You do not have to go home, but you can not smoke here.
The mayor of Amsterdam has submitted a proposal to ban non-residents from buying cannabis products at any of the 166 marijuana-tolerant coffee houses in the city – also known as coffee shops – starts in 2022. According to her, the initiative is aimed at deterring foreign visitors from viewing Amsterdam as a destination for ‘soft drug tourism’.
“Amsterdam is an international city and we want to attract tourists – but for its wealth, beauty and cultural institutions,” Mayor Femke Halsema wrote in a recent letter to the Amsterdam City Council, reports The Guardian.
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Under the new measure, only residents of the Netherlands may buy small quantities of marijuana inside the coffee shops in the city. Such regulations have been applicable in other large Dutch cities since 2013, although Amsterdam was granted an exception at the time, according to the NRC.
Under the new measure, only residents of the Netherlands may buy small quantities of marijuana inside the coffee shops in the city.
(Evert Elzinga / ANP / AFP via Getty Images)
Without foreign tourists, only 68 of the 166 coffee shops in Amsterdam would be needed to meet the demand of Dutch residents, according to research commissioned by the city of Amsterdam, and quoted by NRC.
The new regulations, if adopted, will be introduced in 2022 with a phased approach.
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Burgema Halsema’s latest proposal comes after previous initiatives to help limit the so-called ‘party tourism’. In 2018, officials tried to curb excessive party and bachelor parties by proposing a ban on beer bikes and boating trips, in part through a campaign designed to raise awareness of ‘what is allowed and – more importantly – what not allowed in Amsterdam. “
Amsterdam’s latest proposal follows previous initiatives to limit so-called ‘party tourism’ and guided tours through the city’s Red Light district.
(Dean Mouhtaropoulos / Getty Images)
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In 2019, Halsema and Deputy Mayor Udo Kock also demanded increased restrictions on guided tours through the city’s famous red light district.
“We ban tours that take visitors past the windows of sex workers, not only because we want to prevent overcrowding in the red light district, but also because it has no respect for sex workers,” Kock said at the time, according to The New. York Times. “It’s outdated to view sex workers as a tourist attraction.”
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Currently, international travelers are “strongly encouraged” to avoid traveling to the Netherlands unless necessary. Incoming travelers with essential matters in the country must provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test result and quarantine for 10 days upon arrival.
Fox News’ Janine Puhak contributed to this report.