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Recreational Cannabis And Sin City: What To Expect If You Visit Las Vegas

Written by Julie Godard

Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.A. (a.k.a. Sin City) is already home to plenty of entertainment: gambling, show girls, Cirque du Soleil, magic shows, concerts, and now all of these experiences can be enhanced with legal recreational or medical cannabis

Beginning on July 1st, Vegas started selling recreational cannabis, with cannabis joints going for $7-$10. In Vegas, like in Denver, Seattle, Portland, Vancouver, Boston, Juneau, and Maine, recreational cannabis consumption by adults 21 years and older with government-issued I.D.s is now legal.

Where Can I Consume Cannabis in Las Vegas?

The first thing Las Vegas law enforcement officers want you to know about legal cannabis in Vegas is that you can’t consume it publicly. That means you don’t want to light up that $10 joint on the strip, or in Caesar’s Palace, because you might be arrested on the spot and charged a $600 fine. Adult cannabis consumption in Nevada is only legal in private residences and on private property (that includes porches and yards) as of now. The same laws don’t apply to alcohol in Vegas, where you can carry your alcoholic beverage around with you in the streets. Since consuming cannabis through a vaporizer or smoking a joint is illegal, Vegas is going hard with the edibles, which a dispensary owner says will sell for around $40 or $50 a pop.

How Can I Travel with Cannabis in Nevada?

Since recreational cannabis is illegal in many neighboring U.S. states, consumers from Utah, California, and Wyoming may want to travel to Nevada to purchase cannabis. Reciprocity, or the ability to buy cannabis (medical or recreational) in a different state than your home state, is legal in Nevada. This means you can buy cannabis in Nevada even if you don’t live there, which is not the case in all legal recreational states. If you’re traveling with cannabis, keep these things in mind:

  • Airport Transportation Security Administration (TSA) does not search bags for drugs or cannabis (if they find it, you’ll be referred to law enforcement)
  • If you’re carrying less than an ounce, you will not be detained or have your cannabis taken
  • When traveling, you’re expected to know the laws in your destination, and law enforcement will uphold that in Vegas
  • You can have up to an ounce of cannabis in your car for each person as long as you’re not consuming it while the vehicle is moving (that includes passengers and drivers)

Cannabis delivery services are illegal in Nevada.

How Much Cannabis Can I Purchase in Las Vegas?

Cannabis consumers in Nevada were so excited to purchase their herb that they stood in lines lasting hours in temperatures over 100 degrees back in July. It took the entire state less than two weeks to sell out of its cannabis supply, and the Nevada Tax Commission had to pass a new regulation. The regulation effectively allowed existing medical cannabis dispensaries and suppliers to begin operating as recreational dispensaries and suppliers, which increased cannabis supply considerably. In Las Vegas, Kush Tourism lists ten dispensaries, where you can purchase up to one ounce of cannabis or any cannabis product. Ostensibly, if you purchase one ounce of cannabis and consume it, you can then go buy another ounce, but you can only have one ounce on your person at a time. If you go to Sin City, now you know how to handle, consume, and purchase your recreational cannabis legally.

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About the author

Julie Godard