A British grandmother who dreamed of sunshine and scenic highways ended up behind bars in America for six weeks — and now she’s warning tourists: think twice.

Karen Newton, 65, set off last July with her husband Bill for a two-month road trip across the United States. Nevada. Wyoming. Montana. California. Guaranteed sun, they thought.

But when the couple tried to cross into Canada for the final leg of their holiday, everything unravelled. Canadian officials turned them back because they did not have the correct paperwork to bring their car across the border.

Instead of simply flying home, they were handed back to US immigration authorities. That’s when their nightmare began.

Ms Newton says they were held from 10.30am until the evening with no explanation. “It was scary. You have no way of knowing what’s going to happen,” she told the Guardian.

They were transferred to a patrol station in Montana. There, they slept in a cold cell without beds.

The retired primary school admin assistant had no criminal record, no outstanding fines, and had entered the US legally on a valid B2 tourist visa.

But authorities focused on her husband’s past work history in America. He had previously worked in the US on a permit, was not granted a green card, and later retired to the UK.

After being interviewed separately and without legal representation, Ms Newton says she was told she was “guilty by association” for helping her husband pack. Officials said this breached her tourist visa terms.

The couple were offered voluntary return to the UK under President Trump’s Project Homecoming scheme. The price? A 10-year ban from entering the United States. They accepted.

Yet they were not flown home. Instead, they were sent to the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma.

There, they were issued ID cards, wristbands and prison clothes.

Separated from her husband, Ms Newton says she was told to sleep on a thin mattress on the floor after a guard dismissed her request not to climb to a top bunk as “crap.”

Her son Scott was left in the dark. Her phone was withheld.

The UK Foreign Office told him no inmates would be released during a federal shutdown. But between October and November, more than 50,000 people were deported, and Ms Newton saw dozens leave.

Finally, on November 6, the couple were freed and driven to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.

They returned home to unpaid bills, unopened letters, dead plants — and missing luggage that still has not been returned.

“You only really appreciate your freedom when you’ve had it taken away,” Ms Newton said.

She claims ICE officers told her they received bonuses for meeting deportation targets. An ICE spokesperson denied this, saying officers risk their lives to enforce border rules, not make money.

Under Trump, ICE funding has surged to $84 billion — more than ten times its funding a decade ago.

Ms Newton is not alone. Another Briton, Rebecca Burke, was jailed for 19 days at the same facility last February. Canadian actor Jasmine Mooney was detained the following month.

Tourism numbers have dropped sharply, with 4.5 million fewer foreigners arriving in the US in 2025.

With the Fifa World Cup co-hosted in the US approaching in May, travel is expected to rise.

But Ms Newton’s message is blunt: don’t go while Trump is in charge.

“It’s totally out of control over there. There’s no accountability,” she said.

Key Takeaways

• A 65-year-old British tourist was detained by ICE for six weeks despite holding a valid visa.

• She accepted a 10-year US ban under Project Homecoming but was still held in a detention centre.

• She now warns travellers to avoid visiting the US, claiming the system is “out of control.”

British tourist’s stark warning after being locked up by ICE for six weeks

1 hour ago, bannork said:

Tourism numbers have dropped sharply, with 4.5 million fewer foreigners arriving in the US in 2025.

77 million in 2025 and 74 million in 2024.

1 hour ago, blaze master said:

77 million in 2025 and 74 million in 2024.

In 2024, the U.S. saw a steady increase in international tourism as the industry continued its post-pandemic recovery.

• Total Arrivals: Approximately 72.4 million international visitors entered the U.S. in 2024, a 9.1% increase from 2023.

2025: Market Contraction

The growth trend reversed in 2025, with the U.S. becoming the only major global tourist destination to see a decline in arrivals.

• Estimated Arrivals: Visitation is expected to drop by approximately 6.3% to 6.7%, falling to roughly 67.9 million visitors for the full year.

• Primary Drivers of Decline:

  • Canadian Market Fallout: Inbound travel from Canada plummeted, with land and air arrivals down significantly (up to 28% in early 2025).

  • Policy Barriers: Industry analysts cite new travel deterrents, including increased visa fees, extended wait times, and a new policy requiring visitors to disclose five years of social media history.

