What is Cannabis Tourism? Exploring a Budding Travel Trend
Cannabis tourism is rapidly emerging as a unique and innovative travel niche that goes far beyond simply finding a place to consume cannabis. At its core, cannabis tourism represents a specialized form of travel where visitors explore destinations that offer legal cannabis experiences, education, and cultural immersion.
What, Exactly, is Cannabis Tourism?
Cannabis tourism focuses on destinations and experiences that integrate cannabis into the travel experience. It's not just about consumption, but about understanding the plant's cultural significance, agricultural practices, and potential wellness benefits. Travelers seek out destinations that offer legal, regulated cannabis experiences that go beyond typical tourist activities.
This can include trying strains unique to a destination or comparing different sun-grown varietals, a la a wine tasting.
Experiences That Define Cannabis Tourism
Visitors can engage in a variety of unique activities that go well beyond simply purchasing and consuming cannabis. Dispensaries are an important piece of cannabis tourism, giving visitors direct access to the plant, but that’s far from where cannabis tourism ends.
Farm tours offer an agricultural perspective, allowing tourists to explore cultivation techniques and learn about sustainable growing practices. Culinary experiences have become particularly popular, with cannabis-infused cooking classes and dining experiences that showcase the plant's versatility in gastronomy.
Wellness retreats have emerged as a significant component of cannabis tourism, with destinations offering yoga classes, meditation sessions, massages, facials, and holistic healing experiences that incorporate cannabis. Educational tours can provide in-depth insights into the plant's history, medical applications, and cultural significance, attracting travelers interested in more than just recreational use.
Some innovative entrepreneurs have created bus tours to bring cannabis consumers around to different cannabis businesses or experiences in town, like a wine or beer tour.
Destinations Embracing Cannabis Tourism
Cannabis tourism has taken root on the West Coast where cannabis has enjoyed recreational legalization for over a decade now. A few destinations that have embraced cannabis tourists are:
Colorado, particularly Denver. The Mile High City is a great place to get even higher.
California, including famous growing region the Emerald Triangle (and the self-driving cannabis trail)
Oregon, where a robust tourism scene has appeared, including multiple options for tour packages.
Nevada. Sin City is known for excessive consumption, and cannabis is readily available throughout the city.
Michigan, an unexpected tourism hot spot where visitors are likely to find cannabis beverages available in bars alongside beer and wine.
Beyond Consumption: A Cultural Experience
The most successful cannabis tourism destinations understand that the experience is about more than just “getting high.” It's about culture and terroir, it’s about trying new strains and incorporating cannabis as a part of the larger destination, the same way beer and wine are enjoyed.
Economic and Cultural Impact
Cannabis tourism represents more than just a travel trend. It's becoming a significant economic driver for destinations that have legalized cannabis. Local businesses, from tour operators to restaurants and hotels, are creating specialized experiences that cater to cannabis-interested travelers. Even Destinations International has recognized the impact of this trend – and the financial impact it has on a local and state level.
Looking Ahead at Cannabis Tourism
Cannabis legalization isn’t slowing down any time soon. Forward-thinking DMOs and CVBs will let the stigma of the plant remain in the past and embrace this growing sector of travelers that supports jobs across sectors and brings financial abundance with them.
Leave behind the notion of tie-dye-wearing hippies with smoke curling out of their van – the average cannabis consumer is older and wealthier than you think. Most people are canna-curious, and vacation is the perfect time to try something new.
The most basic way to support cannabis tourism is by making it easy for your visitors to find information on cannabis regulations in your area, instead of forcing them off your website and back onto the search engines. You’re the expert in all things in your destination – that should include cannabis.
If you’re ready to embrace the future of cannabis tourism, I’m here to help. As an SEO writer who specializes in cannabis education, I make it fast and easy to add cannabis resources to your destination’s website.
My background is in travel and tourism, writing Simpleview websites for DMOs and hundreds of pieces on cannabis education. I help destination marketers create cannabis resources to embrace the future of cannabis tourism. And, I’m a cannabis tourist myself, having visited over a dozen states where weed is legal. Send me a note today to get started.
