Quebec Is Closing Bars, Taverns, Casinos, Cinemas & Concert Halls Starting Tonight

During a press conference on December 20, the Quebec government announced that the new measures they had announced last Thursday were no longer "sufficient enough" to help stop the rise of cases and hospitalizations due to COVID-19 in Quebec. So, additional measures are coming into effect as early as today.

Starting at 5 p.m. on Monday, December 20, the Quebec government is ordering a "complete closure" of bars, taverns, casinos, cinemas and concert halls.

Health Minister Christian Dubé went on to say that restaurants will now only be able to open between 5 a.m. and 10 p.m.*

Gyms are also closing. Spas will close everything but personal care services.

In addition, it will be mandatory to work from home.

This new list of health rules comes just days after the government announced an initial set of regulations that included 50% capacity limits for bars and many venues. Those rules came into force on Monday but will be trumped by the new rules taking effect at 5:00 p.m.*

The province also cancelled earlier plans to expand private gathering limits for the holidays.

Dubé called the situation in Quebec "critical" on Monday and once again urged Quebecers to get vaccinated.

With 4,571 infections confirmed on Monday, Quebec broke a record for the most new COVID-19 cases reported in a single day — and that record was just onen day old. The province broke a two-day-old record on Sunday with 3,846 cases, up from 3,768 reported on Friday.

*Editor's Note: An earlier version of this article misstated that restaurants will be able to open from 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. In fact, they will be able to open from 5:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. This article has been updated with the correct information.

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.