  • Geopolitical Sentiment: Negative sentiment following certain administrative policies and travel advisories from other countries contributed to the "weak" results.

    international visitors to USA in 2024 and 2025 - Google Search

20 minutes ago, bannork said:

In 2024, the U.S. saw a steady increase in international tourism as the industry continued its post-pandemic recovery.

• Total Arrivals: Approximately 72.4 million international visitors entered the U.S. in 2024, a 9.1% increase from 2023.

2025: Market Contraction

The growth trend reversed in 2025, with the U.S. becoming the only major global tourist destination to see a decline in arrivals.

• Estimated Arrivals: Visitation is expected to drop by approximately 6.3% to 6.7%, falling to roughly 67.9 million visitors for the full year.

• Primary Drivers of Decline:

  • Canadian Market Fallout: Inbound travel from Canada plummeted, with land and air arrivals down significantly (up to 28% in early 2025).

  • Policy Barriers: Industry analysts cite new travel deterrents, including increased visa fees, extended wait times, and a new policy requiring visitors to disclose five years of social media history.

  • Geopolitical Sentiment: Negative sentiment following certain administrative policies and travel advisories from other countries contributed to the "weak" results.

    international visitors to USA in 2024 and 2025 - Google Search

You're missing the key words Expected and estimated. I however posted the actual numbers from the NTTO.

So there's that.

This is sourced from MSN. Other news outlets report that: Husband Bill's US visa had expired and he was in the US illegally. She was offered the services of a lawyer but declined. When she agreed to the Voluntary Homecoming offer, she contractually agreed to waive the right to see a judge. She had access to phone calls but decided not to call her son in the UK due to embarrassment. She called the British consulate and was told that they could not intervene.

Bad decisions lead to bad outcomes - but who made those decisions?

Retired UK Grandmother Shackled, Stripped of Luggage and Held 42 Days by ICE Sounds Alarm Ahead of 2026 World Cup | IBTimes UK

34 minutes ago, blaze master said:

You're missing the key words Expected and estimated. I however posted the actual numbers from the NTTO.

So there's that.

NTTO: June 2025 Travel to/from the U.S.

Date posted September 4, 2025

in Public

In June 2025, international visitor arrivals to the United States totalled 5,278,944, a decrease of 6.2 percent from June 2024

Outbound travel departures from the United States by U.S. citizens totalled 11,473,103 in June 2025, an increase of 2.5 percent from June 2024

NTTO: June 2025 International Travel Volume to and from the U.S. - International Inbound Travel Association

1 minute ago, bannork said:

NTTO: June 2025 Travel to/from the U.S.

Date posted September 4, 2025

in Public

In June 2025, international visitor arrivals to the United States totalled 5,278,944, a decrease of 6.2 percent from June 2024

Outbound travel departures from the United States by U.S. citizens totalled 11,473,103 in June 2025, an increase of 2.5 percent from June 2024

NTTO: June 2025 International Travel Volume to and from the U.S. - International Inbound Travel Association

Look you were wrong its ok. Just move on

You're also posting incomplete data from 2025. Thats not a full year now is it.

I get it you want to show omb but you were proven wrong.Just let it go and stop posting ai cut and paste. Think.

This conversation is over. Post a reply to silence. Bye.

32 minutes ago, blaze master said:

Look you were wrong its ok. Just move on

You're also posting incomplete data from 2025. Thats not a full year now is it.

I get it you want to show omb but you were proven wrong.Just let it go and stop posting ai cut and paste. Think.

This conversation is over. Post a reply to silence. Bye.

Finally from The Independent, yesterday's edition.

The U.S. has the unfortunate distinction of being the only major tourist destination that saw a decline in visitors in 2025, and it looks like that trend will continue into 2026, according to a new report.

Tourism grew worldwide in 2025, but the U.S. saw a 6 percent drop last year, according to data from the World Travel and Tourism Council.

January's tourism numbers didn't provide a rosy outlook for the rest of the year. Visitors to the States continued to decline, down 4.8 percent from January 2025.

