As the European Union bans Americans, travel agents scramble to rebook trips for customers

The EU lifts travel restrictions for some countries, but not the US

As Americans are still banned from traveling to the European Union, travel agents are scrambling to help customers rebook their trips.

PHOENIX - Starting tomorrow, the European Union is welcoming back travelers from multiple countries, including Canada and Australia, but the United States is not on the list.

"It's frustrating of course, but we are responsible business owners and responsible to the community so we want to make sure what's best for everyone's health and safety," said Shari Horowitz, the Vice President of Terra Travel.

Travel agents in Phoenix have been battling phones, trying to help their customers rebook since the virus started.

"As far as new bookings, it just hasn't been there, but we have been extremely busy just taking care of the needs of our customers that already were booked," said Carolyn Bachman, a travel agent with Terra Travel.

Trying to avoid trips to Europe, they're seeing more customers travel domestically. But overall, they say their travel bookings are down 75 percent because of COVID-19.

"I would say of the 75 percent that were canceling, 50 percent of those people were canceling for refunds, and 50 percent were going for future trip credits or future cruise credits," Horowitz said.

According to the CDC, the United States leads the world in the number of COVID-19 cases with nearly 2.6 million infections.

Here in Arizona, Governor Ducey is ordering all bars, movie theaters, gyms, and water parks to close as the cases continue to reach all-time highs.

"We're patient and we're waiting and we're here for you when you want to travel and when we're able to travel," Horowitz said.

But agents are optimistic. They say most peopple are just pushing that dream vacation into next year.

"There are people that are booking for 2021 20-day cruises, long-term trips, and they're just pushing out a little so they can have some assurance that they will be able to travel," Horowitz said.

The travel ban does not apply to Great Britain, which left the EU in January. They are, however, requiring incoming travelers to quarantine for 14 days after arrival.

EU officials determined which countries were allowed entry by looking at new infections, testing capacity, and other steps they have taken to prevent the spread.