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If you’ve ever tried to wrap a towel around a hotel room smoke detector so you can burn a joint in peace, then you know that not every lodging option is weed-friendly. But things have changed in recent years, and as legalization sweeps across the US, 420-friendly hotels are becoming more common – even if the big hotel and motel chains still haven’t gotten on board.
But what makes a hotel “420-Friendly,” and what about hotels where cannabis is an integral part of the curated experience?
What are 420-friendly hotels?
420-friendly, or cannabis-friendly, hotels are establishments that not only allow guests to consume cannabis in designated areas, they are very open about that fact and advertise it freely as a draw for potential customers.
The idea is that it’s a hotel where not only can you be confident that the staff won’t call the police on you, you will also know that it is particularly catering its experiences in part towards fellow cannabis fans.
Due to restrictions of state and federal law, these hotels don’t provide cannabis as part of your stay, like the continental breakfast at a roadside inn, nor do the cleaning staff leave little nugs on your bedside pillow. Instead, think of it in a sense as a sort of safe space for cannabis fans who want to mix weed in with their travel, without having to worry about a call from the front desk – or worse.
‘Arizona’s first cannabis-friendly hotel’
A good example of the “safe space for weed smokers” model can be seen in the 4-star Clarendon Hotel in downtown Phoenix, which rebranded in July as Arizona’s “first cannabis-friendly hotel.”
According to Daron Brotherton, VP of operations at the hotel, “we are a cannabis-friendly hotel and have a cannabis-friendly event company that is elevating and educating the community about cannabis.”
For the Clarendon, cannabis friendly entails placing all of the cannabis sleeping rooms on the west side of the property, where guests can eat edibles, smoke flower and vape to their heart’s content – though smoking is only allowed inside the guest’s room. The hotel also offers a car service to take guests to a local dispensary, and each room comes with a special air circulation system to clear out the haze.
As Brotherton told the Phoenix New Times, one of the reasons for the Clarendon’s rebanding this summer as a pot-friendly hotel was that the establishment began noticing how many people were turning to cannabis to cope with the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Quote-unquote normal people who were not supposed to be smoking cannabis in a hotel room were doing so,”Clarendon said, adding “I started thinking about how you can go to your hotel room with a glass of scotch, but you can’t have a joint in your room. In modern times, when no one is breaking the law, it doesn’t seem fair.”
Wake and bake in a ‘bud and breakfast’
The Clarendon allows guests to book a cannabis-friendly room on Bud and Breakfast, a website that helps guests find “cannabis friendly accommodations worldwide.” Most of the options are in the United States, though the website also advertises listings in Costa Rica, Amsterdam, Thailand, Jamaica, and the Caribbean.
On the website’s FAQ section, Bud and Breakfast states that “accommodation owners are beginning to understand how the changing attitudes toward weed are going to affect their business, and that in order to stay competitive, they too need to embrace cannabis-friendly travel.”
Another website, InnDica offers “an exclusive, carefully curated collection of cannabis friendly destinations and experiences” in the US and Jamaica.
Like on Bud and Breakfast, what constitutes a 420-friendly hotel can range from AirBnB-style private houses and rental units that welcome cannabis smokers and make it clear they should feel free to consume on the premises, to lodging options that offer cannabis experiences or pair with local cannabis businesses to offer coupons and other incentives.
What about an actual weed hotel?
Though the line can be a bit uh…hazy, while 420-friendly hotels are open about allowing consumption on their premises, there is also a growing number of establishments that actually facilitate your weed smoking, and not just by getting out of the way and turning a blind eye.
And while legally hotels cannot sell cannabis, many can nonetheless make cannabis the centerpiece of your stay.
Cannabis room service (but only CBD)
A good example of this can be seen in a post by cannabis delivery service Eaze in late 2019, in which they announced a new partnership with Recreational Embassy, “an elemental curator of cannabis and hemp solutions for the luxury hospitality market.” Announced as “Eaze Hospitality,” there was one big catch – the products available for delivery on the in-room menus included “low-dose and non-inhalation hemp and cannabis products” and “bespoke CBD products” like bath bombs.