In 2025, the US was the only tourist area to see a decline in visitors. It’s not looking any better this year | The Independent

3 hours ago, Gsxrnz said:

This is sourced from MSN. Other news outlets report that: Husband Bill's US visa had expired and he was in the US illegally. She was offered the services of a lawyer but declined. When she agreed to the Voluntary Homecoming offer, she contractually agreed to waive the right to see a judge. She had access to phone calls but decided not to call her son in the UK due to embarrassment. She called the British consulate and was told that they could not intervene.

Bad decisions lead to bad outcomes - but who made those decisions?

Retired UK Grandmother Shackled, Stripped of Luggage and Held 42 Days by ICE Sounds Alarm Ahead of 2026 World Cup | IBTimes UK

Wife was on a B2 visa, husband on a H-* visa, job didn't turn into a permanent role, so he elected to take retirement, take an extended holiday afterwards, not realising that when you leave the job, you have 60 days or the expiry on your I-797 to leave, whichever comes first. Absolutely no issue leaving the US, it was when he tried to re-enter after the car paperwork issue in the Canadian side, that the Americans had a spasm, lost all common sense and became bolshie. Instead of spending a couple hundred bucks accompanying the couple to an airport for departure at their expense, they elected instead to give the couple $2000, and spend $15,000 (at least) detaining them. Ludicrous way to run an immigration service.

Why anyone would want to visit the US at the moment is beyond me. The World Cup matches scheduled for the US should be moved to Canada and Mexico. So sad to see what the US has become.

One of the consequences of a system where humanity, empathy, has been lost and common sense doesn't exist.

I can't imagine why any tourist would consider coming to America at this time, they are obviously not welcome, they are under threat of imprisonment and assault by a new terrorist organization called ICE, and there are ample reasons why tourism in America is down, as it should be. Don the Destroyer decimating yet another American industry. The real question that comes to mind - is this sabotage deliberate? Perhaps it's another exercise in erasing the middle class.

FIFA needs to change venues to Canada and Mexico (preferably Mexico) as fans from Latin America and Africa are going to fill the concentration camps. Such a stupid idea holding it in a country that doesn't love football with the passion of Latin America.

49 minutes ago, Purdey said:

fans from Latin America and Africa are going to fill the concentration camps

Oh Jeez. You guys drank all the Koolaid didn't you

12 hours ago, bannork said:

A British grandmother--- warning tourists: think twice.

That’s when their nightmare began.

they were held.. with no explanation. “It was scary. You have no way of knowing what’s going to happen,”

they slept in a cold cell without beds.

she was “guilty by association” for helping her husband pack.

they were given... prison clothes.

she was told to sleep on a thin mattress on the floor

don’t go while Trump is in charge.

“It’s totally out of control over there. There’s no accountability,” she said.

• She now warns travellers to avoid visiting the US, claiming the system is “out of control.”

British tourist’s stark warning after being locked up by ICE for six weeks

Wow! What a totally believable and unbiased piece of journalism! 🤣 😅 😂

2 hours ago, Purdey said:

FIFA needs to change venues to Canada and Mexico (preferably Mexico) as fans from Latin America and Africa are going to fill the concentration camps. Such a stupid idea holding it in a country that doesn't love football with the passion of Latin America.

With free tickets for those deported by ICE! (No sarcasm, genuine hope.)

3 hours ago, brewsterbudgen said:

Why anyone would want to visit the US at the moment is beyond me. The World Cup matches scheduled for the US should be moved to Canada and Mexico. So sad to see what the US has become.

Can we safely say the left's mantra " everyone is equal under the law" is well and truly over?

They want to protect certain criminals, funnily enough the ones that vote for the left/free stuff. Interesting😅

2 hours ago, Purdey said:

FIFA needs to change venues to Canada and Mexico (preferably Mexico) as fans from Latin America and Africa are going to fill the concentration camps. Such a stupid idea holding it in a country that doesn't love football with the passion of Latin America.

Infantino has already cashed the checks. The World Cup games in the US won't be moved.

@JerryM

Me too, love his policies, look askance at his methods. Time to get Congress working again

The Courts should have started slapping this Behavior down a long time ago.

1 hour ago, SunnyinBangrak said:

Can we safely say the left's mantra " everyone is equal under the law" is well and truly over?

With criminal trump still at large, yes, for the moment it's over.

