After having as much fun as I did at last year’s Cannabis Cup, I don’t think I could live with myself if I were to miss the 2009 Cannabis Cup.
Each year High Times Magazine puts on an incredible competition where many of the most popular coffee shops in Amsterdam enter their best marijuana, neder hash and import hash and then you, the judge, get to sample their wares and give your own opinion. Last year’s the overall winner was coffee shop The Greenhouse with their incredibly strong sativa Super Lemon Haze.
I am expecting the 2009 Cannabis Cup to be just as fun as last years and was hoping to try and get a group of Marijuana Reviews members together at least once, preferably a few times to kick back and have a group review session.
If any of you are anticipating attending the 2009 Cannabis Cup please contact me as I will be putting together a list of members planning to go. The number of people coming will determine the location we use but I am thinking either Barney’s, The Greenhouse, or Amneisa.
Another idea I had was to do a bit of a mini Cannabis Cup where just us MR members pick a handful of coffee shops that we like and from there we do some really good, in depth reviews of their #1 bud and #1 hash. If this is something you think is a good idea and would like to come along let me know. If there are enough people interested I’ll see what I can do about contacting some coffee shops about special deals.
Honestly, no matter what we end up doing, the 2009 Cannabis Cup is sure to be that much more fun once a few members meet up. It’s always nice to put a face to the name. Especially over a nice cup of hot chocolate and a Volcano Bag full of Haze.
I realize I am bringing this up pretty early in the year but I just wanted to give anyone who may be considering going, or is on the fence about going, ample time to do some research and plan their trip.
I have already picked out 3 hotels and will be looking them over in detail later today. Most likely I’ll be reserving my room tonight.
Flights are another story. Right now airfare to Amsterdam is going to cost me a few hundred dollars less than it did last year. I have a feeling prices are going to drop even lower which is why I will be holding off for a couple more weeks before purchasing plane tickets. But even if you buy them right now, imo, you are getting a great deal.
Passes for the 2009 Cannabis Cup are on sale for $199 through June 1. After that they are $250 from 6/2 – 11/15/2009. Passes at the door will run you $250 Euros. (The $199 and $250 presale prices are in both dollars and euros depending on where you live. At the door it’s Euros only).
As far as the format goes, I am not sure exactly what High Times has planned for this years Cup but I am sure it will be great. I admit, last year’s convention area was pretty lame so hopefully they will improve that for 2009.
Also, I have yet to see a list of the coffee shops that are competing in the 2009 Cannabis Cup but then again it is pretty early in the year.
Since I have a little more experience now that I have been to Amsterdam already, feel free to email any questions you might have about where to stay, what to bring, what are the laws, anything. If I can, I will help out for sure.
Last year the economy was on everyone’s mind but things were far from as bad as they are now. I am really curious to know whether or not that will effect the attendance of the 2009 Cannabis Cup. I have e feeling it’s going to be about the same as last year which was just right.
If there is one thing worth saving your money up for it’s a “best weed in the world” competition.
Press Pass Rejection
I contacted High Times to see if I could get press passes for the 2009 Cannabis Cup in an attempt to bring you guys some back stage/behind-the-scenes footage and such. Unfortunately I was told that they only give out press passes to magazines and television stations, no websites. Last year while I was picking up my pass, there was 2 guys there calling themselves a “crew” from some Japanese TV station and they were given press passes.
I GUARANTEE 100x more people that actually are interested in reading High Times and are possible subscribers to their magazine will be reading my reviews of the 2009 Cannabis Cup than will be watching a 20 minute spot on some Asian TV station. Especially since this year I plan on doing some real-time reporting as well as a daily update straight from Amsterdam instead of taking tons of pics/notes and posting everything when I get home. But whatever, I’m not bitter. 
Anyway, as I said, get a hold of me if you are planning on going to the 2009 Cannabis Cup and lets have some fun! –Chubbs
Related Reviews
2008 Cannabis Cup – A recap of last year’s Cannabis Cup.
Super Lemon Haze – The current heavyweight champion of the world!
Barney’s – One of the 3 coffee shops where I think we should meet up.
The Greenhouse – The second of the three coffee shops. Very popular and very loud.
