High season: Bangkok’s new cannabis shops could jumpstart tourism this summer

In June 2022 Thailand decriminalised cannabis. This new policy was intended for medical purposes and not for people to get high, the country’s tourism authority told Reuters.

However, many business owners hope the move may help boost Thailand’s tourism industry as it struggles to recover following the pandemic.

In 2019 the country welcomed 39.9 million visitors, generating 1.91 trillion baht (€51.52 billion) or about 12 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP).

In the first six months of 2022 however, Thailand saw just 2 million tourist arrivals.

Can you buy cannabis in Thailand?

Since the new law was passed in June, cannabis shops have sprung up around Bangkok.

Ong-ard Panyachatiraksa and Netnapa Singsatit run a store named RG420 in the city’s backpacker district, Khao San. It has been billed as the first shop to also feature a room for recreational smoking.

After less than a…