Location: Lost Beach Montañita, Ecuador
Capacity: 3000
This hidden gem, a favourite of many discerning international DJs, has actually been open since October 2020 — the only electronic music club allowed to legally open in the whole of Ecuador. This special dispensation was due to the authorities reckoning that the youth of the country were only going to throw illegal parties if everywhere was shut; better to allow a controlled environment like Lost Beach to open with safety measures in place.
The capacity has been temporarily halved to 1,500, and everyone must have a mask to enter. “We constantly remind people of the biosecurity rules,” owner Kami Tadayon tells DJ Mag. “Like keeping hands clean, use masks, and give people their space.”
Over the past year, Kami has upgraded Lost Beach’s soundsystem again, installing the old one at sister club Lost City (currently shuttered) in the capital Quito. They’ve added a new video mapping experience to indoor room The Cave, so that VJs can create glowing psychedelic images all around, and added a new pizza kitchen to the adjoining Dharma Beach Hotel to serve the sunset pre-parties they host every Saturday from 4-8pm before the club opens.
Lost Beach also initiated the Baile Union Musica support group during lockdown, allowing promoters from all over the Americas to co-operate on live streams and help each other out. “Yes we are open, but it has not been that easy,” says Kami. “Many people are still scared to go out, and most of the money we have made has been to pay debts we accumulated during the time we could not open. I can't complain though, and wish the best for everyone.”