Guidelines for
First-time Coffeeshop Visitor
A first-time visitor to Amsterdam can often get puzzled with the term ‘coffeeshop’ because it is used to refer various kinds of establishments. But in Amsterdam, it is the licensed seller of cannabis product while a coffee house or koffiehuis sells coffee and light meals. On the other hand a café is a casual restaurant with or without a bar where you can have breakfast, lunch or dinner. You can identify a coffeeshop with the help of a green or white sticker which is displayed on its window that designates the legality of its business.
Amsterdam attracts
millions of bag packers every year. It is matter of debate among Lawmakers,
citizens and local shop owners about the future of this city but it gets most
of revenue from tourism. Who said you cannot be Brad Pitt or hang out with
George Clooney? Just walk into DampKring which has been immortalized in Ocean’s
Twelve , even if you do not find Hollywood shooting its sequel, you can feel
the movie atmosphere through its background. This is one best coffee shop in
Amsterdam with psychedelic walls, trippy tables and art which welcomes everyone
with open heart. It gives you a true Amsterdam coffee shop experience and even
if you do not have a partner a resident cat is always there to accompany you.
So book cheap flight tickets to
Amsterdam.
Cannabis Laws in Amsterdam
Today, the
Amsterdam City Council in agreement with coffee shop union Bond van Cannabis
Detaillisten (BCD) allows operation of such establishments with a set of laid
rules and non-transferable licenses. It
is mandatory for these coffeeshops to display an official sign of green and
white sticker on their window. High Time Cannabis Cup is one of the major
events in Amsterdam coffeeshops which is one of the biggest attractions of the
cities and held towards the end of November which is towards the end of
Thanksgiving week. It is one of the major smoking events where tourists can
witness cannabis cloud and coffee shop crawls throughout the city. You can witness this by booking cheapest airline tickets to Amsterdam.
Coffeeshops for Tourists
Under the drug policy rule the sale of cannabis product
in small quantities is allowed by licensed coffee shops But majority of these
establishment also serve food and drinks but not alcohol. As a tourist you
should know that a coffeeshop does not sell alcohol and it does not have a
pub-like culture. Some used to sell beer but in 2007 the Dutch government
changed rules and dictated that a coffee shop can either sell alcohol or
cannabis product. The tourists are exempted from this ban on smoking cannabis
in Amsterdam. It will not enforce the ban on sale of marijuana for its two
million tourists that smoke and but cannabis from Amsterdam ‘coffeeshops’ on
their visit every year. So are you planning to buy last minute flight ticket to Amsterdam?