Clubs choosing to close after Covid outbreaks in nightlife

After only two weeks of being allowed to open, a number of nightclubs in the Netherlands are choosing to close their doors again due to coronavirus outbreaks in the nightlife crowd. They worry that they can't provide safe spaces for their customers and employees.

The owner of Club Nyx and Exit Cafe in Amsterdam announced that both establishments would close for the time being due to the increasing coronavirus infections. "We are finally open again and we are doing everything according to the rules. But I just do not dare to take the risk," owner Rob de Jong said to Het Parool.

Leo Frans, owner of Bon Bini in Veendam, said something similar to RTV Noord. But he added that struggles with testing for access also played a role in his decision to close his club again. "We were thrilled when we heard that we could open again. But many people did not have their corona access passes in order. We had to refuse 167 people. And the Saturday after that was not much better."

Jeroen van Broekhoven of interest association Nachtbelang hasn't opened his club, Fox in Stadskanaal, at all, he said to NOS. There is no rapid test location in Stadskanaal, which meant that locals would have to go to Groningen or Emmen to get a Covid-19 test so that they could enter the club. "That's why we decided to stay closed," he said. "I am waiting to see how the new variants develop and when most people are vaccinated. Then I hope to open again in September or October."

According to Van Broekhoven, the current coronavirus rules around clubs and festivals are hard to explain. "First you could enter after a shot, now it is after two weeks. And then you still had problems with QR codes, and some people could enter with a yellow book and in other places not," he said to the broadcaster. "There may have been people who didn't follow the rules, but the vast majority tried their best and can't be blamed."

The cabinet asked the Outbreak Management team for urgent advice on whether measures are needed to get the increasing coronavirus infections back under control. Van Broekhoven expects that the nightlife industry will be closed again soon.