What Not to Do When Visiting Amsterdam Coffee Shops

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Amsterdam is renowned across the globe for its coffee shops that act as legal dispensaries for cannabis products. You may also want to explore a few coffee shops in the city during your Amsterdam private tours. However, you need to follow some protocols when you visit a coffee shop in Amsterdam, be it for smoking weed or just checking out the shop. Below is a quick look at what not to do when you head to a coffee shop during your walking tours of Amsterdam.

Do Not Mix Up a Coffee Shop with a Coffee House

A coffee house (koffiehuis) is a café where you can sip hot beverages and have a quick bite. These do not serve cannabis as the coffee shops in Amsterdam do. So make sure to visit a coffee house and not a coffee shop if you are looking for some delicious pastries. One way to differentiate a coffee shop from a coffee house is to look for the green and white stickers on the storefront windows, which indicate a license to sell marijuana.

Do Not Buy Too Much Marijuana

You may be tempted to buy a lot of pot when you visit a coffee shop in Amsterdam, but you cannot take marijuana to the airport or out of the country. The culture here is to have a good time in the coffee shops, so make sure to buy in only small quantities. Besides, you can only buy a limited quantity from a coffee shop per day. Most establishments cap it at 5 grams per day per person. However, make sure to buy something when you visit a coffee shop, even if it is not a cannabis product.

Do Not Underestimate the Effects

The cannabis products in Amsterdam are likely to be stronger than what you may have tried back home. Be especially careful with marijuana cakes and cookies, as consuming cannabis directly can have a more strong effect than smoking it. You can also try different strains and varieties of the pot when you explore the coffee shop. They will have a menu on the table or pinned at the wall, just like any usual café in the city, to describe the products and pricing to their customers.

You can find the pricing on the items based on the quantity (per gram or bag) or individual joints. The pricing will also vary depending upon the strength and quality of the cannabis product. You can ask the coffee shop staff for some recommendations too and learn about the effects of each product on their menu.