German travelers denied entry to Hawaii

Wow. When I saw at the beginning they were 19 and 18, I figured these were wealthy kids, doing their own thing. Or maybe latter-day Hippie Trail kids on a gap year. Or perhaps “Digital Nomads,” which is apparently a popular thing for some people these days.

But being suspected of illegal work aspirations (which maybe Digital Nomadism doesn’t qualify?!?), handcuffed and strip searched, and hauled off to a jail with moldy mattresses and expired food? Even my usual, mostly unpleasant TSA encounters, and return arrivals to the U.S. where, even with Global Entry, the vibe from officials at the airport is usually much less than “Welcome Home,” I haven’t quite gotten that treatment!

I wonder what, as Paul Harvey used to say, was the rest of the story? Or as Frank Zappa once had on a record, is there a Central Scrutinizer at the airport, now monitoring everyone to the last detail, assuming the worst in everybody, until proven otherwise??

At least the young Germans wound up with a free trip to Japan, where maybe they were received more warmly. And a “free” night’s “lodging” in Hawaii, where they hadn’t pre-booked anything prior to arrival.

I can't help but wonder if a pair of young Americans had the same thing happen to them when they landed in Frankfurt or Amsterdam- how many of their countrymen would be upset at their treatment. Perhaps the rest of the world should enact similar rigid scrutiny on entry. No one way tickets and unplanned itineraries for anyone, anywhere.

even with Global Entry, the vibe from officials at the airport is usually much less than “Welcome Home,”

I’ve always been greeted by first name from a distance and welcomed home, explicitly this.

This has quite different specifics, arriving from Japan for 3 weeks with 1 week of lodging and other differences, but overall the same story.

https://eturbonews.com/german-tourists-in-hawaii-handcuffed-strip-searched-jailed-and-deported/

I can't help but wonder if a pair of young Americans had the same thing happen to them when they landed in Frankfurt or Amsterdam- how many of their countrymen would be upset at their treatment.

Unless right wing media harped on it incessantly it wouldn’t break through to the general public.

hey hey everyone
we have a new sheriff in town. states have their own rules & regulations entering the united states, so much more to this story.
i was born and raised on the big island and it has gotten so bad and expensive like everywhere else. i agree with CJean if they arrived into another country.
i was there last year in may and was shocked at how many people arrived on a "free ticket" and no place to stay and no money. they would stand at street corners in kailua kona with signs for housing, money to eat, ride to here and there, the guy had a go-pro camera while partner begs!!! want ride to county building for "assistance". living in the bushes off grid, underneath overpasses, stealing from local residents, bathing in the ocean or streams
family member works at southwest airlines and sees it all, residents of all the islands are not happy with what's happened
few weeks ago on kauai, a mexican citizen found on rooftop of residents home taking photos of woman in bathtub, refusing to cooperate with investigation and didn't speak english. $50,000 bail. don't know if still in jail
lots of changes now not wanting any of them in hawaii or USA. send them back or to a place with no issues allowing them in without restrictions or their own country.
just as bad in hilo, the east side of the big island. many have drug, mental health, & alcohol issues or criminals living in family friendly parks, beaches. we don't want them!!!
if these girls travel the world, i would "assume" they should research when going to a different country, if not welcome to the fabulous honolulu jail hotel or hostel, deal with what others deal with. after this incident they will post everywhere how bad hawaii is, there is your side, our side and the truth
i always say if you don't like or approve of their rules, stay home and travel within.
aloha

Not sure about this source (eTurbo News). Because my daughter is in Hawaii for grad school, I've traveled to Hawaii at least twice a year for the last 4-5 years. Sometimes, I've stayed five days, sometimes up to three weeks. Sometimes my stay in Hawaii is part of a larger trip when I've traveled first to Seattle to see a son and his family and then on to Hawaii for a relatively short stay. The source says most people stay 2-5 days. Huh? Other than myself, I don't know anyone that goes to Hawaii for a stay of less than a week.

In regards to the above comments about the big Island. I just came back from spending 9 days on Oahu, 4 in Hilo and 5 in Kona. I did see some homeless but nothing compared to other cities in the U.S, and certainly more homeless in Honolulu than Hilo or Kona. And after spending time working with medicaid, etc., I know many of the homeless in the U.S. are chronically mentally ill or veterans, or both.

I recall so many of my friends traveling the world after college graduation with open ended plans. (I couldn't afford it, or I would have) As we on the forum all know, travel can be such an enriching experience. I, personally, feel that the world would be a much better place if everyone would get out of their own environment and experience the world. Yes, times are different. Yes, a traveler should learn a bit about the place they plan to travel to. But, its a pretty sad state of affairs when young people just wanting to broaden their horizons are treated such as they were. I recall so many posts on this forum where a traveler posts about safety in certain places being "poo poo'd", and I imagine had these girls asked if Hawaii was safe for travel, people would have laughed.

