German Tourists Deported From US for Not Booking Hotel

Two German teenage girls were detained and deported from the United States after arriving in Hawaii without a hotel reservation.

Newsweek contacted the Department of Homeland Security for comment via email outside of normal office hours.

Why It Matters

The case highlights how minor oversights can trigger severe immigration enforcement under President Donald Trump‘s aggressive border policies.

International travelers face increased scrutiny under the Trump administration’s stringent immigration policies. This case exemplifies how minor oversights can lead to severe consequences, raising concerns about the treatment of tourists and the potential detrimental effect on international travel to the U.S.​

What To Know

Maria Lepère and Charlotte Pohl, both recent high school graduates from Rostock, Germany, embarked on a world tour, visiting countries like Thailand and New Zealand, according to the German outlet Ostsee Zeitung.

Their journey took an unexpected turn when they arrived in Hawaii without pre-booked accommodations. Immigration officials, suspecting potential unauthorized work intentions due to the lack of hotel reservations, detained them.

They arrived in Honolulu on March 18, planning to spend five weeks exploring the islands before continuing to California and then Costa Rica following their graduation.

The duo spent several days in a detention facility before being deported, despite holding valid travel documents and having no prior infractions.

The teens hadn’t booked accommodations for their full stay in Hawaii, which raised concerns for Customs and Border Protection—even though both had valid travel authorizations through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA).

“They found it suspicious that we hadn’t fully booked our accommodations for the entire five weeks in Hawaii,” Pohl said.

The teens said they were questioned for several hours at Honolulu Airport before allegedly being subjected to full-body scans and strip searches, according to the report.

They were then dressed in green prison uniforms and placed in a holding cell alongside long-term detainees, some reportedly facing serious criminal charges.

The travelers said they had to sleep on thin, moldy mattresses and were cautioned by guards to avoid…