How to organise events in Bratislava during COVID-19

In Bratislava, new regulations have been issued by the Regional Office of Public Health in Bratislava on 19 September 2020. These regulations may be stricter than nationwide – issued by the Chief Hygienist of the Slovak Republic. Because of newly applied region colour zones, the criteria for some parts of Slovakia may be less strict than Bratislava.

Here are the main restrictions for Bratislava:

Mass events in general
In Bratislava, it is forbidden to organize mass events of a cultural, sports, social, entertainment or other nature with more than 500 people outdoors and with more than 250 people indoors.

Mass events with seated attendees
In the case of mass events with an exclusively sitting audience, max. 1000 people outdoors and max. 500 people indoors.

Mass events in operations
There is a total ban on mass events in public catering and mass accommodation establishments, such as bars, nightclubs, restaurants, restaurants, hotels, etc., but also in municipal culture houses. In these facilities, however, it is still possible to organize weddings, funeral gatherings and baptisms up to max. 100 people.

Opening hours of operations
Public catering and entertainment facilities, such as bars, nightclubs, restaurants, restaurants, etc., can only be open from 06:00 until 24:00. Weddings, baptisms and mourning ceremonies with a maximum number of participants of up to 100 people can also take place outside these opening hours.

Limits in other operations
Swimming pools – max. 50% of the total capacity
Exceptions to this prohibition are also mass events, all participants of which will have a negative test for Covid-19 not older than 12 hours at the time of the start of the mass event.

In case of inspection, the organizer of the event is obliged to present to the Regional Public Health Authority of the Slovak Republic the measures taken to comply with the maximum allowed capacity (number of participants). The organizer must clearly earmark the venue for the event and provide for controlled entry/exit from the venue.

Keep track of any updates here.

If you plan on taking your next event to Slovakia, here are some additional recommendations issued by the Public Health Authority of the Slovak Republic:

• Entry and stay in the venue of the conference/event should only be allowed with face masks (covering respiratory pathways, i.e. nose and mouth; using a face mask, scarf, a bandana or other suitable covering).
• Frequent disinfection of the premises, especially frequently touched surfaces such as door handles, floors and objects.
• Alcohol-based hand sanitiser dispensers should be available at the entrance to the venue; alternatively, other appropriate hands disinfection must be available upon entry into the venue.
• A notice has to be displayed instructing participants of the obligation to stay home in self-isolation in the case of acute respiratory disease (developing symptoms such as fever, cough, running nose, shortness of breath).
  • A notice has to be displayed in a visible place instructing participants:
  – to contact their health care provider if they develop any symptoms of acute respiratory disease, and to leave the venue immediately.
  – to wash hands regularly with soap and hot water, then dry hands with disposable paper towels.
  – to avoid handshakes.
• When entering an event venue and during the entire stay, it is recommended to keep a social distance of 2 metres between persons, except for those living in a common household, partners, persons engaged in sports activities, artists involved in art performances, persons in the audience, trainers and their clients, and other persons, if they are unable to maintain the distance between participants due to the nature of the event.
• When seating is provided, it is recommended to always keep one seat empty between two occupied seats (except when persons live in a common household) and alternate the sequence of empty/occupied seats in the adjacent rows (the so-called chessboard seating).
• Provide for sufficient ventilation of all premises.
• These rules should be applied appropriately when organizing outdoor events.

From everything that we’ve analysed, Slovakia is well prepared for a successful and efficient restart of the meetings industry. It has prepared very clear instructions and swiftly implemented safety measures. In the less-affected regions, it allows associations to hold congresses up to 500 participants indoors and 1000 participants outdoors, which can’t be done in many European countries, due to stricter restrictions.

More information about the current epidemiological situation in Slovakia can be found at https://korona.gov.sk/en/