Hundreds of British holidaymakers who were meant to be self-isolating at a Swiss ski resort have reportedly broken quarantine and their whereabouts are unclear.

Switzerland barred Britons from entering the country following the emergence in the UK of a new strain of coronavirus thought to be highly infectious.  

But those who arrived before the ban, or after 14 December, were told to self-isolate for 10 days in order to limit the potential spread of the new strain in the Alpine country.  

According to local media, about 200 out of more than 400 British tourists at Verbier left overnight between Saturday and Sunday.

“Many of them remained in quarantine for a day before leaving undetected under cover of darkness,“ Jean-Marc Sandoz, spokesperson for the municipality of Bagnes, told the SonntagsZeitung newspaper.  

According to AFP, Mr Sandoz later said there were now fewer than a dozen left at the resort, with some having crossed the border into France.

Hoteliers reportedly noticed guests had secretly departed when calls to rooms went unanswered and meals left outside doors were untouched.  

Switzerland, which is facing its own surge in Covid cases, last week ordered the closure of restaurants, bars, cultural venues and sports facilities.  

The closures will last until 22 January because “hospitals and healthcare workers have been under extreme pressure for weeks and the festive period increases the risk of an even more rapid rise in cases”, the government said in a statement.

“The coronavirus is not letting us go during these holidays. The situation remains critical. That's why stricter measures have been decided,” said Swiss president Simonetta Sommaruga at a news conference.

“We now need all of Switzerland,” Ms Sommaruga said after acknowledging that some regions hesitated more than others about the new restrictions.

Additional reporting by AP