I just enjoyed my first experience as a HiBnb Host, out of my home in Toronto, Canada. The guest was an international tourist visiting from India, where cannabis is illegal. Personal responsibility was an important factor to him, and he wanted to know exactly where he would be when he gets high so he can be assured he was safe and on the right side of the law. The idea of being able to get high in a safe and legal environment was novel to him.

When he arrived I greeted him by sharing some of my personally owned cannabis products including Green Monke beverages, Spinach gummies, and Redecan pre-rolled joints, however, he wanted to see the closest dispensary to make a legal purchase for himself. I walked him to Canvas Cannabis down the street from where I live, and it was a pleasant experience as they have an outdoor consumption area and an upstairs indoor lounge. My guest, however, didn’t want to get high in a public place because the plant is illegal in his home country, he carried insecurities with him about getting high and he suffered from anxiety. Severely.

While cannabis is widely thought of to be a recreational drug similar to alcohol, many people use it to find relief from anxiety and depression. There is an uplifting feeling and from my own experience, I can say there is a connection to some force of nature through the plant. When I use it, I feel more connected to myself. I can hear my inner voice more clearly. And I feel a stronger connection to other people.

So my guest wanted to be in one spot for when he got high. He wanted to feel connected, safe, peaceful, accepted, wanted, and loved. He was a very spiritual and sensitive person, and he was attracted to my HiBnb Accommodation listing because he tried to find access community. He specifically wanted to play board games and hang with other like-minded people.

Cannabis Tourism supports these values full stop. Whether practicing yoga, eating food, enjoying the arts, learning about indigenous cultures, engaging in exhilarating experiences, exploring one’s spirituality, or connecting with others, cannabis tourism supports access to nature and embodies respect.

HiBnb Hosts are friends and friends of friends. We welcome each other as a family. And when a guest checks in, they have the experience of being one of us. We are a community.

Now that the legalization and decriminalization of cannabis are upon us and growing globally, I see the cannabis community wanting tourism, frustrated with governments as we wait for regulations to permit big infused dinners, consumption lounges, and accessible cannabis-focused social experiences.

I am a founding member of the Canadian Cannabis Tourism Alliance and a member of the Cannabis Tourism Association International, where I see a great bonding between passionate people supporting each other's cannabis tourism initiatives but many of them are blocked by the lack of legal regulations permitting their ventures.

I implore the cannabis community to see the opportunities and not the blocks. Rather than wait for legislation to permit cannabis consumption on public properties, HiBnb exists to support cannabis tourism on private properties, where consumption is legal. Whether it is inviting travelers into your home, your boat, your golf game, your belly dance class, or hiring an infused chef to run a dining experience in a rented hall down the road, HiBnb exists so that we, the cannabis community, can create structures that support the values discussed above. HiBnb enables us to use legal channels to offer experiences the cannabis community craves, and to pave the way for future generations.

About the Writer

Elizabeth Becker smokes and gets Hi in Toronto.  You can rent out a room in her home.

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