Does Thailand really want to become a cannabis tourism hotspot?

[webfact]

 

by Alex Carlton

 

Thailand became the first country in Asia to decriminalize cannabis for commercial and medical…

 

Earlier this year, Thailand surprised the world by making it legal to buy and sell marijuana, a wildly unexpected move for a country that previously issued harsh jail sentences – up to 15 years - for anyone caught with the drug.

 

Since then, cannabis stores have sprung up around the country. Ostensibly, you can only buy it for ‘medicinal’ use but seeing as no one is required show any evidence from a doctor, recreational use is booming.

 

And now, the tourism trade is beginning to jump on board. Last month, The Beach Samui on the island of Koh Samui launched southeast Asia’s first in-hotel ‘herbal dispensary’ where guests can sample “all-natural premium cannabis-infused medicine” designed to “enhance the natural journey of wellbeing”. Elsewhere hotels are selling “weed pizzas” and handing out joints you can smoke beside your resort pools.

 

Full story: https://www.escape.com.au/destinations/asia/thailand/does-thailand-really-want-to-become-a-cannabis-tourism-hotspot/news-story/d268e1daf8fb8915a9221400dd7f649b

 

-- © Copyright Escape 2022-12-07

[stoner]

the pro's outweigh the con's of this by a huge margin. the world is changing and attitudes all over towards cannabis are evolving. 

[Mr Joe Bangles]

Ahhh, quality tourists at last. Shedloads of dopey snoflakes to enlarge the TAT coffers. Was bound to happen. You just have to prepare the populace, especially after a well known public figure did time abroad for a bag of 'sugar' !! Chill man, chill.

[stoner]

2 minutes ago, Mr Joe Bangles said:

Ahhh, quality tourists at last. Shedloads of dopey snoflakes to enlarge the TAT coffers. Was bound to happen. You just have to prepare the populace, especially after a well known public figure did time abroad for a bag of 'sugar' !! Chill man, chill.

dinosaur parking is out back sir. 

[ezzra]

This was one of the ideas and also somehow, provide some type of work/business for Thai people, but when the hospitals started to overflow with people how misused the weeds and clogged the system a call was made for a re-think of the way the went about it in the beginning...

[stoner]

34 minutes ago, ezzra said:

This was one of the ideas and also somehow, provide some type of work/business for Thai people, but when the hospitals started to overflow with people how misused the weeds and clogged the system a call was made for a re-think of the way the went about it in the beginning...

troll post. 

 

hospitals overflow from misuse of weeds ? plural too hahaha. go back to fear mongering in the covid threads.

[BritManToo]

49 minutes ago, ezzra said:

This was one of the ideas and also somehow, provide some type of work/business for Thai people, but when the hospitals started to overflow with people how misused the weeds and clogged the system a call was made for a re-think of the way the went about it in the beginning...

Hard to understand how any hospitals could get clogged up from MJ usage.

As far as I can see there's no downside to cannabis tourism.

They all pay for flights, hotels, food and drinks.

So Thailand profits from them all.

[proton]

All they need now is rock and roll ????

[NK012]

This is a medical and regulatory issue only... it never should be criminal to smoke a natural plant, or sell it for that matter.  As if some increase in requirements for the health department / medical side to step up to the plate being needed is some huge epiphany.  Treat it as the issue in society it is. Crying and name-calling (hippie dregs, burnouts, wastoids and so forth) does 0 to help anything and only serves to make the lambaster appear quite ignorant. Some of the brightest people I've known incidentally smoke the greenie green. The issue either gets decent feedback and support  or it flails  about like a headless chicken and fails to be properly managed. Government should Invest more in support services/social welfare etc or continue to be less than adequate. Focus on moderation and respect for the plant, teach risks in schools, colleges etc. Manage it like a true leader, show other SEA etc nations it can be handled appropriately, and then feel better about it in the end and still create jobs and improve the economy around that attitude, which should be people first, profits after that. 

[Andrew65]

11 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Hard to understand how any hospitals could get clogged up from MJ usage.

As far as I can see there's no downside to cannabis tourism.

They all pay for flights, hotels, food and drinks.

So Thailand profits from them all.

What about when they rent a car?