Cannabis consulting – and a little frog poison
In Seattle, the Winston House, a “cannabis friendly bed and breakfast providing a consciousness expanding space,” advertises cannabis services like “101 Cannabis Consulting” and “Cannabis Infused Massage” on their website, as well as Kambo – frog venom treatments for the more adventurous. A guest who visited in 2018 described smoking a pre-rolled joint on the deck as the manager of the hotel waved from a balcony above.
A goodies bag – just without the weed
Others can get the weed train rolling by way of dispensary recommendations and coupons, as well as help organizing legal cannabis tours. An example of this can be found in Portland’s Jupiter Hotel’s “420 bundle.” The “everything but the weed kit” includes a discount voucher for a partner dispensary, a complimentary stash jar, stickers, rolling papers, an “Oregrown” hat, and more. Another big catch though – the fine print notes that smoking cannabis at the hotel and in public anywhere in Oregon is illegal and subject to a $150 fine.
When in Colorado…
No shortage of options for cannabis-friendly stays can be found on Coloradocannabistours.com, which offers “420 friendly hotels and lodging in the Denver Area” – as well as in California and Las Vegas.
The website looks like a Hotels.com or Expedia.com at first, but there’s another catch – the actual name of the hotel is “kept anonymous after booking to protect their identities.”
Users search by accomodation level, and are presented with listings that features pictures of the hotel room along with amenities. In addition to the standard amenities, the listings have notes such as “vape and dab friendly,” “vape and dab rentals,” “discreet outdoor smoking,” and “near dispensary.”
They also include weed-friendly notes in the descriptions, such as a Vail Mountain Lodge in which “each suite has a full kitchen with an oven, refrigerator, and cooking items so that you can cook your meal if you feel like a quiet (and high) night in.”
In addition to actual hotels, the website features cannabis classes and attractions, such as a “puff, pass and paint,” art class that includes a painting kit sent directly to your room, and courses on making edibles, infused drinks, and a lot more.
The (weed-friendly) Hotel California
It probably goes without saying that if anywhere had cannabis-friendly hotels, it would be California. Billing itself as “California’s first Bud & Breakfast,” the Hicksville Pines Bud & Breakfast in Idyllwild states that all common areas are 420 friendly and only allows guests that are 21 and over. In addition, the hotel works with a legal delivery service to provide cannabis to guests.
But the global capital of cannabis has no shortage of such establishments, which can easily be found on sites like USA Weed, under their lodging section.
The website, which promotes “420 Friendly Everything,” allows hotels to place entries on the lodging section for cannabis customers looking for a welcoming spot. Entries like the “La Casa Bonita” in Escondido include features like “420 friendly and dog friendly” and indicate that smoking is allowed in outside areas, and that all guests receive a complimentary marijuana travel guide.
Another featured hotel, the Desert Hot Springs iInn, has a cannabis friendly policy for all visitors to the desert Shangri-La. The hotel states that “we understand that people want to relax and enjoy medical marijuana. We ask that guests be considerate to non-users, but the hotel is large enough for everyone to be comfortable.”
Cannabis friendly in New England
But it’s not only states like Colorado and California that offer 420-friendly lodging. On USA Weed and elsewhere, guests can find 420 friendly hotels across Massachusetts.
And while the offerings are a bit limited, they do include listings like the Harding House in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which allows smoking on property and can provide a marijuana travel guide.
Though late 2019 was arguably a different world, in November 2019, Boston.com published an article detailing the rise in 420 friendly lodging in Massachusetts. The article focused on Melody’s Place, an 1860 Vicgtorian home in Charlemont with 4 weed-friendly rooms. The hotel proudly states that it is a cannabis friendly establishment and has partnered with the Berkshire Roots Dispensary. They also allow smoking on the veranda.
Weed hotels in Jamaica
If you’d like to actually have the cannabis included in your trip, then your best bet may be to take a short flight to the Caribbean.
Ganja Vacations Jamaica offers several ganja vacation deals, starting at only $360 per night. All packages include tours of ganja farms and local dispensaries and cafes, and no shortage of spots that are perfectly safe to spark up. Things get more luxurious as the price rises though, and with the “Marvette’s Couples Weedcation” package for $2,300 per couple, guests receive a complimentary ganja stash upon arrival.
And while it isn’t a hotel, tour providers like 420 Tours Jamaica provide affordable guided tours of weed plantations, including spliff rolling sessions and possibly even some free samples.
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