Corona in Lofoten – Takes no chances:

VÅGAN (Dagbladet): When Kenneth Tårnes wants a dozen tourists on board the boat Stella Oseana every day this summer, he makes certain demands on the guests.

Each individual must wash their hands with alcohol before boarding, put on a face mask on arrival, carry out a temperature check and write down the temperature, name and age on a form.

If the temperature is too high, you are not allowed to join when the boat leaves the quay, Tårnes tells Dagbladet.

– How often do you have to reject people?

– We have actually had two cases where the temperature was too high, where I have explained that the boat unfortunately can not go if they are to be there. It is about their own safety and the safety of others, and I have asked them to contact the health service, he says.

– Very serious

Dagbladet meets Tårnes, who is the owner and captain of the boat Stella Oseana, in Skårungen in Ørsvågvær, Lofoten. On the quay, he hands out bandages and Antibac to guests who arrive at the boat, before all are led to a room where their temperature is measured.

The consequences of corona infection on board a boat will be “very serious”, Tårnes believes.

– There are very small conditions. If you get an infection on board, it has major consequences, he says and adds:

– For us, these precautions are the only way to prevent. So far it has gone very well, and I also think that it can go well if we continue. The feedback from the guests we have is that they are very positive, says Tårnes.

– Do you think this is the last summer you do this?

– I do not think so. I think it will take one to two years before you have control of the world. Basically it is a small world, but it is a big world due to geographical distances and the problems with the different vaccines, which are not really clarified.

Tårnes does not differentiate between vaccinated and unvaccinated, he says.

Fresh and fast

Ida Holme Fosshaug and Ole-Alexander Holmen, who have put their Norwegian holiday to Lofoten for the second year in a row, are among the guests in the boat Stella Oseana on Wednesday night.

The couple, who live in Drammen, both have their temperature checked wearing a face mask with an infrared thermometer. Name, age and body temperature are written down on an A4 sheet.

– What do you think about the measure?

– It is very nice. We are going to be in a boat, so it’s nice to know that everyone is healthy and fast, says Ole-Alexander Holmen.

Fosshaug adds:

– It is very nice and easy. It feels very good, she says.

The industry holds its breath

Line Samuelsen, head of tourism in Lofoten, tells Dagbladet that a new shutdown in the archipelago could have greater consequences than the previous one for the industry.

– Then I think you will see that more people will have financial problems, if they do not have a very good summer. It was the summer of last year that saved many from bankruptcy, so if you get a moderate summer and a new nod to the fall, then I think it will be bad.

– Now domestic and foreign tourists come to Lofoten. Do you find that the locals hold their breath?

– It’s a bit divided. The industry is very breathless, because no one wants infection. You insist that you desperately need the turnover you can get and we need the guests we can get to visit. It’s about that if you want to be open, then you have to have a turnover, she says.

The tourism manager admits that she is worried that the delta variant could potentially come to Lofoten during the summer.

– I’m worried if the very contagious variant comes, if it shuts down or there are not enough guests to be able to earn the money they need this summer, she says and adds:

– There may not be as many tourists this year as there were last year – because last year we actually had a growth in July, despite the fact that foreign tourists were absent. We hope that we manage to keep the infection away and get many guests to visit.

Rhodes: Infection increased with tourists

Got backwards welded

Siv Myklebust works with sea eagle safaris in Svolvær, and is embarking on her 21st season as a sailor and guide this summer. Last year’s season, however, was out of the ordinary, she tells Dagbladet.

– Last year we were partly backwards here, since the whole of Norway came to Lofoten. We are always prepared, but there were very many who let the holiday here. We probably have the whole of Norway to thank for it going as well as it did last year. There were a lot of people, but we had to do everything in a short time. The joint holiday lasts for three weeks, she says.

Myklebust states that in the high season there will be eight ribs with twelve guests per from the quay in Svolvær every single day. Spraying and washing all equipment is crucial to avoid an outbreak, she says.

– Crisis without Norwegian tourists

– It has been some outbreaks, and I think it has been tackled well. It may have been a bit of a late reaction, but we are new to corona. I think it’s going well, it does not seem that there is any spread. We stay healthy, stick to the rules and are very careful with everything we use of equipment.

– What could a new outbreak and a new shutdown have meant for you and your turnover?

– Right now in the joint holiday it would be very stupid. No disaster, but we would like tourists to Lofoten. I hope and pray that there will be no more outbreaks, that people pay attention and keep the meter.

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