In my home town in the UK more people are now busted for drug-driving than drunk driving. The limits for drug-driving are set very low indeed.

[BritManToo]

9 minutes ago, Andrew65 said:

What about when they rent a car?

In my home town in the UK more people are now busted for drug-driving than drunk driving. The limits for drug-driving are set very low indeed.

How many tourists in Thailand do you think rent cars?

Most rent a scooter without a license so they're breaking the law anyway.

And why is it your business?

Troll on!

 

[AgentSmith]

This is all about accepting never ending demand of certain substances. No matter how hard you try drug use will always remain. Drugs aren't the problem. Drug mafia is and there's only one way to end their business and that's legalization and regulation.

 

There's only 1 reason the latter often doesn't happen: ignorant conservative politicians. Add a little fear mongering around certain substances and you've got a system creating a great market for certain not so pleasant human beings. You simply can't suppress the will of the people. Given time enough not even the most autocratic system can keep its people in check.

 

Just let people use whatever they use, bought from legal sources they can trust. 99.9% of people are clever enough to know when it's too much. The small minority that isn't gets into trouble regardless of the legal status of what it is they use. People use, period. Total waste of time to keep debating about it.

[Andrew65]

6 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

How many tourists in Thailand do you think rent cars?

Most rent a scooter without a license so they're breaking the law anyway.

And why is it your business?

Troll on!

 

It wouldn't be enforced in Thailand anyway, same as drink-driving and many other laws.

 

[robblok]

15 minutes ago, Andrew65 said:

What about when they rent a car?

In my home town in the UK more people are now busted for drug-driving than drunk driving. The limits for drug-driving are set very low indeed.

Then ban alcohol too i mean people drink and drive. 

 

Just fear mongering besides they can check for cannabis and they can check for alcohol when people drive. So just do that the majority of ppl wont do drugs and drive. Just like the majority dont drink and drive. Those who do should be punished harsh.  Those who dont should be allowed to do as they want as long as they dont bother others.

 

I saw a lot of weed for sale in Koh lipe. Seems they like it there lots of tourists.

[Tropicalevo]

deleted

[bwanajohn]

I'm just back from 7 months in Canada,first time since cannabis was made legal for recreational use.

I was quite impressed with the roll out there. We  drove from west to east coast and saw how each province handles it.

   I wouldn't want to be the person tasked to figure out how it should be regulated. Thailand seems to have made it very easy and inexpensive for anyone to get the permits to sell it. I applaud the fairness and equality of this but it has lead to hotels offering free weed with a room and tiny kiosks in questionable appropriate places selling weed. Having it legally available for purchase is a good thing but high pressure sales promotions probably not.

      I hope they can find the middle path with the roll out here before they give up and make it illegal again. 

 

[AgentSmith]

1 hour ago, Andrew65 said:

It wouldn't be enforced in Thailand anyway, same as drink-driving and many other laws.

 

Lots of people are getting hefty fines in Hua Hin now. 2k is nothing. Some pay more than 10k. Thais and farang.. It's gotten very tricky here to drive home after a couple drinks in the bar. And so it should be of course.

[TantrikLvr]

It's becoming more apparent, many classes of tourists are coming, especially with this factor, from the many countries that still repress it. Lots more money and jobs! At last count, 495 weed shops open in Bangkok, keeping a lot of people, farmers included, employed. Of course some big straight business don't like or want it, as sales of booze has dropped, sales of pharmaceuticals that attempt to treat the same symptoms, have dropped, violence attributed to drugs has dropped, arrests and use of ICE and Yabba has diminished, as well as the obvious loss to the street cops (supported by the Red 'you know whos') who can't find the easy bribes they had, the incarceration industry, including lawyers and it's other off shoots, having a down turn.. Thailand forward thinking gains additional respect from many first world countries, envy from some, albeit disgruntled despite from the primitive barbarek repressed lands, that see the inevitable future.. But on the other hand, after masked covid, this certainly does help to put the Smiles back on so many faces here and increases Random Acts of Kindness. Overall a Win-Win situation, after some time of 'growing pains and attitude adjustments' ...  

[swm59nj]

It already appears to be an alcohol consumption hotspot 

[Mac Mickmanus]

4 hours ago, stoner said:

dinosaur parking is out back sir. 

