The best first experience with cannabis is a boring one to plan: a small amount, a free evening and the right format for you. Here is how the four main options compare, and what we suggest to people trying it for the first time.
Four ways to try cannabis
The biggest differences are how quickly you feel it and how long it lasts.
Edibles
30 to 90 minutes to arrive, four to eight hours in total. No smoke and no smell. The easiest to overdo if you are impatient.
Gummy dose guideVapes
Felt within minutes, fading over two to three hours. Easy to control one puff at a time, and discreet.
THC vapes explainedPre-rolls
The classic experience with nothing to prepare. Fast to feel, best shared on a first try.
Pre-roll guideFlower
The most choice and the best value, but you need papers, a grinder and a little practice.
Sativa, indica or hybrid?How to plan a good first time
Browse the menu- 01
Choose a free evening
At home or where you are staying, with nothing to drive to afterwards.
- 02
Pick one format
Mixing edibles and a joint on the first night is how evenings go sideways.
- 03
Start low
5mg of an edible, one or two puffs of a vape, or a few draws of a shared pre-roll.
- 04
Wait before more
Two hours for edibles, ten minutes for a vape or joint.
- 05
Skip the alcohol
Wine and cannabis together hit harder than either alone.
- 06
Have snacks and water
And a film you have already seen.
If you only try one thing
Most first-timers are happiest with a gummy. It needs no equipment, has no smell, and the dose is printed on it, so you know exactly what you are taking. Start with 5mg, or half of our 10mg Blueberry Buzz, and wait a full two hours.
If you would rather feel it quickly and keep it short, a vape is the next best choice.
What to do
- Stay put somewhere comfortable and familiar.
- Drink water and eat something.
- Put on music or a familiar show.
- Remember it always passes, usually within a few hours.
What first-timers order
Buying cannabis for the first time in South Africa
Adults 18 and over may use cannabis in private. Because it cannot be sold to the public, you buy through a private collective: at Dixie Jane membership is free for life and created at checkout.
Read the guide to the lawFor most people, a low-dose gummy: 5mg, or half of a 10mg, on a free evening at home, waiting two full hours before taking more.
5mg of an edible, one or two puffs of a vape, or a few draws of a pre-roll shared with a friend. You can always take more later, but you cannot take less.
They can feel stronger and last much longer, and they take up to two hours to arrive. That delay is why people accidentally take too much.
It is best not to on your first few tries. Together they hit harder than either one alone.
Yes. Membership of Dixie Jane is free for life and is created automatically at checkout.
Order for delivery in Cape Town
Uber delivery within 90 minutes, usually under 45, across the inner city and Atlantic Seaboard. Breaze same day across Greater Cape Town, and The Courier Guy nationwide in two to three days.
Dixie Jane De Waterkant
- Address
- 40 Chiappini Street, De Waterkant, Cape Town 8001
- Hours
- Mon to Sat 08:00 to 22:00
Sun 08:00 to 16:00 - Happy hour
- Every day, 15:00 to 18:00
- Call
- 021 013 7801
- +27 71 106 8267