Coronavirus outbreak

The lifts are set to be closed across Xmas and New Year but the authorities are allowing resorts to offer other forms of skiing and travelling in the snow. You just can’t use a lift.

 Austria has indicated it will not support the move led by Germany to stop resorts opening in December and postpone any openings to January. Switzerland will likely keep its resorts open. Pressure is mounting and it is getting highly political. UPDATED

The Prime Minister, Jean Castex, has made an announcement that slightly waters down what President Macron said on Tuesday. Resorts say it is not enough. UPDATED

Italy has got the ball rolling and France says it is in discussions.  Germay is fully supportive. Austria and Switzerland appear rather less enthusiastic. PlanetSKI examines the chance of success. UPDATED

It follows the likelihood that French resorts will not open until late January. There is also the matter of isolation required when arriving back in the UK.

President Macron has indicated they will close but a final decision will be taken next week. It will come at a huge economic price, but some resorts say they will be open, and though the lifts may be closed there is much else to do.

France has passed the peak of its second wave of Covid-19, but tough restrictions remain in place until at least January and ski resorts will likely remain closed. It is a bombshell for the French ski industry. UPDATED

Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has said Italy “can’t afford” the risk of further infections from people taking ski holidays. He is urging Europe-wide rules. Ski resorts are seen as super-spreaders of the virus back in March.

The announcement has been made by the Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps.  With a vaccine on the horizon, hopes rise in the world of snowsports. The self-isolation changes mean skiing is more attractive but there are still significant obstacles.

The new rules have come into force this weekend and include travel restrictions. The resorts are not due to open until December, but an impact is already being felt.

Hotelplan UK runs Inghams, Ski Total, Esprit and Flexiski.  Holidays to Finland go too. It is another body blow for UK skiers and snowboarders in these Covid-19 times.  

The company had been going for 30 years and has been unable to survive the Covid-19 crisis. UPDATED

The alpine nation is seeing a sharp rise and measures taken so far do not appear to have worked. Ski resorts are already closed to the general public and it is grim news as winter approaches. UPDATED

UK Shortbreak Specialist is closing its main base in France, but it will act as an agent selling hotel rooms in its resorts. Other operators are under pressure and are considering their plans for next winter as the pandemic spreads and restrictions are tightened.

The operator has been working in the Aosta Valley in Italy for almost 40years, but has decided to suspend all operations next winter due to Covid-19.

With the Alps looking increasingly difficult and North America near impossible some skiers and snowboarders are looking at following their passion in the UK this winter. Resorts are preparing but Covid-19 restrictions remain unclear.

Almost the whole of the alpine country has turned red on its four-level traffic light system. New measures are expected to be announced tomorrow.

The current numbers make grim reading with forecasts even worse. Resorts have coronavirus policies in place, and hopefully skiing can happen, just in a different way to normal. But perhaps not till 2021.

The resort is following all the regulations and has obtained the “Clean and safe” label in collaboration with Switzerland Tourism. Some question the wisdom of opening as Switzerland, and the Valais Canton, is one of the Covid-19 hotspots in Europe.

There are only a handful of glacier resorts open but the apparent breaches of Covid-19 rules in Cervinia as the pandemic spreads in Italy are being taken very seriously. It’s an indication of what things may be like next winter across the Alps. UPDATED

 Austria’s main ski area has answered the 10 most asked questions about what next winter my look like.

It is a confusing picture, but testing & reduction in quarantine times are essential if there is to be a ski season this winter for us Brits.

It has announced compulsory testing for anyone travelling from the UK and a number of other countries. Those that test positive will need to go into quarantine. UPDATED

It is the single biggest restriction on the ski industry for next winter after Covid-19 itself. If current quarantine measures are in place it will decimate the winter for many UK skiers and snowboarders. It seems changes are coming but not soon enough for many.

They are the last major ski countries that do not have travel restrictions for people returning to the UK, but their Covid-19 cases are rising. Travel remains possible with all the skiing nations in Europe, but arrival/departure quarantine rules are growing.

The government is expected to start a trial project at Heathrow and it could then be rolled out to other airports. Testing is seen as key to getting people flying again and booking ski holidays.

Quarantine is now needed from Poland and Turkey. All the countries in the Pyrenees, North America and many in the Alps are currently under the restrictions. There are though some options. Fancy skiing in Cyprus?