Things heat up for the first guests: Hoteliers at Aletsch Arena about smoke and cancellations

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This is certainly not how the guests of the Aletsch Arena imagine their vacation: the summer season is in full swing in the tourist area. But then, on Monday evening, a thick smell of smoke suddenly filled the air. “Sure, you’re a little worried at first. After the residents of Ried-Mörel were evacuated, I asked myself whether we should evacuate our guests,” says Doris Nellen (48). She and her husband run the Golfhotel Riederhof in Riederalp.

But, according to Nellen, authorities were quick to brief on the bushfire and the situation west of Riederalp. “This has allowed us to remove the distrust of our guests. Only one couple chose to leave.” Other guests would follow their schedules normally and go for a walk, for example. But not much is happening at the hotel right now, says Nellen.

Small guest cancels the group

However, there is no danger for the villages on the Aletsch Plateau at the moment. Bettmeralp and Fiescheralp are too far away. And the settlement of Riederalp is surrounded by vast mountain meadows and never borders with forest. “There is currently no danger to guests and local residents in Riederalp,” said Monika König, a spokesperson for the Aletsch Arena.

Still, hotelier Marc Berchtold, 53, fears: “The incident may keep some guests away over the next few days.” Further east, in Riederalp, he runs the Hotel Walliser Spycher. However, at the moment everything is running smoothly on the site. «The material transport is running smoothly. I got all the groceries on time today.” Guests would have noticed that too. “Of course they want to know what’s going on, but other than that they are relatively comfortable,” says the hotel operator. The hotel currently welcomes 18 guests with 28 available beds. “Only a few people who wanted to cancel have canceled.”

Guests ask for location prior to arrival

Fire is also the number one issue in neighboring Bettmeralp. The flames were clearly visible from here on Monday evening. Fortunately, only haze hung over the area on Tuesday. But images of the wildfire are circulating all over the world. Guests who book a hotel room at the Aletsch Arena want to know if the room is secure before they arrive. Hotelier Christian Eyholzer (57), who runs the Hotel Bettmerhof in Bettmeralp with his family, is living it now. “We received two questions from the guests today and tomorrow. I told them they could come to us right now without hesitation,” Eyholzer says.

The hotel is currently fully booked with 45 guests. “Take the situation calmly. No one leaves the Aletsch Arena in a hurry,” says the hotel operator.

Source :Blick