Signs Of The Times: The New World of Cannabis Tours in the USA

From Taboo to What’s New – Cannabis Themed Tours Are Sprouting Up in America

As the old song says: Times they are a changing… What was considered a taboo some years ago is now becoming a tourist trend. Long gone are the times when Cannabis was an issue that had to be hidden. Now the winds of change have brought legal reforms and are remaking the once evil branded plant into an advantageous factor for economic growth. Colorado, Oregon, Washington, and Alaska have already legalized the “drug” for recreational use among adults and more States are changing their legal frameworks making Cannabis use acceptable for medical purposes.

New possibilities have emerged for business opportunities including a recent trend for group and private Marijuana Tours.  The Travel Industry is a financial sector with a constant growth rate and one of the more competitive ones.  What countries like the Netherlands have already done for years  is gradually being applied to Cannabis friendly destinations in the United States.

Holland has enjoyed robust tourism numbers all year long from streams of tourists visiting the famous “coffee shops” in Amsterdam.  Now, following the Dutch example, Colorado and Washington created licensed dispensaries where someone (adult of course) can just walk in and legally buy cannabis for recreational use. “Cannatourism” is already a trending topic in Portland Oregon. Specialized Travel agencies offer a variety of options for those who want to combine a cannabis experience with their stay in these areas. Specialized tour operators offer “relaxing vacation packages” with tours to marijuana farms, offering something similar to wine tasting in vineyards or tours in breweries.

These tour operators find cannabis friendly locations and advertise holidays and activities not only for smokers but also for people who are just curious to try Cannabis in a safe and legal environment. Although most of the destinations are in the United States, there are other Cannabis friendly destinations offered like Costa Rica, Uruguay, The Netherlands, Czech republic, Colombia and Argentina.   Of course there is always the possibility for clients to just find their own way in the destinations offered. The Cannabis themed operators are often providing extra guide services and tips to their customers for the best places to buy cannabis, edibles and concentrates and of course, they charge extra for their services.

Moreover new terms appear in Brands and companies names like 420 tours and “Bud & Breakfasts”, creating a new field of competition among the entrepreneurs who try to get a nice piece of the new market.

In Colorado cannabis-infused massages are offered, done with cannabis oils providing a unique experience.  More innovated services like a Dispensary tour with a “magic bus” where smoking is allowed, and providing an informative on the road workshop about Cannabis medical properties and differences between strains. In these kind of tours often Tasting and sampling is included in discount prices. These euphoric guided tours are accompanied with nice meals in restaurants and other activities like art classes, for those who want to get advantage of the inspirational boost.

The hotels that the visitors stay do not allow smoking in general, but there are special lounge rooms for that and of course the balconies are offered for this. Moreover the price includes some goodies like vaporizers or some cannabis enriched edibles.

In every case the travel packages include activities depending on the location. For example as a traveler you choose to  go skiing in Colorado, or you can totally relax in Washington in a “Float pod”

Here is a nice video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvv4WJMF3ug

Since the liberal legal reforms started taking place there are a lot of Cannabis related events happening in these States. One of them is the Hempfest in Seattle which attracts loads of people from every corner of the World. Every August Seattle becomes the total Cannabis destination.

Nature is an important asset for the companies that sell these specialized cannabis themed vacations.  They promote slow living, connecting with nature, doing several activities like hiking that directly connect your stay to the natural environment. Wilderness plays a crucial role in what is offered.

Together with the financial growth, there are many other parts of the economy taking advantage of the wave of tourists arriving in the places mentioned earlier. Restaurants, cafes, shops selling all sorts of paraphernalia are watching their income and profits grow.

For thousands of years cannabis has been a popular plant and humans have been using it for many reasons. Any plant coming from cannabis seeds can be used for recreational and medical purposes.  Whether you agree with the use of Cannabis or not, ss the popularity and legality of Cannabis increases in the United States, we’ll surely see more of these new Cannabis themed Tour Operators offering introductions for medical and recreational use.

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Image Source:  Google Commons