Altered States: 5 Best Places to Visit for Cannabis Lovers

If you’re in the mood for a marijuana road trip, Colorado and Washington are the two top destinations. I know. Shocker.

But California, the first state to allow for legal medical marijuana in 1996, is only No. 8, according to Estately, a Seattle-based real estate website. Of course, full legalization is on the November ballot in the Golden State so expect a bump in the ratings next year.

Estately gave each state a score from 1 to 100 for the following criteria:

1. The percentage of residents who reported smoking at least once in the last month. (Source: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration)
2. The average cost of high- and low-quality marijuana. (Source: PriceofWeed.com)
3. The Google searches related to marijuana. (Source: Google Trends)
4. The legality of recreational or medicinal marijuana. (Source: Drug Policy Alliance)
5. The publicly expressed interested in marijuana-themed publications, (Source: Facebook user data)

Based on these data points, here are the five top states:

1. Colorado
   The Rocky Mountain high is an actual thing. The state was the first to sell recreational marijuana and is No. 1 in terms of percentage of residents who have used marijuana in the past month (11.5 percent) and in weed-related Google searches. The state ranks third in marijuana affordability. Aspen, Denver and Boulder are wonderful year-round destinations for weed lovers.

2. Washington
   Along with Colorado, Washington was the first state to vote for full legalization. Marijuana prices are the second cheapest in the country and it has the fifth highest percentage of pot smokers (10 percent). Seattle, of course, is marijuana mecca. But Bellingham, about a two-hour drive north, has a lively cannabis scene.

3. Oregon
   Marijuana is ubiquitous in Oregon. It’s also home of the most affordable bud in the nation. Cannabis enthusiasts smokers make up 9.8 percent of the population.

4. New Mexico
   Medical marijuana is legal in the state and the price of cannabis is fifth lowest in the nation. About 7 percent of state residents are cannabis enthusiasts. New Mexico citizens are No. 1 when it comes to reading marijuana-related publications, which helped boost the state’s ranking.

5. Maine
   This one is a bit of a surprise. Medical marijuana is available to residents here, although it’s a bit pricey (17th). More than 10 percent of Maine residents admit to using cannabis in the past moth, which ranks third nationally.

The complete Estately list can be found here.