Recently, the Trump administration unveiled new travel restrictions on travelers from Chad, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela and Yemen.
We asked a few travel agents for their opinions on the ban and whether or not it would affect their business.
"This ban will have no impact on my business at all," said Helen Prochilo of Promal Vacations in Long Beach, New York.
Justin Wolfson of Chubit Travel in Portland, Maine also said that the new travel ban doesn't really affect him or his clients. However, he had an opinion on the ban itself.
"I don't think anyone should be banned from traveling anywhere," he said.
Other agents, like Margie Lenau of Wonderland Family Vacations in Grand Rapids, Michigan, agree that global safety comes first.
"It is important to understand who is coming into our country because, unfortunately, there are people who want to hurt Americans," she said. "We need to appropriately vet people that come to our country. No currently issued green cards, visas or travel documents will be revoked."
However, she said that the accusation is that this ban unfairly targets Muslim countries.
"Consular officials have been given case by case discretion," she said. "The role of the government is to keep us safe and as such, they need to work on a consistent plan to vet all travelers. There is no perfect solution, so we have to defer to their judgment and knowledge about world affairs."
In the long run, said Lenau, she does believe that the United States needs an improved system that will be able to assess each entry into the United States more efficiently.
[READMORE]READ MORE: President Trump Reveals New Travel Ban[/READMORE]
Lynn Belles said she doesn't have any clients who are traveling to the U.S. from the listed countries, but she has strong opinions on the ban itself.
"The idea that pops into your mind when you first hear of the travel ban modifications is merely a cloud of fear, to surround the real issue, as is most of the ruckus raised by President Trump," said Belles, Content Manager, Travel Like an Architect.
"Anyone, citizen or not, who travels internationally will experience the underlying effect of these modifications, either through the implementation of heightened security, or a push back to a person holding an American passport. They do unto us as we do unto them."
Belles said that last week she was traveling in Egypt and, in order to get there she had a layover in Amman, Jordan in both directions.
"In Jordan, we were inspected very carefully on multiple occasions," she said. "They picked through our carry-on bags twice, inspecting our souvenirs, our Chapstick and our laptops on both sides of airport security. In Egypt, Jordan, Turkey and other countries, you can't even get into the airport without a passport and a ticket and you must pass through a metal detector right at the entrance door."
She explained that Egypt is using cattle fencing and a security guard at the exterior of the airport to make sure that no one even gets near the entrance door without a ticket and a passport.
[READMORE]READ MORE: Government's Air Traffic Control Study Refutes Trump[/READMORE]
"At each checkpoint where we showed our American passport-I believe we were more carefully screened in an attempt to prove to us that they are doing a good job," she said.
"In my opinion, they are doing a much better job than we do. What we really should be asking ourselves is 'What's in it for Trump?' What is his true motive? How will this feed his business endeavors? Because I am sure that it's really all about his fame, fortune and ability to control us. What I am trying to say is, don't be fooled by fear, look deeper. We must all remember, especially when traveling, that we are all human beings with red blood and warm hearts, despite our country of origin or government."
The new travel restrictions are scheduled to take effect October 18.
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.
Topics From This Article to Explore