Several countries including France, Switzerlamnd and Denmark have taken steps in an attempt to reduce the spread of Covid-19 in their country.

Denmark

Denmark's prime minister announced Friday that theaters, cinemas, concert halls, amusement parks, museums and art galleries across the country must close down under new restrictions to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said the measures also require stores smaller than 2,000 square meters (21,528 square feet) and restaurants to limit their number of customers. Restaurants must serve their last meals and alcoholic beverages at 10 p.m. and close at 11 p.m.

The partial shutdown order was approved later Friday by Parliament's 21-member Epidemic Committee. Most restrictions apply as of Sunday at 8 a.m.

The Danish government is advising residents to limit social contacts over the Christmas holidays, and urged public and private companies to have employees work from home where possible.

"We are not talking about shutting down the whole country as we did last year," Frederiksen said. "Our goal is still to keep as large sections of society open as possible. We need to curb activity. We all need to limit our social contacts."

Like many other European countries, Denmark is seeing an uptick in COVID-19 cases, with health authorities saying the number of infections and hospitalizations has risen faster than expected.

The country reported 9,999 new cases on Thursday, and the number was above 11,000 on Friday, the prime minister said.

The new variant "spreads at lightning speed. It would be irresponsible not to recommend new restrictions," said Soeren Brostroem, head of the Danish Health Authority.

Lars Sandahl Sorensen, head of the Confederation of Danish Industry, representing approximately 18,000 companies, said the move "was not on anyone's wish list. Not at all. It will unfortunately be a sad Christmas for many."

Denmark currently requires face masks on public transportation and in shops. The government wants to extend the mask mandate to include educational institutions and places of worship.

Following the government's announcement, the royal palace said some of the planned January celebrations to mark the 50th jubilee of Denmark's popular monarch, Queen Margrethe, would be postponed.

They include a mid-month ride through Copenhagen in a horse-drawn carriage and a series of events attended by Denmark's royal family, Danish officials and foreign guests, both in the capital and around the country.

The queen plans to try to lay a wreath on her parents' grave as planned on Jan. 14 -- 50 years after the death of her father King Frederik IX -- and to meet with the Danish government and officials, the palace said.

Last year, Denmark was one of the first European countries to close schools because of the pandemic, and the government sent home all public employees without critical functions. The government also barred gatherings of more than 100 people.

In September, the government said the outbreak no longer was to be considered "a socially critical disease," citing the high rate of vaccination.

According to the latest figures, 80% of people over age 5 in Denmark have received two shots, while 84% have been given the first jab.

In Finland, the Institute for Health and Welfare on Friday reintroduced a recommendation for people to use face masks in public spaces, including on public transportation. It came into force Friday and applies to everyone 12 and older.

Switzerland

The Swiss government said Friday it will require proof of vaccination or recovery from COVID-19 for access to restaurants, cultural or sports events and all other indoor events as the country faces a new surge in coronavirus cases.

The executive Federal Council, after coordinating with regional leaders, announced a series of new measures to take effect Monday. Strain is growing on Swiss hospitals after the total number of COVID-19 patients in intensive care units exceeded the crucial threshold of 300.

"The epidemiological situation is extremely worrying; the number of hospital admissions continues to rise and the occupancy of intensive care units is very high in some regions," the government said in a statement.

Among other steps, most people will be required to work from home, and those who need to go to their job sites will be required to wear masks if more than one person is in a room. Private gatherings will be limited to 10 people if any one among them aged 16 or more has not been vaccinated or hasn't recovered from the disease.

The rich Alpine country of about 8.5 million reported 9,941 new infections and 41 new COVID-related deaths from Thursday to Friday, with a 14-day incidence rate of more than 1,400 per 100,000 inhabitants — roughly a 10-fold increase from levels recorded in mid-October.

Recent daily death figures remain well below a previous record-high toll in late 2020 and early 2021, when 80 to 90 or more people were dying each day.

The latest figures showed nearly 98% of the COVID-19 cases were linked to the delta variant, while slightly more than 2% were of the new omicron variant that has been surging in some other countries.

France

French authorities on Friday urged people to get vaccinated against the coronavirus ahead of the holiday festivities as infections surge and the government tries to avoid another lockdown.

"The fifth wave is here and it is here in full force," Prime Minister Jean Castex told a news conference, adding that the fast-spreading omicron variant is expected to dominate infections in France at the start of January.

To curb the spread of the virus during the holidays, the government banned public concerts and fireworks displays at New Year's celebrations and called on people to avoid large gatherings and limit the number of family members congregating at Christmas.

"The fewer you are, the lower the risk," Castex said.

The prime minister also warned people who still refuse to get vaccinated, without a credible health reason, that their public lives could be severely restricted soon by new legislation the government proposes to present next month.

"While we gave a lot of time to those who have hesitated and had doubts, we will reinforce incentives for vaccination in January because it is not acceptable that the refusal of a few million people to get vaccinated puts an entire country at risk" Castex said.

France has sharply restricted travel to the country from outside the European Union, including from the U.K., because of the spread of the omicron variant. Authorities announced limits on reasons for traveling to France from Britain, a negative virus test less than 24 hours old and a mandatory 48-hour isolation upon arrival beginning Saturday.

In France, authorities have accelerated vaccinations, including a massive push to administer as many booster shoots as possible before families gather for Christmas. Health officials narrowed the gap between the second and third shot to four months from the previous five, Castex said.

The National Velodrome in Paris, the home of France's track cycling team and now once again the country's largest vaccination center, was buzzing with people getting jabs before heading home — or doing last minute shopping — for the holidays.

With a daily average of 50,704 infections over the last week and 60,866 on Thursday alone, people said they are not willing to risk their health and take chances on the safety of their loved ones.

"It's to be safe," said Nilo Schwencke, a doctoral student.

Before coming on Friday to get a booster, Coralie Vieville said she has shared a file with 40 family members, expected to gather for Christmas, to determine who has already been vaccinated and who hasn't.

"That's how we are preparing," Vieville said. Because it's a large family, she said, "it's quite important to do this and be sure there's as little risk as possible."

Over 48 million of France's 67 million people are fully vaccinated and tens of thousands are signing up for first shots or boosters. It's those third shots that health officials want to administer fast and in large numbers to curb the fast-spreading omicron variant.

"People often forget and say 'I'm vaccinated, I've caught COVID, the vaccination's not working," said Marc Morales, a doctor at the Velodrome, as recreational cyclists sped round the track. "That's false. It protects against severe cases, it reduces transmission but in terms of transmission it's not 100% efficient."

The velodrome can accommodate on average three to five thousand vaccine shots in a six-hour day but if needed, can take even more, Morales said. Next week, the "vaccinodrome," as it has become known, will start vaccinating children aged 5-11 after health authorities issue the final approval.