Indeed it's hard for the resorts. Engelberg/Titlis has been facing some troubles even before the pandemic. Hope they survive.

About ourselves, snowshoes? As student, I went several times with a friend up with snowshoes and then down with the skis, the money saved on the lift went to beer

There's also the skins you put below the skis to go up (peau de phoque). Different to the usual but not ruined.

I don't follow your logic. If people transmit the virus to each other in packed areas such as bubble lifts / jumbo lifts / apres ski, then there will be more infections. those people will return back to their homes and will potentially infect more people surely ? It's how it all started. If you stop people moving around, the virus calms down, we have seen that.

So i don't understand why closing the ski lifts will wont protect the vulnerable or slow down the spread, logically it will ? Im not having a go, im just mystified by the thought.

You know that bit about sovereignty.... or do you?

Well unless you know they can't spread the virus and there are no know long term health or life expectancy issues.....


Oh the other hand taking unknown risks just because you could not be bothered to wait say 12 months for a solution would seem like an incredibly dump idea...

Some people will be dead in a year & you have deprived them of a SKi season

Specifically, a downhill ski season in snow pistes packed by machines with a lift to the top.

Mountains are still for all other activities. Somehow, off-piste ski is cool when lifts are open, but off-piste ski has been not mentioned yet for this season.

Seems like a concentrated effort to promote ski touring, fine by me, its an amazing sport Avalanche accident stats will be probably bad this winter though

Found this today https://www.snow-forecast.com/whiter...n/#switzerland which may be of interest to skiers.

Was Ishgl due to people on the slopes? NO! It was apres-ski. So why close teh ski resports altogether instead of limiting the restaurants-bars?

The big cable-cars are indeed a problem.

OMG! We are the bad boys of the hood



https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/merkel-...ss-eu/46186790

The critical point was this...

'Investigators said authorities were too slow to close the resorts in Ischgl and nearby St Anton when the outbreaks became clear.

A group of skiers from Iceland reported Covid-19 symptoms on 3 March, and by 5 March the authorities were aware that a coronavirus outbreak was likely, according to Mr Rohrer.' https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-54523014

...then you've got the ensuing legal actions, and it all becomes a bit of a pickle.

What testing and reporting structures are in place in the resorts?

bubble lifts, jumbo lifts, drag lifts with everyone touching the same rope or t-bar, people failing to queue to get back on. There's infection possibilities everywhere.

The whole point is the fight against the virus is collective, its us all. If some of us say "well, skiing, pah we're not stopping that, its a swiss way of life!" its not the risk to you or other people who are skiing, most of us will make it fine through corona, its the fact that the people we then give it to are in the hospitals in switzerland and they are full - completely full - from mainly older people suffering terribly from corona. One of my work colleagues has just been called up for 3 weeks duty civile to help out because they are just totally overloaded.

So yes, it means a shit christmas and new year skiing wise, but thats a very small price to pay for the potential health of real people.

Wait a min, I just noticed the FIS ski competitions are alive https://www.fis-ski.com/en/alpine-skiing Today there was an event in Davos and Austria and there are scheduled events for this weekend in Italy.

I just wonder about the political fallout of resorts for me, not for you.

The authorities could easily introduce a compulsory quarantine for anyone returning from a skiing holiday, or same measures as returning from a high risk country, and let people get on with it.
I'm talking about skiing for a week, not a weekend.

Real people in the ski areas are also affected by the loss of income and jobs due to the shutdown, so it isn't a simple case of saying that skiing is optional so we just stop it.

It's particularly hard for the temporary staff who work only the winter season and can't claim the shutdown payments like those forced out of jobs.

Chair lifts are not an issue neither is ski touring. The mountains were out of bounds last March to ski tourers. If touring is allowed I will be back in the French Alps on 15 December, it's a great way to get fit, 2-3 hours up & 5-10 minutes down.

Exactly. Ski instructors just as an example are on short term zero hours contracts, or self-employed and not entitled to kurzarbeit for example.

According to today’s press conference, Switzerland has told the “EU 3” that Switzerland will not be closing its ski resorts!

France will allow ski touring but no ski lifts for the holidays in December

Wondering how it will work for the resorts that straddle the EU neighbours. Skin up the French/Italian side and enjoy it easy all day on the Ch side?