Seattle Hempfest: 2018 Schedule & Insider’s Guide

It wouldn’t be August in Seattle without Hempfest. The annual celebration of cannabis, legalization, and marijuana culture parks its fragrant, fun-loving self down on Seattle’s waterfront this weekend and lets rip with one of the greatest parties of the summer.

For those hitting this year’s event, we have the full schedule plus some pro tips to help make your visit the smoothest, coolest, and happiest day of the season.

Know Before You Go

When: Friday, Aug 17, 12 noon to 8 pm

Saturday, Aug 18, 10 am to 8 pm

Sunday, Aug 19, 10 am to 8 pm

Where: Hempfest sprawls over three parks—Centennial, Myrtle Edwards, and Olympic Sculpture Parks, which connect along the Seattle waterfront, about one mile north of the Great Wheel.

Cost: Free, but it’d be cool if you ponied up the suggested $10 donation.

Age limit: None

Weather forecast: Partly cloudy with a high of 77°F on Friday, full sun with highs in the upper 70s/low 80s on Saturday and Sunday.

Ticket required: None

Can I bring my own food & bev? Sure, but alcohol is not allowed in the parks. Pro tip: Bring water and a blanket. You’re going to want to stretch out.Find the Dispensary Near You Right NowWhat about, um, you know: Buy your cannabis before arriving. None will be sold onsite. This is an all-ages cannabis festival, not an onsite consumption event like the Cannabis Cup.

What dispensaries are near the event? You’ve got Have a Heart’s Belltown location; further south there’s Green Fire Cannabis; Dockside Sodo; Diego Pellicer; and Ganja Goddess. If you’re staying near Capitol Hill, check out Ruckus on East Republican. If you’re crashing in North Seattle, The Joint‘s University District dispensary is your go-to store. Find the one nearest you with Leafly’s Dispensary Finder.

Won’t they be crowded this weekend? Yes. May we, ahem, suggest using Leafly Pickup to place your order online. Budtenders will have your package ready when you arrive, and you’ll fly past all the customers waiting in line.

Any special Hempfest deals?Diego Pellicer has some crazy deals for Hempfest: 65% off Str8fire Kief, 40% off Viva Cannabis & Odo Concentrates, 25% off Journeyman 10mg cookies, and 67% (!) off Herb’s Oil Ounces. Supplies are limited, so get there early. Order via Leafly Pickup and the Diego staff will have it ready for you at a special express station. In the U District, The Joint has 10% off the entire store Thurs-Sun. At Ganja Goddess, they’re offering Burnwell 14g packages of flower (Candyland and Sunset Sherbet) for $74, Thurs-Sun, limit 1 per customer.

Any strain recommendations?

Click for more about the strain. (Elysse Feigneblatt/Leafly)

Of course. Our cannabis expert Dante Jordan suggests stocking up on Orange Cookies. “It’s going to provide a heavy-hitting high that also gives you a little boost of ‘I need to get outside’ energy,” he says. “It leaves you stoned for hours, so you can leave the house without worrying about when you’re going to smoke again. This is great for Hempfest since you have to get stoned before getting there, and you aren’t quite sure how long it’ll be until you leave.”

What if the crowd’s a little much for me? Our strain editor Bailey Rahn recommends something higher in CBD. “Hempfest can be a very overstimulating environment, especially for people who have never been or don’t smoke tons and tons of weed,” she says. Calm your head with high-CBD classics like ACDC or Harlequin, or look into a new high-CBD strain, CBD Lilly.Hempfest Dispensary Lines Are Epic

Getting There

Best Entry Point: There are three entry points (north, central, and south). The easiest and best is central, via the West Thomas Street pedestrian overpass accessed at the intersection of 3rd Ave W and W Harris St in lower Queen Anne, four blocks west of Key Arena. More information on entry points here.

Where do I park the car? Don’t park on the street. Most spaces are limited to two hours, rates are expensive, and nobody wants to trek back to feed the meter. Find a cheap lot. The Mercer Street Garage, ($15/day), north of Key Arena, is always a good option. Park there and rideshare or bikeshare to the West Thomas Street overpass. Or enjoy a lovely stroll through Seattle Center. Pro tip: Get $10 off two rides with Lyft using the code HEMPFEST2018.

Once You’re In

Stash your stuff: Hempfest offers on-site locker storage for $15 per day, which includes free all-day phone charging at the Phone Charging Valet station.

Cool to light up? Technically, no. It is legal for adults 21 and older to possess up to an ounce of cannabis in Washington State. It is not legal to consume in public, and Hempfest is definitely in public. But there’s also a tradition of respect and discretion at Hempfest. If you practice discretion, the local authorities will generally look the other way. Rule of thumb: Don’t be a scene-making jerk and ruin it for everyone.

