Life for those who have been vaccinated and recovered will be a little more relaxed from Sunday. The lockdown ends in the night from Saturday to Sunday, and restaurants and retailers are allowed to reopen. However, not all federal states make use of this – initially only the high incidence states of Vorarlberg and Tyrol as well as Burgenland open to the full. In Vienna you have to wait a week longer for a visit to the pub. The exit restrictions for unvaccinated people remain in place.
The 2G rule largely applies to public life – apart from essential trade and jobs. The Christmas market and hairdresser are only open to vaccinated and convalescent people. An FFP2 mask is required in all indoor areas. And in practically every leisure area, a contact registration is required again.
Closing time in the tavern is at 11 p.m., so night gastronomy is just as rare as après-ski and other bars. Weddings or Christmas parties have to be small; a maximum of 25 people can meet indoors at such events, and those who defy the cold can invite 300 guests. For events with assigned seats – whether cultural or sporting events – 2,000 people are allowed in closed rooms, twice as much outdoors. Sports facilities, indoor playgrounds, swimming pools and other leisure facilities also reopen with the 2G rule. In hospitals, one visitor per day and person is again permitted if he / she meets 2G and is also PCR-tested. In care facilities there are two people under the same conditions. These are the “minimum standards” of the federal government.
But what you are actually allowed to do from Sunday onwards is somewhat complicated because it depends on the state in which you live. In Burgenland, Tyrol and Vorarlberg, from Sunday or Monday, all areas that are permitted according to the nationwide minimum requirements will be unlocked. However, Vorarlberg has decided on a few restrictions: there is a ban on alcohol at Christmas markets, a maximum of ten people (plus their underage children) are generally allowed to sit at a table in restaurants and a maximum of 500 visitors applies to events. When it comes to hospital visits, you are also stricter than the federal government.
Overall, Vienna is much more cautious: hospitals are only allowed to have one visitor per patient per week, and only from the second week onwards. 2G-Plus will also be introduced for outdoor events. In general, restaurants and hotels in the federal capital will not open again until Monday, December 20 – until then, only take away is allowed on the Christmas markets as in other restaurants. Lower Austria, Carinthia, Styria and Salzburg will open restaurants and hotels on Friday, December 17th. Upper Austria will remain in lockdown until December 17th – and on December 18th everything will be unlocked at once.