Wellness Centres, Aquaparks, Cinemas and Theatres to Be Closed as of Thursday

Bratislava, October 14 (TASR) – The Public Health Authority informed TASR on Wednesday via its spokeswoman Dasa Rackova that all swimming pools, aquaparks, wellness centres, except for natural health spas, and theaters and cinemas will be closed indefinitely as of 6 a.m. on Thursday.

Meanwhile, public catering facilities will be allowed to open under the condition that they will refrain from serving food and beverages inside their premises. They’ll be allowed to serve customers sitting outside and to provide take-away meals. The said facilities will have to close at 10 p.m., except for home delivery services and facilities that serve food via a window. As for open air parts of these establishments, only one customer per 15 square metres will be allowed, unless the facility creates 2-metre gaps between individual tables.

When it comes to other businesses, only one customer per 15 square metres will be allowed inside at any given time. This restriction doesn’t concern children younger than 14 who are accompanied by adults. If the area of an establishment doesn’t exceed 15 square metres, only one customer will be allowed inside.

Shopping centres will be obliged to measure visitors’ temperature upon entry. Only those whose body temperature doesn’t exceed 37 degrees Celsius will be allowed to enter. The one customer per 15 square metres rule will apply for shopping centres as well. Public catering facilities inside shopping centres will only be allowed to serve take-away orders, as it will be prohibited to consume food in such centres.

Special shopping hours for the elderly (65+) at groceries and drug stores are returning, this time being set for every working day from 9 a.m to 11 a.m. Although pensioners will be allowed to shop outside this time window, the Public Health Authority recommends to them to make use of these hours as the working part of the population tends to visit groceries less frequently in this specific time frame.