Restaurants and bars in Kitzbühel will close their outdoor spaces from 19 Jan for a week as the popular ski resort tightens its Covid-19 precautions.
Measures to tackle Covid-19 are being tightened in Kitzbühel in the run-up to the famous Hahnenkamm ski races. The moves come after a video of guests partying in an après-ski restaurant in the Tyrolean resort came to light.
Public broadcaster ORF reported outdoor restaurants, bars and guest gardens in Kitzbühel will be closed for a week from Wednesday 19 January. The Hahnenkamm gondola will also suspend operations on the evenings of the race weekend (22-23 Jan).
District chief Michael Berger wants to "go all out" to ensure that the event goes off as calmly as possible. This weekend, the focus will be on checking restaurants, après-ski venues and bars, with police officers will be "on constant patrol through the city", he said. There is no need for additional police officers, he said.
According to official figures, the seven-day Covid-19 incidence rate in Kitzbühel is 3,638.1, one of the highest in Austria. Since Friday, FFP2 masks have been compulsory outdoors in the town centre, even if a two-metre distance can be maintained. While in previous years up to 50,000 people could be present at the nail-bitingly steep Hahnenkamm races, this year only 1,000 spectators with allocated seats are allowed.
Austrian skifields require all visitors from the age of 12 to provide proof of vaccination or recent recovery from Covid-19, with the regulation also applying to mountain restaurants.
