Restaurant, bar and pub owners across Wales have reported a "devastating" number of cancellations within the last week, as Omicron fears continue to mount and the number of cases rise.
On Thursday night, England's chief medical officer Chris Whitty recommended people prioritise on their most important social contacts this Christmas to reduce interactions, and ministers in Wales meet today to decide if more restrictions should be introduced here.
One restaurant owner said he's lost 60% of bookings for December in the last seven days, while another claimed that almost 3,200 reservations had been cancelled across his outlets.
Some have accused the Welsh Government of spreading "scaremongering" messages that have made people fearful to leave their homes, while providing no support to businesses that have subsequently lost customers.
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Following the Welsh Government's decision to hold weekly reviews into restrictions due to concerns over the impact of the Omicron variant on Covid rates, there is great uncertainty around what we will be allowed to do over the festive period.
On Sunday, the UK’s four chief medical officers raised the Covid alert level to four, its second highest level, due to evidence that Omicron is doubling in the UK every two to three days and that two doses of the vaccine offers less protection against the variant.
On Wednesday, it was revealed that there are 62 confirmed cases of the Omicron variant in Wales - the number having almost doubled in just 24 hours.
The First Minister Mark Drakeford is expected to make an announcement about possible rule changes on Friday, December 17.
Speaking to BBC Radio Wales on Tuesday, December 14, Owen Morgan, co-owner of Bar 44 - which has restaurants in Penarth, Cardiff, and Cowbridge - said: "We are seeing mass, mass cancellations, ever since it was announced about the Stereophonics/Tom Jones gig being cancelled. It started that day, really.
"We've now had across the group 3,170 cancellations for the rest of December. That is where we're at - it's not small change, it's a lot of money."
WalesOnline spoke to four other restaurant owners across Cardiff and Swansea, who echoed the plight of Mr Morgan.
Deb Lewis, who, along with her husband Phill, owns Cardiff's Dusty's Pizza - which has two other branches in Barry and Swansea - as well as small plates restaurants Nook and Kindle, also in the capital, said it now is a "very testing time" and admitted a "devastating" number of customers had cancelled across her outlets.
She revealed they have lost 37% of reservations across the group, with all the cancellations coming through within the last week.
"We have been incredibly affected with staff sicknesses, uncertainty about the weeks ahead, a devastating amount of cancellations or reduced numbers on bookings," she said.
"The impact is unfounded and with no sign of any government support."
The restaurateur said Kindle - a renovated warden's bungalow in Sophia Gardens, which only opened at the start of September and has outdoor seating - and Nook, which launched two years ago, had been particularly affected.
"Kindle was seen as the best fit for many corporate bookings due to its outdoor experience. However some companies have quoted concerns about gathering their employees in one space," she said.
Rhys Andrews, the manager at Marco Pierre White Steakhouse, Bar and Grill in Swansea, also said cancellations have been "predominately corporate bookings", which he says contain an average of 20 people.
"It's been initiated from businesses, a lot of the cancellations we're seeing. December has usually quite a high volume of large party bookings from different businesses, so we're seeing a lot of drop-off from those."
Nick Herbert, the owner of La Pentola, on Whitchurch Road in Cardiff, claims his restaurant has seen 60% of bookings for December cancelled within the last week, the majority being medium-size bookings of 10 to 15 people.
He took over the Italian venue on December 1, and in the run-up to his take-over before the emergence of Omicron, he had believed Covid was "more or less sorted out" and "on an evener keel".
"I felt there were going to be variants coming along, but I thought we'd find a way of managing life and the variants, because how can you keep doing this to society, and how are people going to live?" he said.
But now, with the majority of La Pentola bookings cancelled for this month and no government support available to him yet, he claims he is in "limbo" and carrying on "day to day", waiting to see if the government introduces tighter restrictions and offers help to businesses.
"Every time I answer the phone, there's another cancellation," admitted the 58-year-old.
