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CHRISTMAS

What you can and can’t do in Italy this Christmas

With a Christmas lockdown on the way, many of Italy's usual celebrations are out. Here's what you can still do over the holidays, and what you can't.

What you can and can't do in Italy this Christmas
What does Italy's Christmas lockdown mean for travel, shopping and socialising? Photo: Tiziana Fabi/AFP

After long deliberations with scientific experts and regional governors, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced late on December 18th that Italy would return to a nationwide lockdown over Christmas, New Year and Epiphany.

READ ALSO: Italy confirms 'red zone' lockdown over Christmas and New Year

They're the strictest measures to be imposed across the entire country since March – but they contain a few important concessions for the holidays. 

Here's how the new rules will affect your Christmas celebrations in Italy.

What are Italy's travel rules?

First things first: can you or your loved ones get to Italy? 

The rules on long-haul international travel are unchanged: people from most countries outside the EU or Schengen zone can only travel to Italy for urgent reasons of work, health, study, emergencies or to return to their permanent (not second) Italian home. Anyone arriving in these circumstances has to quarantine for 14 days on arrival.

Italy also introduced stricter rules for EU travellers at the beginning of December: until December 20th, all arrivals from the EU, Schengen zone or the UK must test negative for Covid-19 within the 48 hours before their journey, or face quarantine on arrival.

READ MORE: What are Italy's new rules for Christmas travel?

From December 21st, anyone arriving in Italy from overseas – including from within the EU – must quarantine for 14 days, unless they're travelling for work, health or emergencies, or briefly transiting

That rule applies to anyone who travels outside Italy at any point between December 21st and January 6th, even if they arrive after those dates. Find more details here.


Photo: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP

What about travel within Italy?

That's restricted too. Until December 20th you can travel freely in most of Italy, with the exception of a handful of areas designated higher-risk 'orange zones'.

But from December 21st, you can only cross between regions of Italy for work or health, or in emergencies. 

On top of that, from December 24th to January 6th you won't be allowed to leave your own town except for essentials.

The government is making an allowance for people who live in small towns of 5,000 inhabitants or less: they are permitted to travel to other comuni within a radius of 30 kilometres, so long as they avoid the capital of their province.

When can I leave the house?

Italy has a nightly curfew from 10pm to 5am, which remains in effect across the country throughout the holidays (and is extended to 7am on January 1st). To go out between these hours you'll need a good reason, and an autodichiarazione or 'self-certification form'.

But even going outside in the daytime will get more difficult over Christmas, New Year and Epiphany.

CALENDAR: What are Italy's new Covid-19 rules over Christmas and New Year?

For the ten days in which Italy is in lockdown – December 24-27th, December 31st-January 3rd, and again on January 5-6th – you should plan to leave your house only for essential reasons, like going to the supermarket or seeing a doctor.

There is one important exception, however, that might allow you to go and visit friends and family. More on that below.

Who can celebrate together?

The Italian government has made a significant concession for people hoping to see friends or family this Christmas: you are allowed to make one journey per day to visit others at home, so long as you do not leave your region and no more than two adults go at once. Children under 14 and others who can't be left at home alone are allowed to come too.

That applies throughout the holidays, including the three lockdown periods over Christmas, New Year and Epiphany.

READ ALSO: 'This year will be small for sure': How Italy's foreign residents have changed their Christmas plans

Bear in mind, though, that the Italian government has repeatedly urged people not to invite guests over. While Conte has stressed that police won't be deployed to enforce the rules in private homes, he and other ministers have appealed to the public to give up big celebrations for the sake of those at risk, especially older relatives.

“In private homes, it is strongly recommended not to receive anyone you do not live with, except for work reasons or situations of necessity or urgency,” states the emergency decree issued earlier this month.

Can I go shopping?

Shops can remain open as usual until December 23rd, but 'non-essential' stores will have to close nationwide when Italy goes into lockdown (December 24-27th, December 31st-January 3rd, and January 5-6th).

Supermarkets, grocers, pharmacies, news agents, pet shops, laundrettes and hairdressers can stay open throughout.


Photo: Vincenzo Pinto/AFP

In between the three lockdown periods (December 28-30th and January 4th) all shops will be allowed to reopen, until 9pm. 

Are bars and restaurants open?

Bars and restaurants can remain open in most of Italy until December 23rd, so long as they stop serving customers by 6pm. They'll stay closed to diners altogether in Italy's few remaining higher risk 'orange zones'.

Starting December 24th, bars, restaurants, cafes, bakeries and anywhere else serving food and drink will close throughout Italy. They'll remain shut up to and including January 6th. 

But you will be able to order in, at least, with takeaway from the premises (asporto) allowed until 10pm and home delivery (consegna a domicilio) permitted any time.

Are churches open?

Yes: houses of worship can remain open throughout the holidays, though they'll have to reschedule some of their services to comply with the 10pm curfew. 

READ ALSO: Pope to hold Christmas 'midnight' mass at 7.30pm due to virus curfew

If you plan to attend over Christmas or any other day when Italy is in lockdown, Catholic officials have advised worshippers to go to the church nearest their house and carry a self-certification form.

Can I go skiing?

No: Italy's slopes are closed until January 7th at the earliest.

Can I take a walk or go for a run?

If you find yourself desperate for a break from your housemates – or if you've just eaten too much – you have the option of exercising outdoors throughout the holiday lockdown. 

You can do “motor activity” such as running so long as you don't go too far from your own home, while “sport activity” (e.g. basketball or football) is allowed so long as you practice by yourself.

