From time to time, cannabis enthusiasts may need to travel with their stash for one reason or another, but doing so discreetly and safely can be a challenge.
Here are some tips for keeping it on the down low (and saving yourself from potential hassles from law enforcement or raised eyebrows from the prudes out there) when traveling with your stash.
When it’s legal to drive with cannabis (and when it isn’t)
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Although it is still federally illegal to travel with cannabis, it is legal to drive from one recreationally legal city to another within a state with legal recreational use, provided you abide by local laws governing how much weed you can carry for personal use and how it must be stored within your vehicle. In most states (sorry, New Jersey!) that can get you pretty far.
Until it’s rescheduled or legalized, you’re only allowed to travel with cannabis within the borders of a legal state. Even traveling from one legal state to another is technically against federal law. (Medical patients may have more options, as some states allow legal purchase with your existing out-of-state card.)
It’s generally illegal to fly with weed.
Sorry, it’s always illegal to hop on a plane with cannabis, because federal agencies, including the Transportation Safety Authority, oversee flights. For now, the feds are still calling cannabis a Schedule One drug on par with fentanyl, so it remains on the no-no list for both air and intrastate rail travel.
The best piece of advice for traveling with weed: Don’t go breaking any federal laws, no matter how dated, but remember you’re free to go from New York City to the Catskills or from the Bay Area to Lake Tahoe along with your stash, for two lovely road trip examples. With that in mind, here are travel tips—covering discretion, safety, and portability—for when you’re (legally) traveling with cannabis.
Why you might want to be discreet
Sadly, it’s still not widely culturally acceptable to smoke a joint on the street in most places, try as many folks might to normalize it. It’s only legal to smoke cannabis on the sidewalk, like a cigarette, in New York City. While you should be respectful with your cannabis use in public spaces, consuming them should not be a crime or a taboo, especially if it’s a taxed product, but that’s not the reality we’re living in.
Many of us still avoid consuming with our families around, regardless of generation. This might be because you don’t want to smoke in front of kids, or because you have in-laws who are not into it. Add in traveling with pets, who you also need to keep away from your consumables, and you may have a small list of reasons why you want to travel low profile that have nothing to do with trying to break the law.
How to be discreet when traveling with weed
Are you willing to go full stealth? Because if you stick to edible or drinkable cannabis, the chances of a bystander knowing, short of spotting a pot leaf warning icon on the packaging, are very low. There’s little indication that what you’re eating or drinking has cannabis in it—just transfer it to a new container before consuming, and you’re totally under the radar.
Here’s where discretion crosses into etiquette though: You can’t leave crumbs or remnants of edibles or drinks lying around—that’s how a kid or pet can end up intoxicated, and that’s not cool.
Consider your consumption method
If you still need some sort of oral “smoking” mechanism to get a buzz, vapes can offer a great balance of a low odor and a smoke-like ritual for the traveler who doesn’t like to be “loud” with their weed.
But vaping is a broad category, covering pre-filled concentrate cartridges, self loading micro pens, elaborate dab rigs, and flower vapes that range in size from handheld to tabletop. While a Volcano would look beautiful in a renovated mini camper, most folks are not going to pack the UFO-shaped (and pricey device) when leaving town.
That means vaping can be as discrete as you want to be. If no one is around, it’s likely any clouds of concentrate vapor will be gone before anyone else notices, but flower vapes are a little more stinky, especially when running at higher temperatures. The lower the temp, the less “cloud,” but the more flavor. On the higher settings, the cloud will be more similar to, and fragrant like, smoke from burned flower.
Choose versatile gear
Handheld flower vapes come in all shapes and sizes, and some can accommodate both flower and concentrates, so you can benefit without carrying two devices. Two-in-one devices like the Pax 3 and the Puffco Proxy include additional attachments allowing you to switch between consumption methods.
PuffCo’s devices might involve delicate glass, but they take an innovative approach to packaging—the reliable Peak Pro comes packed in a lightweight styrofoam carrying case that has compartments for every conceivable accessory, including a charger, cotton tips for cleaning, and concentrate jars themselves.
These devices are pretty durable—you’ll probably experience battery problems long before the body suffers even a scratch. Mini pens and micro pens are also still around, too, even if some people remain wary of pre-filled carts post- the vaping crisis, but they tend to function for concentrates only.
Lock up your stash
Because weed gummies are so ubiquitous (and delicious), there’s always a danger they’ll be gobbled up by kids, pets, or unsuspecting adults of any age. Locking up your kit is crucial to avoid introducing cannabinoids to a person who shouldn’t have them, or doesn’t want to.
You can buy a fancy box for this purpose, like the Tulip or Snugbox, which have different features and functions for keeping your stash safe from youths, animals, or would-be pilferers. They offer different levels of functionality, from scent-proofing to seals that keep flower fresh and gummies on lockdown.
Consume considerately while away from home
To be discreet is also to be considerate: while smoking, stay away from windows, doors, and high traffic areas. It’s a good practice in general, and helps to keep people out of your business.
Another considerate tip: air out before going inside, as best you can. Maybe at a park or beach someone can dodge you if they don’t like your aroma, but somewhere like the movies or in a restaurant, you might want to let the terpenes die down first, for courtesy’s sake. If someone does bitch at you, there’s not much they can do legally, but you can counter with some education and advocacy about the plant’s benefits and fragrant elements—or you can do your best to avoid an awkward encounter.
A century of stigma and confusing regulations can make traveling with cannabis nerve-wracking, but with the right approach, you can consume your favorite herb discreetly and safely while away from home. There’s nothing illegal about smelling like weed in a legal state. While it’s limiting to only buy where you are, we don’t advise breaking the law. Instead, fight against crappy ones by engaging with lawmakers at the federal, state, and local level, and hopefully all of this will be a non-issue in the future.