それにしても

それにしても is a conjunction used at the beginning of a sentence or clause to acknowledge a previous statement or situation while shifting focus to express surprise, admiration, dissatisfaction, or a contrasting observation. It translates to "even so," "nevertheless," "be that as it may," or "still" in English.

The key nuance of それにしても is that the speaker accepts the prior context but finds something about the situation noteworthy or unexpected regardless. It often carries an emotional undertone – the speaker is impressed, frustrated, puzzled, or otherwise reacting beyond what might be expected given the circumstances.

Expressing surprise or emphasis despite acknowledged context

Here, the speaker acknowledges the reason (busy / winter) but still finds the degree surprising or noteworthy.

Shifting topics while loosely connecting to prior context

それにしても can also be used to softly change the subject while maintaining a connection to what was just discussed. In this usage, it functions similarly to "at any rate" or "by the way (related to that)."

Differences from similar expressions

• それでも ("even so / but still") focuses on persisting despite a difficulty or obstacle – the speaker continues an action or maintains a stance. それにしても is more about commenting on the degree or nature of something.
• にしても is the broader grammar pattern meaning "even if" or "granting that," and それにしても is its fixed form using それ to refer back to the entire preceding context.