Barcelona’s High Society: Inside The Hidden World Of Spain’s Cannabis Clubs
Barcelona is renowned for its vibrant tourism, yet there’s a lesser-known attraction: cannabis clubs. Despite the allure, these clubs exist in a legal gray area, oscillating between regulation and the threat of closure.
“People come here to relax, sometimes to work, or to unwind after work, to play games,” says Tamara Bernal. “Clubs inevitably absorb you.”
Non-profit associations, the clubs allow members to legally consume cannabis though it is illegal in Spain to remove the marijuana from the premises. While intended primarily for locals, many clubs also cater to tourists.
Members pay a fee ranging from 20 to 50 euros, which provides them access to a wide variety of strains and brands, not unlike Amsterdam’s coffee shops. Though still illegal in Spain, Bernal says the clubs thrive on tourism.
Regulatory Pressures And Challenges
The regulatory environment for Barcelona’s cannabis clubs is marked by turbulence. In 2024, the city government intensified efforts to close the clubs down, using secret police to monitor people leaving the clubs and to inspect premises for cannabis. “If they didn’t find anything, they would claim ‘this fridge is not adequate’ and other pretexts to close or distress the activity of the club,” Bernal explained.
The legal status of these clubs has been precarious over the years. Initially regulated with municipal licenses in 2016, a court later deemed that the municipal government lacked the authority …