Marijuana was big in the 1960's and is sort of an old mans past time, dinosaur, if you like 

[Moonlover]

3 hours ago, stoner said:

4 hours ago, ezzra said:

This was one of the ideas and also somehow, provide some type of work/business for Thai people, but when the hospitals started to overflow with people how misused the weeds and clogged the system a call was made for a re-think of the way the went about it in the beginning...

 

3 hours ago, stoner said:

troll post. 

 

hospitals overflow from misuse of weeds ? plural too hahaha. go back to fear mongering in the covid threads.

4 youths in one hospital wasn't it?

[goldenbrwn1]

40 minutes ago, Mac Mickmanus said:

Marijuana was big in the 1960's and is sort of an old mans past time, dinosaur, if you like 

It does seem to be the new buzz word on Visa of late. I have stopped smoking weed since it became legal. The illegality of it was part of the buzz…looks like it’s .back onto the Meth for me.

[HappyExpat57]

3 hours ago, NK012 said:

This is a medical and regulatory issue only... it never should be criminal to smoke a natural plant, or sell it for that matter.  As if some increase in requirements for the health department / medical side to step up to the plate being needed is some huge epiphany.  Treat it as the issue in society it is. Crying and name-calling (hippie dregs, burnouts, wastoids and so forth) does 0 to help anything and only serves to make the lambaster appear quite ignorant. Some of the brightest people I've known incidentally smoke the greenie green. The issue either gets decent feedback and support  or it flails  about like a headless chicken and fails to be properly managed. Government should Invest more in support services/social welfare etc or continue to be less than adequate. Focus on moderation and respect for the plant, teach risks in schools, colleges etc. Manage it like a true leader, show other SEA etc nations it can be handled appropriately, and then feel better about it in the end and still create jobs and improve the economy around that attitude, which should be people first, profits after that. 

Let me start by saying I'm an advocate for people being allowed, for the most part, to do what they want. The weed that's being grown today is much more powerful than that of the Panama Red/Cheech & Chong variety, so I understand the concern of ignorant politician dinosaurs. Countries that have completely legalized it don't seem to have the problems of hospitals overflowing with dopers od'ing. Legalize it then tax the hell out of it. Win win.

[RichardColeman]

3 hours ago, NK012 said:

it never should be criminal to smoke a natural plant,

I 100% disagree.

 

Thailand cannot handle alcohol - as seen in road statistics - and YOU want to give them more drugs ? Insane. 

 

If you can get alcohol road deaths down by 95% you may have a valid argument for releasing weed.

 

[PadPrikKhing]

3 hours ago, proton said:

All they need now is rock and roll ????

Indeed, weed does not go so well with the sappy western ballads they're so fond of playing (at least they were in Jomtien - I'm in Chiang Mai now). If I hear "Right Here Waiting" by Richard Marx or "Have I Told You Lately That I Love You" by Rod Stewart one more time, I'm going to have a conniption.

[mrfill]

Yes.

 

Next question..

[scorecard]

6 hours ago, stoner said:

the pro's outweigh the con's of this by a huge margin. the world is changing and attitudes all over towards cannabis are evolving. 

Yes but it seems to me there's more discussion regarding the comparison of dangers of drink driving, and maybe should have been more discussion/rules/policies on this decades ago.

 

But the recent discussions, law changes etc right now re cannabis seems to have turned into a mess with many foolks, growers, cops etc lost and confused re new laws.

 

Was bound to happen.

[vangrop]

the roommaid of my hotel in pats claimed that she was to high to work after cleaning the room of active users. Hahahaha

[vangrop]

Alcohol addiction is very harmfull, but far less than drug addiction. The problem with drugaddicted is that they are in full dening and banalising modus.

It begins with the softies and ends up with the hardies and or overdosis to trigger the sensations.

Nowadays most trafic accidents with runners are caused by doped. Worst crimes are caused by doped.

A few days ago in my country a drugaddicted murdered his wife and nine years old child. When he recovered he told that he didn’t remember anything.

So I think a responsible country doesn’t need these dangerous and financial uninteresting kind of tourists

[AndyFoxy]

Anyone who smokes weed needs to be jailed.