Madrid. With strict capacity restrictions, Madrid and Barcelona will be able to reopen terraces of bars, museums and hotels from Monday, as half the country already did two weeks ago, the Spanish government announced this Friday.
Some 22 million Spaniards will benefit in addition to the reopening, in their respective provinces, of beaches, swimming pools and even theaters.
In all cases it will be done with capacity restrictions to continue controlling the pandemic of the new coronavirus, which to date has claimed some 28 thousand deaths in Spain.
After an extraordinary council of ministers, the executive announced the transfer of Madrid and Barcelona, the two largest cities in the country, to the so-called Phase 1. They do so two weeks after Spain’s average, because they have been the two areas of the country most punished by the epidemic.
Thanks to this Phase 1, bars and restaurants will be able to reopen their outdoor terraces, however, with a limited capacity of 50% of tables, where up to 10 people can gather.
Likewise, museums -with a capacity reduced to a third- and hotels may be reopened, although their common areas, such as swimming pools, gymnasiums or function rooms, will continue to be closed to prevent risks of contagion.
This week, both in Madrid and Barcelona some small shops began to reopen. With phase 1 it is expected to accelerate, since premises of up to 400 m2 can be opened, with a 30% capacity.
The inhabitants of both cities will also be able to travel to nearby municipalities, although “mobility between provinces is not currently permitted,” Health Minister Salvador Illa clarified at a press conference.
Other areas of the country, such as the islands of Mallorca, Ibiza, Tenerife and Gran Canaria, advanced to Phase 2, which means that swimming pools will be reopened (by hourly shifts and with a maximum capacity of 30%), and also the beaches, maintaining a distance between people or groups of at least two meters.
Phase 2 includes the reopening of cinemas, theaters and auditoriums, as well as the common areas of hotels, all with a third of the capacity.
Likewise, shopping centers can be reopened, with 40% of the public.
In this phase 2 you will also find other areas of the country such as the cities of Seville, Zaragoza and Bilbao, and also Galicia, the Costa Dorada, in Catalonia, and the Andalusian provinces of Huelva and Cádiz, with beaches.
As part of the coronavirus device, Spain is in a state of alarm at least until June 6 inclusive.
A device advocated by the government to further restrict freedom of movement and assembly, and to control the spread of the virus.
“There is a small section left and we have to have social discipline,” said the government spokeswoman, María Jesús Montero.
Starting this Thursday, the wearing of a mask in open and closed spaces, including stores, is mandatory, provided that the two-meter interpersonal security space cannot be guaranteed.
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