Tens of thousands of people decided to seek respite in the mountains of Bavaria. In some places it got crowded. “The flow of people is enormous,” said Franz Schnitzenbaumer, mayor of the Bavarian municipality of Schliersee. Hundreds of people ski even from small hills, and the ski slopes are filled with hikers.
There are three million people in the Munich area who do not have a chance to spend a winter break this year due to the epidemic, and you can see it everywhere. “They are just as full as they were in the days of normal operation of the lifts,” said Peter Lorenz, in charge of the ski lifts in the village of Spitzingei. Many winter sports fans use the frozen local lake for ice skating.
Germany. Crowds and chaos at vacation resorts
Due to congestion, as well as worsening weather over the weekend, some tourists have changed their plans, going – instead of the Alps – to the Franconian Forest or the Harz Mountains.
“We have chaos up to the third authority here, everything is collapsing,” said a police spokesman in the town of Goslar (Lower Saxony) at the foot of the Harz Mountains. Hiking paths people walk side by side. This is despite numerous calls by the police and authorities to abandon mountain trips during the lockdown.
In many places there are several kilometers of traffic jams. There are no restrictions on tourist destinations in Lower Saxony, so it also attracts visitors from other parts of Germany.
Calls are ineffective
The situation is similar in Sauerland (North Rhine-Westphalia) and here too, all calls are weak. Ski lift owners in Winterberg report on their websites that there are no toilets, no heating, and no lifeguards. They write, “We love our mountains, but in these times we have to leave our love aside (…) dead ends, lack of parking spaces, and many potential connections. Who wants it?”
Authorities in snowy regions in Hesse also talk about the chaos. As usual, the Taunus Mountains are an attraction. Police in Konigstein have reported that it is forbidden to drive directly onto the slopes, and therefore cars have completely closed the streets of small cities. And with little success – invites you not to visit these regions during the lockdown period, which will continue in Germany until January 10, and maybe even longer.
The article comes from the site German wave.
