Mixed news for Costa del Sol and Andalucia nightlife as discos told to stay closed but bar and restaurant customer limits increased

THERE is mixed news for nightlife on the Costa del Sol and Andalucia as the regional government announced Tuesday that discos are not allowed to open their doors for now, but bar and restaurant customer limits go up.

The Spanish government decided in the end that discos and nightclubs would be permitted to open in areas in lockdown de-escalation Phase three, albeit with no more than 30 per cent of maximum customer numbers and with dancing strictly off limits.

But under the authority awarded to regional administrations in the third stage of the easing of restrictions process, the Junta de Andalucia has, in common with the Balearic Island government, concluded that discos should not open at all just yet to prevent Covid-19 infection.

At the same time, the Andalucia administration has ruled that bar and restaurant outdoor terrace capacity should be 75 per cent, rather than 50 per cent as published in the Official State Bulletin on Saturday, and has set capacity inside establishments during Phase three as two-thirds.

Commenting at a press briefing on Tuesday following a regional Cabinet meeting, Junta regional minister for the Presidency Elias Bendodo said the Andalucia government had decided to “open the hand more in Phase three to the hospitality and restaurant business” relative to the national government plan.

The aim, Bendodo said, is to “reactivate the economy,” but “always under the criteria of the Health and Families regional ministry committee of experts’ criteria.”

Wearing face masks, social distancing and hand-washing remain very much the order of the day to prevent new Covid-19 outbreaks, he reminded the population.