He accused the media and government of "scaring people" - and "destroying hospitality" as a result.
"Prior to the middle of November, people were looking forward to Christmas, looking forward to going out, looking forward to seeing people - and there seemed to be some sort of equilibrium that had been struck," he said.
"Now we have this variant - but there are always going to be variants coming on. This is not going away. And the government are handling it so badly because they've got everyone scared - and if everyone's scared, they're going to stop going out
"But where does it leave us? It leaves us with rent to pay, staff to pay, food and drink to pay and no revenue and people not coming out. We're put in a very difficult position - we have to pay our staff, we need to pay our staff and want to pay our staff, but for how long can you do that without revenue?"
Mr Herbert even admits that a lockdown would be a "better way forward" for the hospitality industry, as business owners would then "get some kind of government support".
"[The government] need to think about what package they can put together for small businesses, especially in hospitality, if they are asking people to stay at home and not go out, and imposing other restrictions without lockdown - because it's the same for us but without the support."
He admits he's "very worried" about the lack of income over the Christmas period.
"I was hoping December would carry us through January, but that won't be the case," he said.
"We just have to carry on day to day and see what happens - see what they say on Friday and see if there's going to be any support for small businesses."
Ryan Hole, the CEO of The Secret Hospitality Group, which owns The Secret Beach Bar and Kitchen in Swansea, said that while the venue had had cancellations of "bigger parties", this had opened up room for smaller ones.
"We haven't seen many cancellations in the smaller groups," he said, adding that he was "not too concerned".
Mr Hole also said the restaurant, which is on the beach, lends itself to social distancing and adequate ventilation, with wide spaced tables and "big sliding doors".
"We've found it a positive sometimes - with things like this, people get a bit nervous going to small restaurants. I think they probably get a bit of comfort from us that we are spaced out and there is plenty of room. So we've had an increase of bookings in the last few days."
The CEO also said the venue has made the decision not to take bookings bigger than six, in anticipation of a change in legislation of the next few days.
"I think everyone feels more comfortable with that - other people in the venue, as well as our staff."
Business owners in smaller Welsh towns and communities have also reported a rise in cancellations.
Kelly Jolliffe, the owner of the Greyhound Inn in Usk, Monmouthshire, told BBC Radio Wales on Wednesday that cancellations have been coming this week at "really short notice", and she hadn't taken any deposits to tide her over.
"I'm a small independent pub, but a table for 14 is a big deal for me at the moment," she said.
Kelly added she'd spent "thousands" on food and decorations to get ready for the festive period at her pub, but has had to halt her preparations due to the uncertainty around future restrictions.
"I was doing Christmas day for the very first time this year, to try and make up for some of the lost year. Not knowing what's going to happen, I'm not able to place any beer orders," she said.
She continued: "So I haven't placed anything, but then you're in a catch-22 situation. If we can do a Christmas, I want to make it special - I don't want to be turning around to my customers and saying I haven't got anything in. "
Philip Ash, the owner of Peacock Lounge in Rhos-On-Sea, and vice chairman of West Conwy Pub Watch, also told BBC Radio Wales on Wednesday that he'd had 260 cancellations for the month of December so far.
Asked whether he thinks the introduction of restrictions might help people feel safer to attend hospitality settings, he believes it won't make "any difference".
"They can bring in restrictions, but people are now just going to stay away, because the lack of information, not just from Welsh Government, but from central government, has just been appalling. They've not stepped up at all."
He continued: "The majority of the VAT bills in our industry are going to be due at the end of January - and that's going to be a massive problem with no income for everybody in our industry right now."
Philip said if restrictions are brought following the review on Friday, there would be "no notice at all to put anything in place" and admitted his restaurant had already made the decision to scale back.
"As of Monday [December 20], we're reverting back to just takeaway because the trade will not be there come the end of next week, because people will be too scared to miss out on Christmas with their family - you can't blame them."
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