbrunn - “like last year, there was no free bed in the summer”.
But it is also clear to him: "That will certainly not make up for the six months of the closure."
What was gaining momentum faster than overnight bookings was day tourism.
"The herb park was very busy in the second week of the holiday, there were many hikers and cyclists on the way," says Glodowski.
In the municipality of Kochel, this phenomenon took on stressful proportions again, as reported by Mayor Holz.
“Corpus Christi Day was one of the worst days,” he says - and wonders what the region around Kochel and Walchensee has to do in summer.
"Because the most intense days are yet to come."
Bad Tölz newsletter:
Everything from your region! Our brand new Bad Tölz newsletter informs you regularly about all the important stories from the Bad Tölz region - including all the news about the corona crisis in your community. Sign up here.
