- Title: 103 Austria Ski season ends early
- Date: 14th March 2020
- Description:Early end of the skiing season due to COVID-19 crisis means big economic loss for tourism regions The ski areas in western Austria will end the season early this weekend and all hotels will be closed by Monday. The Paznaun Valley and Sankt Anton am Arlberg have even been quarantined since yesterday. The season ends five to six weeks earlier than planned - an enormous economic loss for the tourist areas, but it is being carried out with composure. Today is the last skiing day, as the ski lifts, the municipality and the tourist board decided at lunchtime that everything would already stand still tomorrow. Item containing coverage of the skiing regions Zürs and Lech am Arlberg in Vorarlberg with vox pops of German winter tourists, saison staff from abroad and hoteliers. The early end of the season affects not only the tourism industry, but also the suppliers. Of course they have already ordered goods, the stores are full. A food supplier in Frastanz in Vorarlberg started a warehouse sale without further ado before having to throw away hundreds of tons of food. Early in the morning the rush to the fruit and vegetables store is enormous, traffic jam on the access road, chaos at the parking, long wait in front of the sale ramp. Tons of fruits and vegetables booked for the hotels would spoil, as the hotels have to close until Easter. With the stock sale at least a small part of the loss is balanced. Shotlist Zürs, Lech / Vorarlberg, 14.3.2020: Street scenes Zürs VS winter tourists at last skiing day gondola Vox pops German tourists: SOUNDBITE (GERMAN) Nikolas Arnold, tourist from Rheinland-Pfalz: “Of course after skiing we do directly in the hotel without après-ski, without everything.” TC 00:36 SOUNDBITE (GERMAN) Elke Müller, tourist from Uhldingen-Mühlhofen: „I actually think it's a shame because there's still so much snow up there. And it's not as busy as I thought. I think you can actually avoid each other. I'm not so scared, I have to say.“ A few tourists skiing down ski slope TC 00:56 SOUNDBITE (GERMAN): Hermann Fercher, tourism director Lech Zürs: “Today is the last skiing day. The last guest has to leave the village by Monday. We want to support our federal and regional government with this measure [to end up with the ski operation even one day earlier]. VS ski tourists on last skiing day in Lech SOUNDBITE (GERMAN): Hermann Fercher, tourism director Lech Zürs: “We estimate that we're going to lose pretty much a third of total sales for the year. But that's not a question at all. It's quoted - just money. The health of the population comes first here. And we also fully support that.” Last tourists in hotel TC 01:41 SOUNDBITE (GERMAN) Gregor Hoch, hotelier Upper Lech: „It hits us pretty hard. It will certainly cause a lot of businesses to be in big trouble, and one has to reckon with the fact that in the end some will be gone.” Hotel receptionist SOUNDBITE (GERMAN) Gregor Hoch, hotelier Upper Lech: “We held talks with all employees and adapted to their situation. If someone says he wants to go home tomorrow, then we let him go home. If he wants to stay another two or three weeks, that's also okay for us. There is still work to be done. We have to clean up.” Tourists going to gondola TC 02:24 SOUNDBITE (GERMAN) Boris Azdajic, foreign staff at ski lift from Croatia: “We probably all stay here. I am also from abroad, I am from Croatia. The countries have closed everything. We also have to be in quarantine. Then it is better to stay here.” Ski tourists at last skiing day in Lech TC 02:40 Location: Frastanz / Vorarlberg, 14.3.2020: Traffic jam at access road of fruit and vegetable store Man putting boxes of fruits into car boot Chaos at parking in front of fruit and vegetable store VS Long waiting queues in front of sale ramp VS Store staff sorting vegetables and fruits in store Man carrying several fruit boxes, woman helping him with apple VS store staff working in fruit and vegetable store Fruit and vegetable boxes are sold at sale ramp Long waiting queue Man carrying several fruit and vegetable boxes to car
- Collection: ORF
- Genre:News
- Producer:ORF
- Transmission Date:14/03/2020
- Decade: 2020s