Weekend in Holland in early 2011

[Tropic]

Hello everyone,

my girl and I are planning a trip to Europe at the end of 2010/early 2011, and we are considering spending a weekend in Holland. We first thought of going to Amsterdam, as most tourists usually do I guess, but I've been told that it is better to visit smaller towns, which are less touristical and thus a bit less expensive.
We are just looking to spend a nice weekend in a calm place (countryside? why not), toking some fine herbs and hash. Not looking to go out partying or stuff like that, just relax.
So I was looking for recommendations regarding towns to visit (and nearby coffee shops of course), places to stay, prices... general info in fact... also, what are the guidelines on smoking and possessing cannabis? What if I get caught by a cop with a few grams of herbs on me in the street? In the train? At the hotel?
Any tips that could be useful in organizing this trip would be greatly appreciated!

EDIT: I remember hearing that Holland was considering forbidding access to coffeeshops for tourists... is that effective? Or just a rumor?

 

[limey]

Hello everyone,

my girl and I are planning a trip to Europe at the end of 2010/early 2011, and we are considering spending a weekend in Holland. We first thought of going to Amsterdam, as most tourists usually do I guess, but I've been told that it is better to visit smaller towns, which are less touristical and thus a bit less expensive.
We are just looking to spend a nice weekend in a calm place (countryside? why not), toking some fine herbs and hash. Not looking to go out partying or stuff like that, just relax.
So I was looking for recommendations regarding towns to visit (and nearby coffee shops of course), places to stay, prices... general info in fact... also, what are the guidelines on smoking and possessing cannabis? What if I get caught by a cop with a few grams of herbs on me in the street? In the train? At the hotel?
Any tips that could be useful in organizing this trip would be greatly appreciated!

EDIT: I remember hearing that Holland was considering forbidding access to coffeeshops for tourists... is that effective? Or just a rumor?

Try Haarlem, Leiden and Utrecht. All very accessible from Amsterdam.

Look here for coffeeshops http://www.coffeeshop.freeuk.com/Directory.html

Smoking: smoke in coffeeshops or discretely in the park or on the beach. Don't do it on the street: it's rude (and illegal). Hotels - be discreet (which means making an effort as it's hard to smoke stinky bud discretely) as not all (in fact: few) hotels (especially family run B&Bs) approve of such things. In Summer, if your girlfriend can hack it, consider - and it's cheap! - staying at a campsite in one of the trekkers' huts. Particularly good if you don't mind a bit of cycling, see http://www.roughguides.com/website/...default.aspx?titleid=97&xid=idh247226176_0037

Possession: not an issue. Best not to carry more than 7g but they aren't really going to bother you.

 

[Tropic]

Thanks for the reply limey, great info and useful links! We wouldn't mind staying at a campsite but we're going there in winter.
Thanks for the heads up on hotels, smoking and possession, too!