Two German tourists were recently detained and deported after arriving in the US from New Zealand despite having correct documents. The incident when the tourists tried beginning their backpacking trip in the US last month. 

The two tourists, identified as Charlotte Pohl and Maria Lepère, spent several weeks in New Zealand before planning to continue to Hawaii, as per German media reports. Besides German publications, one of the two tourists also took to Reddit to recount the ordeal they faced in the States.

“We are 19 and 18 years old, from Europe and we arrived in Honolulu from New Zealand, with the plan to explore the islands first, and then fly to the mainland after to explore California,” one of the two tourists said in a now-viral Reddit post. 

The tourist mentioned that just like in New Zealand, they booked only 2 nights at an Airbnb in the US so they could be flexible with their plans. “We had the onward ticket to the next destination in Asia but didn’t book domestic flights in the US for  the same reason.”

She further said that authorities at the passport control took her and her best friend aside for asking some additional questions, which they thought was no big deal but turned out to be one of the worst days of their lives. 

“They were asking us why we didn’t book more nights or domestic flights, what our plans were, how we can afford to travel, and especially about work.” 

The user further explained that her and her best friend sometimes take up freelancing gigs online such as translating or designing stuff for customers in Germany and Asia but not the US, which they told the officials and was also in the mails accessed by passport control officials. 

After a while, the two German tourists were told that they are “inadmissable” and accused of trying to work illegally. The user later mentioned that she and her best friend were treated like criminals.

“We had onwards tickets and just wanted to travel. But they didn’t care. They took our phones, our passports, and put us in handcuffs – that moment was surreal. Like, you’re a tourist and now you’re treated like criminal,” the user wrote while recounting the harrowing experience. 

As per the post, the officials wanted to send the two tourists back to Auckland on the next flight but they asked to rebook their tickets for the day after so they could continue with their itinerary.

“They agreed but said we will be detained for the night. We agreed, having no idea what to expect, thinking that we would maybe wait in the same room that they interviewed us.”

As it turns out, the two tourists were in for the biggest shock of their lives when they were taken to the detention centre in Honolulu, which is located close to the airport. “It was a real jail. Metal doors, locked cells, cold air. And they made us do a full strip search. It was really cold.” 

The user further mentioned that she and her best friend were alone in the cell with a female officer, something one does not expect as a tourist. She further said that the whole experience felt like a horror movie, especially when they were put in a cell overnight with 2 other women who were bragging about their cartel connections. 

“The next day they stripped us down again, we changed back into our clothes, and they took us straight to our plane – two officers returned our passports and escorted us to our seats as the door was about to close. Just like that. They also told us that if we want to come to the U.S. again, we cannot use a visa free system anymore.” 

She advised travellers to book all their accommodation well in advance while backpacking in the US since there are many places that offer a full refund in case of a change of plans. The user also advised people against mentioning remote work or freelancing and told them to log out of any e-mails that could be used as evidence.