Amnesia – Last but not least, the third of the 3 coffee shops where we could all hang out and blaze.
Random Reviews
unfortunately i don’t think i’m gonna have the money to make two trips to holland this year, but i do have tickets bought for a trip late june/early july, can offer pre-cup correspondence, granted even then it’ll still be quite early.
by the way the “buy your pass here” link in that post is a link to a page to buy passes for the passed 20th (2008) cup, not sure if that’s an error but i figured i’d point it out
@ogspliff: Link Removed. Thanks for the heads up. I didn’t catch that/
If you think you’ll have the time, I’ll actually send you a list of stuff to review in Amsterdam. You can pick and choose what you want from it.
Chubbs, I’m totally interested and have the money for it, but i dont know anybody who wants to go/can afford it
So if I went I’d pretty muh be on my own except for maybe one or two MR sessions, right?
@H1JACK3R: No not at all. 1st off, if you wanna kick it with me and my wife and party you’re more than welcome. We spend a majority of our time there in the coffee shops hanging out and meeting new people. Obviously her and I will do our own thing here and there but for the most part, it’s all about hanging out all day/night, walking around, blazing, eating.
If I were you, I’d go for sure.
Also, one thing I noticed last year is there are a lot of people that roll solo. Amsterdam is a very small city and you tend to bump into the same people a lot. It’s not unusual at all for some to spend a week there “alone”. Place is 1 big party during The Cup.
Last year we mainly hung out with a couple we met while stumbling around trying to find the convention hall. They are British and had been there before. Ended up partying together every day. Hope to see them this year as well.
About how much money should i plan on spending there apart from travel and board?
@H1JACK3R: I look at it like this.
Daily-
Breakfast: $15
Lunch: $20
Dinner: $30
Herb: $15/gram x ?
Hash: $40/gram x ?
Misc: $? (Depends on how much touristy stuff you want to do and how many snacks/hot chocolates you buy)
I think between my wife and I we spent appx. $200/day and we had a blast. I was RIPPED all week and we did a lot of cool touristy stuff.
Obviously you can cut corners and spend less. And it’s VERY easy to spend a whole lot more.
sure thing, the sole purpose of this trip is to relax and to seek out as much note worthy gear as i possibly can, so i’ll have more than enough time to tackle a list of shops/gear/what have you. Shoot me an email when the time comes and i’ll try and review as much of it as i can when i’m over there
by the way, submitted some reviews over the last week and have a few more ready to go, did you receive those? i’ll have a few more sent in by tonight, me thinks.
@ogspliff: Will do for sure.
H1JACK3R: i generally stay 2-3 weeks and aside from living expenses i generally bring around 1,000$ give or take to spend on shrubs and hash, and i guess the rule of thumb is better to come back home with extra cash than run out of cash before your trip ends. As far as specifics go, depends on hotel/trip duration/etc. yet again, better safe than sorry.. prostitution is legal there so i guess if things get tight…….. hehe
OG: Lol, I’m not sure i’d make too much money, but hey I’d give it a try,
can you bring back glass if it’s unused?
Any good hotel suggestions close to the coffee shops?
H1JACK3R: yea, make sure you don’t use the glass though, you can get busted for the smallest amount of resin residue on your piece. The worst that can happen is customs might hassle you on your way back into the states, but if you have nothing to hide than you have nothing to worry about, glass is glass.
as far as hotels go, anything outside of the centruum if you’re looking to save money, there are a few smoker friendly hostels in the city that are cheap, i’ll gather up a few names/addresses/possibly websites for you to check out
as far as location goes, there’s pretty much a coffeeshop half a block away in anyspot you stay at, and anything else is a short tram ride away, pretty easy getting from place to place.
anyway, i’ll gather up some more useful info for you H1JACK3R, and anyone else interested in a trip to the dam, will post shortly
hmm i have wanted to go to amsterdam for so long, if i travel with my gf how much cash between the two of us do you think we’d need to be comfortable for a week there?
@demo11: Last year my wife and I spent a week there partying hard and I think overall it was like $5-6k. And that’s EVERYTHING including flights, hotels, food, etc.
I’ll ask her today exactly how much it was.
