It will probably be better than the last winter sports season.

At least that's what Konrad Eggensberger hopes.

The 63-year-old ski instructor runs a larger ski school in Oberstdorf, has three rental stations and also sells a little bit of equipment.

"Last winter we had 0.0 business," he says.

“Since March 15, 2020 there has been nothing normal.

That was a complete failure. ”Hotels and restaurants were not allowed to receive guests for a long time, the slopes were tight.

In this respect, it can't get any worse at first.

His biggest concern: that the Corona rules for visiting the slopes will be tightened again, that it will be confusing and that the guests will often stay away because of uncertainty.

Ilka Kopplin

Business correspondent in Munich.

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He is not alone with this assessment.

When the first areas in Bavaria recently opened, the 2-G-plus rule initially applied, i.e. only vaccinated and convalescent people who also had a negative corona test were allowed into the mountain railways and lifts.

This led to chaotic conditions: long queues, too few test options on site and dissatisfaction on all sides.

"There is still free capacity in all locations"

"Basically, the guests are very insecure due to the rapidly changing regulations," explains Jörn Homburg, spokesman for Bergbahnen Oberstdorf Kleinwalsertal, the largest ski area in the Allgäu. The ski season has tended to start later and later for years because it is then more snow-sure; Even the mountain railways are only gradually open every day of the week; And yet: Compared to winter 2019/20, there have been significantly fewer season ticket sales so far.

A look at the number of bookings and overnight stays shows a similar picture. "The bookings are very cautious, there is still free capacity in all places," says Simone Zehnpfennig, who, as spokeswoman for the Tourismusgesellschaft Allgäu GmbH, has a good overview of the region. Bookings pick up over the holidays. For Christmas, when many families come to the Allgäu, the booking situation is even more restrained than usual, but it is quite good. “Almost everything is fully booked in Oberstdorf over New Year's Eve,” she says, in other typical winter sports locations for the New Year.

How things will continue in January and February remains to be seen.

With the Hessian holidays in January and the carnival season in February, many areas are usually very busy, says ski instructor Eggensberger.

It will also be decisive which Corona rules then apply, whether the currently existing 2-G rule remains, to which local businesses have adjusted well.

Eggensberger has invested in systems for online booking and contactless check-in.

Delivery problems burden the industry

The next few weeks will also show how many ski pants and jackets, skis, helmets, glasses and other utensils are being sold for sport on and off the slopes.

Textiles tend to be over the counter in autumn, helmets and other so-called “hardware” a few weeks later, often at the beginning of a year.