Amsterdam, seeking to curb overtourism, bans joints in public

After cracking down on Airbnb rentals, tourist buses and red light district tours, Amsterdam now wants to scale back its tolerance for smoking joints in public in an effort to improve the quality of life for locals.

Tourists and residents will no longer be permitted to smoke marijuana in public spaces in the historic areas of Amsterdam as of mid-May, as Dutch officials seek to limit on the negative effects of mass tourism.

In further changes, restaurants must close earlier and prostitutes halt their work earlier in the city’s Wallen red light district, according to an announcement by the city.

The measure is just one of many from municipal officials aimed at making Amsterdam a more liveable city in spite of the massive tourist draw of famous galleries, canal walkways and legal marijuana.

The latest moves aim to make the neighbourhood safer and more comfortable for residents, the announcement said, noting that at night, the atmosphere can sometimes be “very grim.”

Locals have been complaining about the boozing, shouting and pot smoking over the years. Tourists also attract drug dealers, who in turn create crime, raising the dangers on the streets, the city said in the announcement.

One reason tourists are drawn to Amsterdam are the coffee shops where tourists are permitted to purchase small quantities of hashish and marijuana.

City officials are considering whether to restrict coffee shop sales to between the hours of 4 pm and 1 am.

The new rules are part of a broader set of measures to protect locals, with further rules seeing pubs stop admitting patrons after 1 am. Prostitutes must close their windows by 3 am, rather than 6 am.

Meanwhile, from 2024 onwards, tourist buses will no longer be allowed to drive into the centre of Amsterdam, Dutch officials previously announced, citing issues with overcrowding, pedestrian safety and the risk of damaging to historic city infrastructure.

Amsterdam has been trying to curb mass tourism for years and had announced extra measures at the end of 2022. Last year, about 18 million visitors spent at least one night in the city. In addition, there are millions of day visitors.

As part of a number of measures to slow tourist numbers, the city previously stopped landlords from renting out properties in central parts of the city on platforms like Airbnb, while also cracking down on guide tours through the red-light district.