Los Cabos Bars And Clubs No Longer Forced To Close Early

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Last Updated 1 year ago

Los Cabos has officially ended restrictions brought on during the pandemic, which meant bars and nightclubs were forced to close for business at midnight.

Since the pandemic started, restrictions were quickly introduced, which stated these businesses, which often see large numbers of visitors, would have to close their doors at midnight and operate with a 50% capacity limit. 

However, as of January 1^st, 2023, authorities in Los Cabos have announced that these restrictions have officially been lifted, and nightclubs will now be allowed to extend their hours of operation until 5 am. 

According to Esteban Domínguez, the President of Cabo Nocturno, a meeting was held in December together with tax officials where businesses requested their extended hours be reinstated. 

The request was approved with the requirement that businesses must continue to comply with all relevant health and biosecurity measures to avoid the spread of Covid-19. 

Domínguez went on to say, “The pandemic certainly had a huge impact on businesses; however, this will bring us back to normality. The new rules should help us recover the economy, but they will also be great for people who come to Cabo to have fun. We’re ready for the party to begin!”

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Los Cabos Nightlife

Nightlife in Los Cabos was one of the hardest hit industries during the pandemic as it relies on a combination of locals and tourists being in close proximity. Throughout the pandemic, profits from nightclubs and bars declined by more than 50%, particularly in the main tourist areas of Cabo San Lucas. 

On top of this, according to Canaco (The Los Cabos Chamber of Commerce, Services and Tourism), during 2020, 20% of nightlife and culinary businesses in tourist areas were forced to declare bankruptcy as they could not sustain their businesses due to low sales during the year. 

The only exception to the previous rules was on New Year’s Eve, when both tourists and locals were able to go to bars, parties, and clubs with no restrictions and at 100% capacity. However, in closed spaces, face masks were still mandatory to stop contagion. 

As the pandemic progressed, bars and clubs in Los Cabos were subject to some of the strictest rules. Although many venues closed during the start of 2020, rules were eventually introduced in 2022, allowing bars to remain open until 2 am and nightclubs until midnight. 

Los Cabos authorities were also hard on those establishments that didn’t follow the rules, carrying out checks on businesses and deploying the Los Cabos Police Force. Venues that did not comply with the restrictions were given fines and threatened with closure.

The restrictions included capacity limits of up 70%, disinfection, and hand sanitation stations along with random temperature checks. 

Bars and nightclubs in Los Cabos have become more and more popular as tourists visit the destination looking for a good time; they are particularly popular with visiting bachelor and bachelorette parties. 

A number of the area’s bars are also classed as the best in the region, including Arbol in the tourist corridor, La Lupita Taco, and Javier’s Restaurant at the Cabo Azul Resort, all of which won prizes in the Los Cabos Culinary Awards last year.

However, bars and clubs are currently under a watchful eye in Los Cabos due to the increasing number of traffic accidents caused by drunk driving in the tourist corridor. It is for this reason that authorities introduced breathalyzers in restaurants and bars in June 2022.