29 minutes ago, stevenl said:

With criminal trump still at large, yes, for the moment it's over.

Ah yes, the long expired book keeping mistake. Was it worth turning the US justice system into a banana republic just to have a gotcha moment?😅

14 hours ago, blaze master said:

77 million in 2025 and 74 million in 2024.

Thanks for not including a link. Or at least a reference to AI if your search otherwise came up short. But it shouldn't have come up short. I've been seeing this news consistently

11 Million Visitors Short: Inside America’s Continuing Tourism Slump

Last year, the U.S. was the only major destination to see a decline in international travelers. With increased scrutiny at the border, ICE violence and unpredictable policies, the new year isn’t looking better.

https://archive.ph/y4ZUR#selection-507.0-511.210

Fewer foreigners visited US in 2025 as global tourism spending rose

The United States registered a 6% drop in foreign visitors in 2025 even as global tourism overrode concerns about saturation in some locations to generate a 6.7% rise in spending compared to the previous year, according to an industry group.

More than 1.5 billion tourists spent $11.7 trillion on hotels, cruises and flights last year, according to the data from the World Travel and Tourism Council.

https://archive.ph/Q3jPQ

10 minutes ago, SunnyinBangrak said:

Ah yes, the long expired book keeping mistake. Was it worth turning the US justice system into a banana republic just to have a gotcha moment?😅

You mean like trasngressing against the fourth amendment against search and seizure by using administrative warrants?

DHS’s Position and Why It Should Alarm Us All

To capture how extreme DHS’s position is, consider how the op-ed characterizes the lawyers who disagree with it:

Although the law is clear, deep-state actors in the federal government have for decades told ICE officers that they may not enter a fugitive alien’s home even with a final order of removal and administrative warrant.

Those “deep-state actors” were lawyers across multiple Democratic and Republican administrations at DHS and the Department of Justice, including lawyers in the first Trump administration, several of whom have publicly objected to the legal guidance. DHS’s top lawyer accuses them of ignoring “clear law,” even though no court has upheld the use of such warrants to enter a home, as a previous article explains.

https://www.justsecurity.org/131621/ice-administrative-warrants-fourth-amendment-response-dhs-general-counsel/

6 hours ago, brewsterbudgen said:

Why anyone would want to visit the US at the moment is beyond me. The World Cup matches scheduled for the US should be moved to Canada and Mexico. So sad to see what the US has become.

Fully agree. And on a pragmatic note, I wonder what FIFA is thinking now. They are probably contractually bound to carry on with the US matches. But they must be really concerned about half empty stadiums - not for the big games, but for the smaller ones, where fans from Latin American and African countries would need visas to go to the US and would be afraid of getting locked up on arrival. For those who say, American's will fill the stands - I doubt it. How many locals would pay $1,000 or more to go watch a match between two countries they know nothing about. Indeed, for smaller matches, FIFA probably couldn't give tickets away to locals for those matches. This will be interesting to watch how FIFA tries to respond and not lose its shirt. Then there's the LA Summer Olympics in 2028 when Trump's still around (maybe). This is the 3rd time LA has hosted the games - yawn.

1 hour ago, SunnyinBangrak said:

Was it worth turning the US justice system into a banana republic just to have a gotcha moment?😅

You'll have to ask the guy responsible for turning the US into a banana republic that. Don't think trump will answer your call though.

1 hour ago, ronnie50 said:

Fully agree. And on a pragmatic note, I wonder what FIFA is thinking now. They are probably contractually bound to carry on with the US matches. But they must be really concerned about half empty stadiums - not for the big games, but for the smaller ones, where fans from Latin American and African countries would need visas to go to the US and would be afraid of getting locked up on arrival. For those who say, American's will fill the stands - I doubt it. How many locals would pay $1,000 or more to go watch a match between two countries they know nothing about. Indeed, for smaller matches, FIFA probably couldn't give tickets away to locals for those matches. This will be interesting to watch how FIFA tries to respond and not lose its shirt. Then there's the LA Summer Olympics in 2028 when Trump's still around (maybe). This is the 3rd time LA has hosted the games - yawn.

You are seriously overthinking the issue. Infantino has already been paid off, regardless of who is or isn't allowed to watch live. He will not lose his shirt.