If I can’t buy weed what can I buy? Hempfest is a great place to purchase a new glass bong or dab rig. Pro tip from Leafly’s Will Hyde: “Many vendors have special event pricing. Vendors are eager to make their first sale of the day, so try to barter with them and really capture that value, or wait to purchase until Sunday afternoon when vendors would much rather give you a discount than pack their items back out at the end of the event.”

I’m suddenly hungry. Go figure. Is there food onsite? Hell yeah. Hempfest’s Munchie Market has everything from Athena’s Greek gyros to Mar Y Tierra’s Mexican plates to the fryapalooza known as Poutine Your Mouth.

Anything offsite but nearby? Absolutely. South along the waterfront there’s Anthony’s on Pier 66 and Elliott’s Oyster House on Pier 56. In lower Queen Anne there’s Ozzie’s, Pagliacci, Racha Noodles, and Dick’s Drive-In (with air-conditioned indoor seating). There’s also a Safeway at 1st Ave W and Republican.

If you need to get away and chill for an hour: Head over the West Thomas Street overpass to Seattle Center. You can lounge near (or in) the International Fountain or grab some grub from more than a dozen options in the Armory. Pro tip from Leafly’s Bruce Barcott: “My favorite spot in Seattle Center–and maybe the entire city–is La Marzocco, the coffee house that’s located in the KEXP Gathering Space. Grab a sofa, enjoy some brew, and listen to the KEXP DJs create a soundtrack for your day.”

Friday Schedule

Leafly’s Daily Pick: Get yourself a dose of righteous information and inspiration at the Share Parker Main Stage late this afternoon between 4:40 and 5:00.

Danica Noble

First up: Kevin Jodrey, owner of NorCal’s Wonderland Nursery and an internationally respected expert on cannabis seeds and growing. He’s followed by Seattle City Attorney Pete Holmes, who co-sponsored Washington’s Initiative 502 and is now working to expunge cannabis convictions in Seattle. Then comes Seattle attorney Danica Noble, director of NORML Women of Washington and a fierce warrior for cannabis rights.

Cup winner: Gelato

Strain of the Day: Gelato. “Straight-up fire,” says Leafly’s Dante Jordan. “It’ll give you a bit of an energy boost, but in a way that makes you want to go somewhere and just chill for a bit.” Order it through Leafly Pickup at Ruckus on Capitol Hill.

Share Parker Main Stage

Note: Later events are hidden for space reasons. Click “Show entries” or “Next” to see more. 

Ric Smith Hemposium Stage

Seeley Black Stage

Saturday Schedule

Pick of the Day: DOPE Awards, Seeley Black Stage, 6 pm. The state’s top growers, processors, and retailers compete for the DOPE crown, awarded each year by DOPE Magazine. The best of the best will be named in more than 30 categories. Hang out and help the winners celebrate, and meet the makers of some of your favorite products. Remember: We’re all winners tonight.

To help you ride on.

Strain of the Day: Good oldACDC . It’s probably not your start-up strain for Saturday, but you’d be wise to pack some of this high-CBD, low-THC cannabis for yourself or a friend. When the sights, sounds, smells, and crowds become a little too much, ye olde AckerDacker will help mellow you out.

Share Parker Main Stage

Ric Smith Hemposium Stage

Seeley Black Stage

Sunday Schedule

Leafly’s Pick of the Day: The Ric Smith Hemposium Stage, 10 am to 3 pm.

This stage really hits its stride on Sunday, with six back-to-back panel discussions packed with some of the best cannabis minds in the nation. Highlights: Ngaio Bealum will set your morning with a smile (10 am) and bring on a panel All About the Cannabinoid System (10:15 am), followed by a panel about Cannabis POWs (11 am). Then it’s Tackling Cannabias: Normalizing Cannabis in an Alcohol-Friendly Society (11:50 am); Topicals, Tinctures, Extractions & Infusions (12:40 pm) with two of our faves, AC Braddock and Ah Warner; Diversity Plans and Social Equity (1:30 pm), featuring the East Coast powerhouse Shanita Penny, president of the Minority Cannabis Business Association; and CBD: What’s the Buzz? (2:20 pm) anchored by Project CBD founder Martin Lee.

Let’s Make a Deal

Pro Tip: Sunday afternoon is a great time to bargain-hunt for some nice glass pieces. Vendors would rather sell to you than pack them home.

Share Parker Main Stage

Ric Smith Hemposium Stage

Seeley Black Stage