“Marijuana Recreational Shops” seeks popularity in Colorado

Travelers visiting Colorado will get to taste a new sort of entertainment. Like the wine tours in Napa Valley, it is called the Pot Tourism of Colorado. Pot tourism in Colorado will bring shuttle buses to the state’s recreational marijuana shops

, guides sharing their stashes.

After months of speculation, the opening of the nation’s first recreational pot shop opened on Wednesday; might reason the legitimate prospects of pot tourism in Denver.

At least three pot-themed tourism companies that didn’t exist a year ago are preparing to welcome their first visitors of 2014 and trying to figure out how state and local regulations will influence their plans.

The state tourism office is keeping its distance, while the ski industry is assuring guests the slopes are pot-free and the air is clean.

Marijuana industry officials estimate 30 percent of recreational sales — made possible by voter-approved Amendment 64 last year — could be made by out-of-state visitors.

But there are limits. While Colorado residents 21 and over may purchase up to an ounce of marijuana at licensed pot shops, out-of-staters may purchase only a quarter-ounce at a time. And marijuana cannot be taken out of state.

“We’ve had a lot of interest, a lot of curiosity, a lot of buzz,” said Peter Johnson of Colorado Green Tours, a travel agency seeking to cater to a luxury crowd.
Johnson’s company will take guests in limos and SUVs to newly opened stores and private grow operations. Guides are “cannabis aficionados” who share their supply with guests for no charge, Johnson said.
“We are professionals in the travel business,” said Johnson, 39, who has worked as a stock trader and tech entrepreneur. “We’re not a bunch of stoners trying to have a party.”
Timothy Vee, owner and operator of Colorado High Life Tours, is going after budget travelers. For $99 a person, the company offers “a Napa Valley wine tour, but with marijuana.”