Sounds like a plan Chubbs. I’m going in early August but would love to get out there again for the cup especially if we can get a MR smokeout goin. I will definitely be in touch about that. As far as all the questions go from different people: I would expect about 2500-3500$ for a week in the dam. That is somewhat conservative but it all depends on what and how much you smoke. The MR cup would be sick especially since we would judge the strains with no stake at hand. These days if your name isn’t Greenhouse or Barneys don’t bother entering. I guess that makes Grey Area’s awards that much more impressive since they don’t whore themselves out like Derry and Arjan.
@meangreenmartian: While The Greenhouse and Barney’s do have a bit of an unfair advantage seeing as they have more $, it’s not like they are winning cups with schwag. They have some good bud. But that’s not to say the other shops don’t.
Personally, I liked L.A. Confidential from De Tweede Kamer as much as Super Lemon Haze or Utopia Haze.
Yea the LA from Green Place was the best strain I had in my most recent trip. Keep me updated on your cup plans. I am definitely going to try and swing it.
Hi guys! I am also planning to go to this year’s CC. I wanted to go 2 years ago but the money were big problem. Now though this seems possible. I am from Bulgaria, but currently living in Cyprus, so if there is anyone from around here let me know. I am thinking of catching the plane at 21st of november. Please let me know of the place where we can meet
I will be in europe during the fall and I am already going to amsterdam but I put off the first one for the cc.
If anybodys knows what the dates are that would be incredilby helpful. Also if you really need a judges passes to experience the cup or not.
Have a good one and stay faded.
@Dusty Foot: My bad, totally spaced on including the dates.
The 2009 Cannabis Cup runs from November 22 – 26th. You definitely want to be there all day Friday as there is usually a great party at The Greenhouse. Last year Woody Harrelson and Redman were there.
And yes, you and whomever you are traveling with need a judges pass to fully experience The Cup.
Im so down
Would youy recomend and specific hotels, I have been to amsterdam twice but one was on business and the hotel would be to expensieve and the other one was a house exchange.
@Dusty Foot: It’s kind of hard to recommend a hotel cause not everyone likes the same style and has the same amount of $ to spend.
Do a little research. Use http://www.tripadvisor.com. That’s how we found our hotel.
I have stayed at a few different hotels over my trips. I would recommend the Marriott in the south of the city. If you want to stay near dam square then the Crowne Plaza is nice. It is very close to Grey Area and Amnesia as well. The only problem with hotels is there is a no tolerance smoking policy in the city hotels now. If you have a few friends going then I would recommend renting an apartment or houseboat.
@meangreenmartian: And they are VERY strict about you not smoking on the hotel. Cigs. or weed.
Hey bro this is youngbeast from GC
That’s bullshit from HT about the pass rejection, but we’ll still get videos right? I mean fuck backstage, all the good partyin is right in front of yal
I hope you still do video bro, every video you’re in is legit
@youngbeast817: Sup Beast.
Yes, I will definitely be bringing you videos from ALL OVER Amsterdam during the 2009 Cannabis Cup. Not having a press pass will not slow me down at all.
(FYI, I’ll still be getting a normal judges pass and will have access to 100% of the buds and events)
Hey, i just wanted to recommend the hotel backstage. Its where we always stay as it’s a short walk from grey area and sits directly above a tiny local shop called crush. I’m definitely in for this by the way, I would love to experience my first cannabis cup!
i got 2 press passes… but indeed, it’s for a magazine… but i think you guys deserve those passes too, many people who read this… sad that they rejected… but that doesnt mean you guy’s won’t be present right? i would sure like to meet the guys behind this site! =)
grtz
@Jeff: Of course I’ll be present. No way I am going to miss it.
I think Steve Bloom, the guy in charge of The Cannabis Cup does not like me.
well, then we’ll definitly have a smoke there =)
@Chubbs
HELL YES BRO!
Video = Instant Win, especially at the CC hehe
And man, MR deserves so much more attention than it is getting with all these great reviews. I see super-dank bud that far outclass shit I’ve seen on the City lol, I’ll be pointing a few trusted friends to the site
@youngbeast817: Video for sure!
Thanks for the kind words.
