A Surf Town and a Mega Seder: Chabad Opens in Montañita

by Leibel Kahan – Lubavitch.com

“I’m probably the longest-standing Jew in Montañita,” says Ishai Eshed, who arrived in the Ecuadorian surf town as a backpacker in 2004. “I instantly fell in love with the place.” In 2006, he opened the first tour operator in town, later launching a transportation company. “I’ve been developing tourism from zero,” he says.

But when he first arrived, there was no Jewish infrastructure at all — just a handful of backpackers trying to piece together a Shabbat dinner on their own. Two decades later, Eshed stood among nearly 1,000 people at a Passover Seder. “It’s something I never imagined.”

Set along Ecuador’s Pacific coast, Montañita’s steady waves draw surfers from around the world, while its nightlife has earned it a reputation as one of the country’s most energetic party towns. For years, it has also been a regular stop on the Israeli backpacking trail, with thousands passing through each season on their way across Central and South America. Recently, those numbers have grown, as Colombia’s stricter visa policies for Israeli citizens have redirected more travelers through Ecuador instead.

The first time Rabbi Yossi Hus stepped foot in Montañita was in 2019. “I came with a few friends to run a Passover Seder there,” he recalls. They returned each year. After he got married, he and his wife Henny came for Passover — this time as a couple. This year, they moved to Montañita to establish the area’s first-ever full-time Jewish presence.

“Tourism has grown tremendously over the past few years,” explains Eshed. “It’s not only backpackers anymore — families are coming too. Right now, there are 1500 Jews traveling through Montañita — that’s 30% of the town’s entire population!”

Making the arrangements for a mega-Passover Seder just a month after Chabad opened was no easy task. At first, around 200 guests were expected. “Then it became 500 — and suddenly, it was more than 800,” Eshed says.

The property used by Chabad — land recently purchased by Guayaquil businessman Gadi Czarninski for a future Chabad center — was still a functioning hostel in the middle of transition, with broken fridges, plumbing issues, and electrical failures. Czarninski himself flew down to Montañita to help oversee the buildup, purchasing tents, tables, and kitchen equipment, and arranging security support to make the Seder possible. Ecuador’s Chief Rabbi Mendy Fried of Chabad of Guayaquil also flew in to assist with the preparations, including arranging kosher meat and poultry.

With no space to accommodate the growing crowd, they broke through a fence to access the neighboring lot — also owned by Czarninski — but it was flooded. “We drained it, brought in truckloads of gravel, and built the ground up in two days,” Eshed says. For weeks, the team worked around the clock.

“And then somehow,” Eshed says, “it all came together” — a beautiful Passover Seder with Israelis and Americans, backpackers and families — nearly 1,000 in attendance.

“Seeing so many Jews together here was very emotional,” says Ariel Pellegrino. A Montañita resident for over 12 years, Pellegrino has long played a behind-the-scenes role in supporting Jewish life in the area, and he helped with security and logistics for this year’s Seder. “Having Chabad here has changed the landscape of our town.”

That momentum has carried forward in the day-to-day. Chabad now operates out of the hostel, offering regular Shabbat meals that draw hundreds of people, with many joining prayer services, classes, and stopping by the small kosher restaurant that has opened on site serving staples like shakshuka, schnitzel, and shawarma. Plans are already underway for a dedicated Chabad house to be built on Czarninski’s property.

“There were always Jewish tourists here,” says Robert Ross, a hotel owner who has lived in Montañita for 15 years. “But there was never any organized Jewish life.” With Chabad now in town, he says, “people know there’s a place to call home. That changes everything.”