11 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

You are seriously overthinking the issue. Infantino has already been paid off, regardless of who is or isn't allowed to watch live. He will not lose his shirt.

I was referring to the organizational and host city losses and embarrassment at half empty stadiums (reputational damage) rather than the grifter's backhanders

2 hours ago, Alan Zweibel said:

You mean like trasngressing against the fourth amendment against search and seizure by using administrative warrants?

Did your AI find the weaponized Biden DOJ storming Melanias panty drawer a transgression, or is it only now searches seem to trigger your AI software?

10 minutes ago, SunnyinBangrak said:

Did your AI find the weaponized Biden DOJ storming Melanias panty drawer a transgression, or is it only now searches seem to trigger your AI software?

Did the FBI have a warrant signed onto by a real judge?

20 hours ago, bannork said:

A British grandmother who dreamed of sunshine and scenic highways ended up behind bars in America for six weeks — and now she’s warning tourists: think twice.

Karen Newton, 65, set off last July with her husband Bill for a two-month road trip across the United States. Nevada. Wyoming. Montana. California. Guaranteed sun, they thought.

But when the couple tried to cross into Canada for the final leg of their holiday, everything unravelled. Canadian officials turned them back because they did not have the correct paperwork to bring their car across the border.

Instead of simply flying home, they were handed back to US immigration authorities. That’s when their nightmare began.

Ms Newton says they were held from 10.30am until the evening with no explanation. “It was scary. You have no way of knowing what’s going to happen,” she told the Guardian.

They were transferred to a patrol station in Montana. There, they slept in a cold cell without beds.

The retired primary school admin assistant had no criminal record, no outstanding fines, and had entered the US legally on a valid B2 tourist visa.

But authorities focused on her husband’s past work history in America. He had previously worked in the US on a permit, was not granted a green card, and later retired to the UK.

After being interviewed separately and without legal representation, Ms Newton says she was told she was “guilty by association” for helping her husband pack. Officials said this breached her tourist visa terms.

The couple were offered voluntary return to the UK under President Trump’s Project Homecoming scheme. The price? A 10-year ban from entering the United States. They accepted.

Yet they were not flown home. Instead, they were sent to the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma.

There, they were issued ID cards, wristbands and prison clothes.

Separated from her husband, Ms Newton says she was told to sleep on a thin mattress on the floor after a guard dismissed her request not to climb to a top bunk as “crap.”

Her son Scott was left in the dark. Her phone was withheld.

The UK Foreign Office told him no inmates would be released during a federal shutdown. But between October and November, more than 50,000 people were deported, and Ms Newton saw dozens leave.

Finally, on November 6, the couple were freed and driven to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.

They returned home to unpaid bills, unopened letters, dead plants — and missing luggage that still has not been returned.

“You only really appreciate your freedom when you’ve had it taken away,” Ms Newton said.

She claims ICE officers told her they received bonuses for meeting deportation targets. An ICE spokesperson denied this, saying officers risk their lives to enforce border rules, not make money.

Under Trump, ICE funding has surged to $84 billion — more than ten times its funding a decade ago.

Ms Newton is not alone. Another Briton, Rebecca Burke, was jailed for 19 days at the same facility last February. Canadian actor Jasmine Mooney was detained the following month.

Tourism numbers have dropped sharply, with 4.5 million fewer foreigners arriving in the US in 2025.

With the Fifa World Cup co-hosted in the US approaching in May, travel is expected to rise.

But Ms Newton’s message is blunt: don’t go while Trump is in charge.

“It’s totally out of control over there. There’s no accountability,” she said.

Key Takeaways

• A 65-year-old British tourist was detained by ICE for six weeks despite holding a valid visa.

• She accepted a 10-year US ban under Project Homecoming but was still held in a detention centre.

• She now warns travellers to avoid visiting the US, claiming the system is “out of control.”

British tourist’s stark warning after being locked up by ICE for six weeks

Hopefully more British travelers to the U.S. will read about this woman's inability or more likely, gross incompetence in following the laws of the United States. Both the U.S. and Canada flagged this couple and did not permit them to continue on their journey. This is very suspicious and I am sure there was ample reason to detain them. I am glad the U.S. immigration officials are doing their job.