Nevada, USA
Top of the list was a tough decision, but Nevada is always going to win out. It never ceases to amaze that a country as inherently conservative and god-fearing as the US should allow legal prostitution, even if Nevada’s brothels are all in remote rural areas, shoved out of plain sight.
Probably most famous is the Moonlite Bunny Ranch (bunnyranch.com), once the proud star of its very own HBO documentary series. The legal brothel has been going since 1955 –thankfully the girls haven’t.
The ranch was a firm favourite of Mötley Crüe’s Vince Neil. Although, the bleach-blond rocker was charged with battery afterwards. Nice, Vince, nice … Then, there’s Nevada’s ultimate drawcard … Las Vegas.
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This unrivalled sin city is an unabashed orgy of hedonism; the place to drink, gamble, see strippers and get into scrapes. In fact, so dogged in pursuit of the party is Vegas that its newest gimmick is daylife, which takes the drinking and cavorting associated with nightlife, but removes the pesky necessity of waiting until the sun goes down. Think massive parties around the pool that start as soon as the sun comes up and don’t stop until you’ve had enough.
So there you go, folks: if you want to let loose, laugh in the wizened face of responsibility and not get judged for being utterly hammered before 10am, Las Vegas is for you. Happy days.
Bogata, Colombia
Not only is cocaine Colombia’s most famous product, it’s also fast becoming its biggest tourist attraction. You can even take tours of coke factories, often with the opportunity to smoke the produce at the end.
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Food for thought: people that sell cocaine in Colombia don’t tend to be very nice. Prisons aren’t so great, either. And the rampant drug trade has completely fucked up the country for normal citizens. Quite the party, eh?
Amsterdam, Netherlands
The beloved Dam isn’t the place that it once was, but there are still cafes happy to let you in and smoke yourself silly.
Get in the toasties at trippy Dampkring (Handboogstraat 29 1012 XM) and Rookies (rookies.nl), which has a smoking area that seats 70.
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There’s always the seedy element of the city to fall back on, with prostitution and live sex shows still flourishing. Whatever you’re into, you’re bound to find it here. What happens in Amsterdam, stays in Amsterdam.
Tijuana, Mexico
The party town of choice for underage Americans (the legal drinking age here is 18, lower than the States’ 21). Tijuana also has a legal red-light district and a hands-on policy with strippers. Fact is, here you’d be looked down upon for not touching the merchandise. Enjoy.
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A word of warning: the police are all too happy to arrest gringos, so try not to overdo the bad behaviour, which can be difficult with tequila this cheap.
Goa, India
The Goa freaks scene might have faded from the realms of cool back in the Sixties, but south India’s beach-bum mecca still knows how to put on a rave.
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Plus, thanks to police corruption, you can toke to your heart’s content at most beach bars in Anjuna, the owners have struck deals with the authorities that, by and large, keep you protected. There are also raves on Anjuna beach at least twice a week. Probably worth mentioning that there’s a lengthy prison sentence should you get caught, though.
