Cannabis tourism in the US is a $17 billion industry and is just taking off, says Forbes

Cannabis-related tourism is about to explode in the legal world, especially in the United States of America (USA). According to an extended report by the Forbes, cannabis tourism is a $17 billion industry and is just getting started. WeedTour, hibnb, Emerald Farm Tours, medicinal retreats and even a guide in Lonely Planet, are examples of an industry whose demand will skyrocket in the near future.

According to a Harris poll conducted in May and cited by Forbes, more than two-thirds of American adults (68%) support legalizing adult use, with half of all millennials (50%) say access to legal recreational cannabis is important when choosing a vacation destination. More than four out of ten millennials (43%) say they specifically chose a destination where cannabis was legal.

To date, cannabis-related travel has been largely ignored by tourism boards and the industry, leaving millions of dollars on the table, says Victor Pinho, co-founder of Emerald Farm Tours. “They are tourists and they are shopping, they are here to spend money on cannabis,” he says, explaining that his typical customers spend between $300 and $400 at the dispensary during their visits, about three times as much as an average transaction. with the other locations.

It is not yet clear how big the emerging cannabis tourism industry will be or what its potential impact will be on the US tourism economy, but preliminary data are very promising. A 2020 pre-pandemic national study by market research firm MMGY Travel Intelligence found that nearly one in five (18%) of American leisure travelers are interested in cannabis-related vacation experiences. The figure rises to 62% when the survey sample includes only adults over 21 years old and whose annual family income is over US$50.

“For every dollar spent at a cannabis store, there is a multiplier effect, with $2,8 billion going to the local economy,” Beau Whitney told Forbes

Legal cannabis is driving other emerging businesses. Of the 25 billion in legal cannabis sales in 2021, Forbes estimates that up to 4 billion were generated by tourists, who in addition to cannabis spent on restaurants, hotels, attractions and other stores, as well as contributing to state and city taxes. "For every dollar spent at a cannabis shop, there's a multiplier effect, with $2,8 billion going to the local economy," Beau Whitney, founder and chief economist at Whitney Economics, a leading cannabis business consultancy, told Forbes. and hemp in the US.

Read the full report from Forbes here.