Hey i always book my trip to arrive the morning after the cup 2009 will be trip 4 to get amsterdamaged.
agree with youngbeast817 on all the HQ dankness here @ MR. feel like i get a virtual high every time i visit. goddammit i need to move to cali man!!
(you a LEO? no, not that kind. ur id: 8/17?, jus askin cause mine’s 8/16)
dam i hope i get the money to go this year, aint got no job now, but iM gonna start savin up fast,
yes you can bring back pipes and grinder as long as they are unused andything with resin or residue will get you thrown in the clink. Last time i went i bought home several pipes back in my carryon luggage. When you buy them from shops they wrap up your wares in packing paper so just leave it in that and you’ll be good to go.
I am interested in going, please place me on your list. I am currently working on reservations and planning. I hope enough interest may get MR reviewers press passes. See you at the Cup. Please contact me with any updates and one question I have is if you can bring back grinders or pipes through the airport.
@Cheech: No, you cannot bring anything back.
hello chubbs,i am a new member 2 marijuana reviews,and i haven’t done this before,this is my first time.So my post might not come out right,lol,i am myself looking to go to the cannabis cup 09,i have been a’dam many times b for,but not the cannabis cup,and this year im not going to miss it.i have noticed some posts about u going this year,and meeting up with other members of mr,i think thats a gr8 idea,i am very interested and i would very much like to b a part of this,and meet up wit u and the mr members and ave a fat smoke.
,if ok with u ofcourse,please lemme no from.NeckleMan
I’ll be seeing you at the cup, Chubbs.
Hey, I’ll be attending the Cup for the 1st time this year and I couldn’t be more excited! Most likely I’ll be flying solo, with a rare exception I find a friend of mine that can pull some quick cash together.
After looking around for various hotels, my work manager suggested I look for generous people to help with a place to stay during the 22nd-26th BEFORE I book.
I’d be MORE THAN WILLING to help cover the costs of any place someone is staying at there, and all I’d need is a place to sleep!
If ANYONE could help me out, I’d appreciate it. Post a reply, and I’ll send you my Facebook/MySpace info and we can go from there…
@chubbs, hello i know that hotels have a no smoking policy as do most cafes when it comes to tobacco but iv never had a problem with them really I mean its policy but iv never seen it enforced personally but i am only there a few months a year.
Hello Everyone,
I’m new to this site. I’m going to attending the 2009 Cannabis Cup in Amsterdam!!! Can’t wait. I got a judges pass too. I’m going solo and would love to met up with some fellow smokers.
Hello Everyone,
I have been at the website a few times but with the Cup coming up here in A’dam I had to post. I have been studying here in Amsterdam this past semester and would love to meet up somewhere for a few widow makers perhaps?? I have been around to plenty of coffeeshops while I have been here. California native here! Looking forward to figuring a spot to meet up to smoke and chat!
@ TikiTiki / Chubbs
Came across MR after doing some research for my 2009 Cannabis Cup extravaganza. I am an Alaska native, living in Germany / working as an Au pair. Just last week I mentioned to the family that I need a week off for the cup, they were more than willing to help me out. So I leave here Saturday the 21st to make it for early registration. They are letting drive the family van, so I don’t have to worry about a place to sleep. I can just crash in the back of the van for the week I am visiting. We should definitely get together for a few sessions. Looking forward to visiting Amsterdam.
Also Chubbs, great post. I hope everything has fallen into place for the CC 2009. If you have a group organized and some shops in mind, I wouldn’t mind joining the crew for some analysis.
Anyways have a great day,
Matt
I just got back from CC09. Didn’t get a judges pass but got a 30 euro pass for the day. I have never experienced anything like that in my life!
Great picks for the coffee shops, it made the trip even better! Wish I would have read this sooner, I would definately met up with you and your wife at the cup or at a coffee shop.
@ Mari: No worries.
I am going to be posting a ton of pics, videos and reviews today so check back for sure.
–Chubbs
im heading over to the dam on friday (pretty fukin psyched)for the weekend so hope to b seein dat review b4 i go cuz i reli wana make the best of it
hope u had a blast at the cup!!
It says on wikipedia that in 2008 there were 2300 judges at Cannabis Cup. On average, how many people attend the festival over the 4 days and how many people attend on any given day?