Warmer spring days are hinting at the promise of summer all across Canada. In anticipation of those blissfully sunny days ahead, many are already penciling in vacation ideas – future plans to carry us through these last few weeks of unpredictable, sometimes dreary weather.
Wine, brewery and artisan cheese tours have long been a popular option for easy weekend plans, but with the legalization of cannabis in 2018, a new type of tour has entered the market.
Cannabis tours, along with weed-and-wine tours, are a fairly new concept but quickly becoming just as popular as the more familiar food and beverage tours. Rather than grape varieties, the cannabis versions typically highlight local growers, strains and local cannabis history.
Whether you’re a seasoned smoker or only just starting to explore the world of cannabis and what it can offer recreationally and medicinally, cannabis tours can be a fun way to further your knowledge in a relaxing, enjoyable way. You can find tour options in various communities across Canada – here’s a look at a few of the most popular tours currently on offer.
British Columbia:
Sugar Cane Cannabis
Indigenous-owned-and-operated Sugar Cane Cannabis is located in Williams Lake and owned by the Williams Lake First Nation. On mission to produce the highest-quality, small-batch craft cannabis, they strive to provide both an exceptional product and a unique experience for users.
Sugar Cane Cannabis also offers B.C.’s first cannabis farmgate, a farm-to-table-style approach to cannabis tours, where you can experience the entire production process from seed to sale, and purchase the finished product directly from the farm itself.
Okanagan Cannabis Tours
Okanagan Cannabis Tours offers a variety of tour options, with a little something for everyone. But their most popular tour is their Weed-and-Wine tour which visits what they refer to as the “Best Okanagan Cannabis stores” along with two of Okanagan’s most beautiful wineries, Frind Estate Winery and Off the Grid Winery, where tour goers enjoy wood-fired pizza to help curb any lingering munchies. Okanagan Cannabis provides an educational component to their tours as well, discussing topics such as terpenes and terpene isolates, and providing a ‘Volcano vaporizer’ for guests to get a proper taste of terpenes and how they vary by strain.
“I can’t stress enough that this is not a ‘party bus’ experience. We often host international groups, friends, couples and even families,” says Anne Marie Locas, owner of Okanagan Cannabis Tours. “We had one tour where we had a mum tag along to enjoy the wineries while her two (adult) children enjoyed the cannabis. The Okanagan has long been known for its wineries but our hot summers are perfect for growing bud too, and these tours are a great way to experience that!”
Hard to have a bad day while enjoying an Okanagan Cannabis Tour! Photo courtesy of Okanagan Cannabis Tours.
Alberta:
Cannanaskis
Set in the beautiful Kananaskis backcountry of Alberta’s Rocky Mountains, Cannanaskis offers cannabis-based experiences that are informational and educational, with a strong focus on the history.
Their History of Cannabis Tour to K-Country starts with a visit to a local dispensary before taking guests out to visit the mountains in their CannaVan to learn all about cannabis, its history, how it affects our bodies, and the science behind the plant – all while appreciating the natural beauty of the Rocky Mountains.
Take in the sights and enjoy some canna-history on Alberta’s Cannanaskis tour. Photos courtesy of Dave Dormer / Cannanaskis.
Ontario:
Bachelor’s Degree Niagara
Bachelor’s Degree Niagara is a party company that offers all-inclusive private tour experiences in a fun, engaging environment for those 19+. Choose from two cannabis tour options: Purple Urkel and Pineapple Express. Both tours involve different activities in the Niagara area with either taxi/Uber or limo service as well as a tour guide to ensure guests are enjoying themselves and provide some cannabis-themed Q&A during the event.
Niagara Weed and Wine Tours
Built upon a more traditional wine tour-style experience, Niagara Weed and Wine Tours offers guests a more elegant and refined experience. With seven different tours, options range from their basic ‘private weed and wine tour’ to their Grand All Day Niagara Tour, an 8.5-hour event that includes a jet boat tour, helicopter ride, visits to three different wineries, breweries or distilleries, dispensary visits and more!
Whether you’re a seasoned smoker or just curious about the plant, these tours offer a fun and relaxing way to learn more about cannabis, its history, cultivation, and various consumption options while enjoying Canada’s emerging cannabis market and communities.