(CNN) – Five Americans who flew in a private jet to the Mediterranean island of Sardinia were denied entry to Italy on Wednesday due to new EU travel restrictions to countries with high rates of coronavirus infection, police told CNN.
The private jet, which took off from Colorado with 11 potential tourists on board, arrived at Cagliari airport on Wednesday morning, according to a Cagliari police spokesman.
Earlier this week, the European Union formally agreed on a set of recommendations allowing travelers from outside the bloc to visit EU countries. But the list of 14 countries did not include the United States, whose current rate of Covid-19 infection does not meet the criteria established by the EU for it to be considered a “safe country.”
All five US citizens traveled with friends from New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Italy. There were also three children on board.
Italian authorities tried to “find a solution” to the problem of American travelers, the police spokesman said, but there was no way to avoid the new decree that went into effect on Tuesday.
After around 14 hours on the ground, the entire group decided to drop Cagliari on his plane the same day and head for Birmingham, England, police said.
It was unclear if the travelers planned to land in the UK. The UK requires American travelers to be quarantined for 14 days.
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