I do know some on the forum that travel for extended periods of time. They don't always have a return ticket and they don't always have plans set in stone.

The source says most people stay 2-5 days. Huh?

I laughed at that also. Who would go to Hawaii for 2 days? A commercial pilot?

From some statistics:

“Those from Taiwan and Europe also tended to stay the longest during their vacation, according to the data. The average European tourist stayed 16.77 days, and the average Taiwanese tourist stayed 17.41 days. While those from the U.S. West Coast stayed the least amount of time at an average of 9.14 days.”

A few years ago I went camping and hiking in Kauai with my daughter. Ran across a lot of homeless individuals, some coming in on one way tickets and pitching tents out in the wilderness. It was eye opening. Also ran across a dozen German youths who decide crashing at a beach, with no alcohol signs everywhere, was a great place to party all night and keep everyone who was legally camping awake all night. And there was no lack of understanding on their behalf, as more then once individuals explained to them the rules and they let those individuals know exactly what they thought, which was to continue partying and leaving the gift of all their empty bottles and trash for the locals to clean up. Granted, I'm sure most German youth are respectful, but I've got to wonder about individuals coming in with no place to stay and where they will be crashing for the night. While I can understand them not being allowed to enter, I don't understand the need for the harsh treatment they received while waiting for a return flight.

even with Global Entry, the vibe from officials at the airport is usually much less than “Welcome Home”

then toby said,

I’ve always been greeted by first name from a distance and welcomed home, explicitly this

… toby, the immigration people in Minneapolis must be a LOT nicer then their Denver counterparts. In over 25 years, there haven’t been greetings, but mostly more like confrontations. And the staff monitoring Global Entry have only been on a first-name basis in the last three years, which was bizarre the first time, being called (as in summoned, not greeted) by my first name by a uniformed stranger behind a desk by the scanning machines, then gruffly handed my clearance “receipt.” It continues to be strange and uncomfortable - getting my first name barked at me after a long flight by someone who reads it on a screen some distance away, but doesn’t actually know me, and clearly isn’t simply happy to see me arrive home. But maybe that’s just at the Denver airport. I wonder if Hawaiians get treated better in Honolulu?

I think the whole thing is really heating up right now. The vast majority of people currently traveling to the US or Europe don't have a problem.

In Germany, there was a travel warning for the US, which wasn't really a warning, but rather a reminder of something that should be self-evident. I hope everyone understood it as a reminder. It makes sense to me to follow the rules, keep my documents in order, etc.
Sure, there are the rare odd case where entry is denied and the reason isn't immediately obvious. But I think that could have happened to me before when entering the US... at least that's how it sometimes felt in New York :-)

But everyone feels differently, and I respect every decision. The only thing I would personally be more cautious about is if I had an x in my passport. But that's just me.

The immigration guys in Houston and Dallas were always nice, polite and professional. So far I have known 3 Iranians friends who came through this year with no problem. 1 on a visa and 2 on a Green Card. The immigration folks on the Mexican border have always been polite and professional as well; I worked amongst them at one border station, and we were neighbors for several years. Just ordinary working stiffs.

As with every other one of these US entry “horror stories” I suspect in time we will find out that there was more to it than what the accused claimed to be the full story. Maybe not, but that’s my guess. Like Paul Havery use to say, "and now the rest of the story".

What has been overlooked is the more remarkable story. If I understand it correctly, most Canadian and EU tourists can now not stay more than 30 days in the US (by practical standards).

It continues to be strange and uncomfortable - getting my first name barked at me after a long flight by someone who reads it on a screen some distance away, but doesn’t actually know me, and clearly isn’t simply happy to see me arrive home. But maybe that’s just at the Denver airport.

No, it happens at the Atlanta airport, too. I think it is their protocol because it happens every time. (As you have said, it started just two or three years ago).

Also in Miami I got a warm global entry welcome.

Once landed at LAX after an overnight and found long, long lines (before global entry) and when I was young and dressed pretty crappy, an immigration employee walked up to me, pulled me out of the line and said, “you can skip the line” and dropped the rope and let me into the country without any papers check. I’ve had slow service but never gruff treatment from US staff.

Adding sending travelers refused entry to jail while waiting for a return flight requires handcuffs and searches and prison clothes, and Canada, Australia and the US all do this, they have the larger problem of people coming to work with English being commonly spoken around the world.

toby, the immigration people in Minneapolis must be a LOT nicer then their Denver counterparts.

Cyn, haven't you ever heard of "Minnesota nice"? ;-)

A summary of what gets people scrutinized when entering a country:

*1. Young
*2. Entering US (or other country) not directly from the home country, esp if they have been on the road for months
*3. Unemployed
*4. Vague or no itinerary
*5. Lack of proof of funds
*6. No onward ticket

So if 1-3 are true, throughly cover 4-6 before getting on the plane.