Governments across Europe are trying to navigate between avoiding the spread of the novel coronavirus over the Christmas holiday season and allowing people to celebrate with family and friends.
Here are measures that will be adopted for year-end festivities by some European countries:
SWEDEN
Interior Minister Mikael Damberg said on December 21 the country would shut the border with Denmark from midnight for one month, citing fears that harsh lockdown measures in Denmark may spur its citizens to flock to Sweden for Christmas shopping.
IRELAND
Three households will be allowed to meet between December 18 and January 6, and the country-wide travel ban will be lifted for that period. The restaurants, pubs serving food and some shops will be shut starting on Christmas Eve.
BRITAIN
People living in England in tier 4 areas will not be allowed to mix with others over Christmas. Everyone else will be allowed to see family and friends only on December 25.
In Wales, two households will be able to mix on Christmas Day.
Scotland imposed a ban on travel to the rest of the country. The Christmas easing of measures will be limited to December 25.
ITALY
will be placed under a nationwide lockdown for much of the winter holidays. Non-essential shops will be shuttered between December 24-27, December 31-January 3 and January 5-6. People will be allowed to travel only for work, health or emergency reasons.
Pope Francis’s Christmas Eve Mass will start two hours earlier, allowing the limited number of people who can attend to be home by 10 pm
POLAND
will extend the closing of schools, restaurants and sports centres to hotels, ski slopes and shopping malls from December 28 to January 17. There will be a curfew on New Year’s Eve from 7 pm to 6 am the day after.
SWITZERLAND
Restaurants, sports and recreation centres will be closed for a month from December 22, with shops to stay open with a further limited capacity.
CROATIA
Croats won’t be able to leave the county of their residence between December 23 and January 8. No more than 10 people from maximum two households will be allowed at private gatherings during the holiday season.
PORTUGAL
The overnight curfew will be pushed back from 11 pm to 2 am on December 24 and December 25, with no limit on how many people can gather per household for Christmas. The curfew will be kept at 11 p.m on New Year’s Eve.
SPAIN
Curfews will be loosened and up to 10 people per household will be allowed to gather for Christmas and New Year as a general rule.
Movement between regions will be restricted to visits of family and close friends between December 23 and January 6, unless the regions impose tougher rules.
DENMARK
Shopping malls will be closed from December 17 with the excepti
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