November has only just arrived and already Christmas decorations are going up. But will rising electricity costs change the face of the festive season in Belgium?
Almost two months ahead of Christmas, lights are going up around the city and decorations are already available in shops. Yet some stores have noted a demand for less energy-intensive decorations than those ordered at the start of the year.
"We hadn't anticipated this extra cost for electricity," Sophie Rappelet, a sales assistant at Oh'Green, told RTBF. "Maybe we will adapt next year with more energy-efficient lighting."
Meanwhile, some shoppers were adamant not to let the cost of electricity put a damper on Christmas spirit, telling reporters that they plan to use decorations with photovoltaic panels or even that they would rather spend on lighting than expensive food: "For me, Christmas is the tree and its lights, too bad if I eat fewer oysters".
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- Brussels to halve number of Christmas lights this year
- Brussels pushes ahead with ice rink amid energy crisis
After such a tough year, the determination to make the most of end-of-year celebrations is understandable and led city authorities to resist pressure to drop the ice rink – something that other cities have chosen to do in a bid to save electricity.
Yet as the cost of energy is likely to increase as the days get colder, people may find themselves choosing to cut back on festive spending. Brussels has already announced that it will hang half the number of lights that it would normally.
