A hiking tour company based in Puerto Rico denied service to a Jewish tourist, sending a blunt email with the subject line “No thanks” and the message “Free Palestine!” — and later doubling down in a WhatsApp exchange that confirmed they refuse to serve “so called israelis.”
Paradise Tours PR, which offers guided hikes and eco-tours throughout Puerto Rico, appears to have engaged in blatant antisemitism after a Jewish American woman reached out to inquire about a hike during her upcoming vacation. The only information provided on the contact form was her name, travel dates, and email address — no political content, no mention of Israel.
Instead of a courteous response or a quote, the company allegedly replied with a single inflammatory line: “Free Palestine!”
After the incident, a separate party contacted the company through WhatsApp to clarify if the message was genuine. The screenshots show a chilling confirmation. A representative, using the Puerto Rico-based phone number associated with Paradise Tours, responded:
“Yes. Not interested to host so called israelis. Is there a problem with that?”
“How many of you are going to bother us? Just move on.”
Legal experts say the company’s actions may violate anti-discrimination laws. While political opinions are protected speech, refusing service based on national origin, religion, or perceived ethnicity can cross into illegal territory.
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
19 Responses
She should definetly get a lawyer, pay him tons, sue the guy…she’ll win, He’ll have to pay a fine which will cause anti-semitism to dissappear. On the contrary – all peurto ricans will begin loving Jews because this tour place was sued. Noone will every again say “free palestine” and everyone will live happily ever after. Really, I hope you all realized that this is the new normal. Maybe Hashem is sending us a message. The message is probably something like this. Stay In New York, Stay in Lakewood, Stay in Florida, Stay in Monsey. Stay in _____________ (fill in the blank) Dont budge. If I want you to return to my Holyland I wont send hints, blatant hints like the land giving forth its produce, So many yeshivos and Kollelim, ability to daven at the Kosel after centuries of not being able to, financial prosperity etc. I wont send goyim to spit on you etc I will tell you ברחל בתך הקטנה that its time to leave the diaspora and come home. So please dont read the handwriting on the wall, dont try to reach obvious conclisuions just sit around and wait and dont forget to make big bucks while your there….and dont forget to visit peurto rico. ……with your lawyer
Evalimoshavlo,
I would take this “hint” over October 7th any day
mamdani ימח שמו וזכרונו would be infinitely worse if חס ושלום he would win
It’s definitely bad PR
PR Paradise Tours and Transportation
PLEASE GO ON TRIP ADVISOR AND POST A BAD REVIEW
Flood their WhatsApp 787-662-7300
The message is, “You’re welcome Home, but you’ve got to follow the house rules.”
Btw, my cousin put it well. “Why don’t you come to Israel while you can still bring your furniture?”
Evalimoshavlo, of course as Jews we should strive to live in Israel but what does that have to do with anti-Semitic tour companies? This same exact thing could have happened to an Israeli booking a tour in Puerto Rico. Your rant is completely misplaced.
Baruch Hashem they found out about this tour company before the trip and not while up some mountain or near a precipice.
Evalimoshavlo,
While we all daven for the geulah shlaima daily, your logic is faulty. How many Jews have been murdered and maimed in the Holy land since WWII?
How many Jews have been murdered or maimed here since WWII? Get the hint?
I’m not telling people where to live, just get off your high horse because you haven’t heard directly from Bais Din shel Maalah.
Evalim..; “to daven at the Kosel after centuries of not being able to”
It was only from 1948 to 1967 that we weren’t able to daven at the Kosel.
I wonder if they would deny all asians because “free tibet”.
Is this guy a true wanna-be humanitarian or the usual thing that I cannot name here?
Yet another example of the Zionist Big Lie of their pseudo-State being “Jewish” causing a problem for Jews.
Evalimoshavlo:
So much Zionist nonsense.
The wicked Zionists are oppressing the Jews there like never before, threatening to end Torah Judaism there, yet you still spout this nonsense.
“hints like the land giving forth its produce”
That’s not a hint; that’s food for Jews, and also not a fulfillment of the gemara in Cheilek.
“So many yeshivos and Kollelim”
There are lots of those in other countries. The ones in the Zionist paradise are despite the oppression of the Zionists, not thanks to them for destroying generations of Jews.
“…ability to daven at the Kosel after centuries of not being able to”
This is outright false. Jews were able to pray at the Kosel until the Zionists declared their
putative independence in 1948 and also battled to conquer Jerusalem, which forced the Jordanians into the war and ended Jewish access to the Kosel. In fact, the Chevron Massacre was caused by Zionist disturbances at that same Kosel, decades before 1948.
“financial prosperity”
Really? Like how the evil Zionists impoverish the Jews there and don’t allow the Jews to work until age 26 unless those Jews agree to be shmaded in the Zionist shmad army?
You mean there are no tzedaka collectors in Israel and none from Israel that travel overseas to raise money, right?
“…goyim to spit on you etc”
This incident happened only because of Zionism. Notice the “Free Palestine” as the reason for this. Innocent Jews were blamed for their perception of Zionism. As well, the actual cause of anti-semitism is assimilation, and Zionism is the greatest assimilation imaginable. Once again, if not for Zionism, this would not have happened, and neither would have the Holocaust and numerous other tragedies, for that matter.
“I will tell you ברחל בתך הקטנה that its time to leave the diaspora and come home.”
That is exactly what will happen, as per the neviim. Eliyahu haNavi will come and let us all know. But it doesn’t take Eliyahu haNavi to know that the Zionist shmad “State” is definitely not the geulah.
Paradise Tours truly cares about the plight of the poor Fakestinians. This is so not about anti-Semitism. Only ignorant people think that anti-Zionism is really anti-Semitism.
I think a good response to the call “Free Palestine” would be: “Yes, from Hamas, inshaalah”.
Hashgocha pratis. Not everyone gets a message and is forewarned that such a place is a den a wolves. Happy they can make other plans and are saved from something sinister. Everyone in this world are choosing the side they wish to be with and sorry the company has chosen to be on the side of rashoim.
@tedoworld I did as you said. But got an email rejecting my review….
Just hang tight. We know we sometimes need knocks to wake us up. May we only see yeshuos and nechomos from now for all of Klal Yisroel!
I think that some people need to brush up on history. Did you know that for a long time Ashkenazim coudlnt even enter Yerushalayim? And by the way, the Kotel was a narrow strip that Jews could only spend a few minutes there if at all…. and why is it called שער האשפות? Dung gate כשמה כן היא. Forget about the beautiful plaza, clean orederly bathrooms, water, a/c inside etc all courtesy of the “zionists”.
The common thread that is sewn thru most of the responses is total lack of knowledge of what the mitzva of יישוב א”י is…..and so much DENIAL. Hashem Yerachem! Lets not discuss the total lack of הכרת הטוב to ה’ יתברך who has… after so many years of diaspora (intentionally I’m not using the word golus) allowed us back into EY. We have everything we need here and more. And Israelis are living on a much higher standard of living then it used to be. We are seeing the words of chazal before our very eyes אין קץ מגולה מזו..when EY gives forth produce that can sustain a population. If its not perfect, its because we are sorely lacking manpower of ehrliche Yidden who refuse to come and do their part. You spout negativity about the zionists and then come here on zionist airplanes, into a zionist built airport on a zionist taxi to the zionist waldorf using zionist electricity and zionist water but you refuse to come here and replace the “zionists” Armchair Tzidkus!! So just stay where you are!! We’re managing just fine!! WE are experiencing nissim gluyim alongside heartache. We are witnesses mamash to the עמוד אש and עמוד ענן That protects us. We are just fine. Thank you Hashem!!