Austria Curbs U.K. Travel With Exception to Save Ski Season

(Bloomberg) -- Austria will restrict quarantine-free travel from the U.K., Netherlands, Norway and Denmark and only allow in select travelers as it balances between containing the pandemic and salvaging its ski season.

Only people who’ve had a booster shot and can show a negative coronavirus test will be allowed to enter the Alpine nation from those countries without self-isolation, Austria’s coronavirus task force said on Wednesday. The measure stops short of a de facto entry ban that has applied to other high-risk countries, and leaves a window for travel in an attempt to support winter tourism.

Other European countries, including Germany and France, have also restricted travel to limit the spread of the omicron variant, and Finland and Denmark on Wednesday said they would require negative test results even from European Union arrivals.

The decision was announced by the task force after discussions with influential regional leaders who had been quick to unwind curbs after a three-week national lockdown ended earlier this month.

Separately, restaurants will be forced to close at 10 p.m. daily from Dec. 27, including on New Year’s Eve. The government will also tighten capacity limits for events, where a vaccination or proof of recovery is already required for attendance.

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