Whether taking a leisurely walk counts as “motor activity” is a bit of a grey area, but in previous lockdowns the Italian government specifically said that passeggiate – sociable strolls that serve as an excuse to meet others – were not allowed.

Member comments

  1. “Starting December 24th, bars, restaurants, cafes, bakeries and anywhere else serving food and drink will close throughout Italy. They’ll remain shut up to and including January 6th.”
    Bakeries? 🙁

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TRAVEL NEWS

What you need to know about travelling in Italy this Christmas

Whether you’re flying to Italy for the holidays or are already there and plan on moving around by car, train or local public transport, there are some essential things you need to be aware of.

What you need to know about travelling in Italy this Christmas

Reduced local public transport 

Most local public transport companies in the country will operate on a reduced timetable (also known as orari festivi) over the holidays.

But the quality and frequency of services during the Christmas break will vary significantly between rural and urban areas, as well as between cities.

Areas that are usually served by just the occasional bus may well see stripped-to-the-bone services over the Christmas holidays. 

On the contrary, parts of the country that already have robust public transport networks tend to keep them fairly active over the holidays, including on key dates such as Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.  

In most major cities, daytime services will run on a relatively standard timetable, whereas a number of ‘minimum services’ (servizi minimi) will run in the late hours of the evening and at night. 

Venice, waterbus

A waterbus, or ‘vaporetto’, on Venice’s Grand Canal in October 2017. Photo by MIGUEL MEDINA / AFP

In Rome, all bus, tram and metro services should run as normal on Christmas Eve until 9pm, with night buses kicking in from 11.30pm. Public transport services should then run from 8:30am-1pm and 4.30pm-9pm on Christmas day.

READ ALSO: Is Italy’s public transport running over Christmas and New Year?

Milan’s full holiday timetable can be found at the following link, whereas Venice’s Christmas timetable can be found here.

As a side note, while Italy has been hit with a series of public transport strikes over the past few months, there’s not much chance of major strike action being announced over Christmas.

That’s because Italian law bans unions from organising strikes which could have an impact (even indirectly) on the air travel sector on busy travel dates (known as ‘exemption periods’), including the period from December 18th to January 7th.

Pricey rail travel

Regional and local trains around the country tend to run on fairly reduced timetables over the holidays, especially on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, which is why passengers are advised to check the holiday schedules of the relevant rail operator well in advance. 

These can usually be found on the operator’s website or social media channels.

Milan, rail station

A man waits for his train on a platform of Milan’s Central Station in November 2005. Photo by FILIPPO MONTEFORTE / AFP

As for interregional and long-distance trains, they generally run on relatively standard timetables during the holidays, and even on Christmas Day itself you’ll find dozens of high-speed services connecting major Italian cities around the country.

But, while you may not have any trouble finding a train going from Rome to Milan or Milan to Florence over Christmas, tickets won’t come cheap.

According to a survey from consumer group Federconsumatori, train fares will be 20 percent more expensive on average during the holiday period, but the markup will be even greater on some routes in central and southern Italy.

For instance, travelling from Rome to Reggio Calabria will cost a whopping 84 percent more than usual over the holidays, whereas tickets for the Bari-Bologna route will be 72 percent more expensive. 

No air travel strikes

While strikes involving airports’ ground staff or airline cabin crews are far from being a rare occurrence in Italy, no such walkouts will take place over the Christmas holidays as Italian law bans any union-related demonstration impacting air travel from December 18th to January 7th.

This however does not mean that there won’t be any risk of disruption for passengers flying to or from Italy in the coming days.

Christmas is the busiest time of the year for air travel and, as tens of thousands of passengers are set to crowd airport terminals up and down the country, queues at check-in desks and baggage collections as well as potential flight delays cannot be ruled out.

READ ALSO: What are my rights in Italy if a flight is cancelled or delayed?

On this note, it’s worth reminding that, should your planned journey be significantly delayed or cancelled, you may be entitled to compensation under EU legislation.

Traffic jams

Italy’s motorways (or autostrade) rarely see much in the way of heavy traffic on regular weekdays or weekends, but that all changes around national public holidays, including, of course, Christmas.  

Though Italy’s State Police hasn’t yet released any official traffic forecasts for the holidays, motorists can expect to face at least some level of congestion this weekend, as hundreds of thousands of people are set to hit the road to reach their holiday destinations. 

Based on previous years’ events, the two days before Christmas Eve (that’s Friday, December 22nd and Saturday, December 23rd) and Christmas Eve itself should be the worst dates to travel on Italian roads, with traffic jams likely to build up from around mid-morning and only break up in the late afternoon.

Traffic

Cars sit in traffic on a congested road. Photo by Jure Makovec / AFP

The major motorways connecting the north of the country to the south, including the A1 Milan-Naples, A14 Bologna-Taranto and A24 Rome-Teramo, are the most likely to experience heavy traffic on Friday, Saturday and Sunday as many Italians will return to their hometowns to spend time with family and friends.

But state roads connecting major cities to popular holiday hotspots in the Alps and Apennines may also see some significant congestion on Friday and Saturday. 

Overall traffic conditions should improve on Christmas Day and Boxing Day, as most people will have already reached their destinations by then.

If you’re planning on travelling in the coming days, there are a number of resources that you can use to keep up to date with the latest developments on the road, including this live map from motorway company Autostrade per l’Italia showing road closures and traffic jams as well as the locations of the nearest petrol stations and service areas. 

Finally, it’s worth reminding that all vehicles circulating on Italian roads at this time of the year must be equipped with winter tires or, alternatively, have snow chains “on board”. Those flouting the requirement face fines of up to 338 euros.

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