How does membership work when several of you are travelling together? Individually. That is the short answer and it is also the whole answer: a private association keeps a nominal register of members, so each adult applies in their own name, identifies themselves in their own name and is admitted or not in their own name. There is no group application, no one person signing for the others and no block admission. Understanding that before you organise anything saves a group a good deal of confusion.
Why it works one person at a time
The register is nominal
An association is a private entity with statutes and a register of the people who belong to it. Membership is a relationship between the association and one individual. That is what the legal form is; a group is not a legal person that can be enrolled.
Identification is individual
Each adult presents their own identity document. Nobody can identify on someone else’s behalf, and no member can vouch a non-member through the door. The requirements are the same as for anyone applying alone, and our article on what you need to join covers them.
Each decision is separate
The association decides on each application against its own conditions. It follows that outcomes within a group can differ, and it is worth your group knowing that in advance rather than discovering it at the wrong moment.
What this means in practice for a group
Start earlier than you would alone
Several applications take more coordinating than one, and every member of the group has to do their own part. If the timing already matters for one person — as set out in how far in advance to request membership — it matters more for five.
Everyone does their own paperwork
There is no way for one organised person to handle it for the rest. Whoever is arranging the trip can share information, but each adult submits their own request and brings their own document.
Do not build the trip around it
A plan that only works if every person in the group is admitted is a fragile plan. Treat it as something that may resolve for some, all or none, and keep the rest of the itinerary independent of the outcome.
Ask about groups directly
Some associations have their own conditions about several people applying at once. That is a question for the association, not for an article, and it belongs in the same message as everything else you are asking.
Sharing a private space with other people in it
It is a members’ space, not a private hire
The room is shared with people who are not part of your group, many of whom come precisely because it is calm. A group arriving as a group changes the atmosphere of a small space very quickly, and that is worth being conscious of.
Volume, phones and photography
Conversation is normal; a group at group volume is not. Photography and filming affect everyone else’s privacy, which is why associations generally restrict them. The full set of expectations is in our guide to etiquette rules in a Barcelona cannabis club.
Everyone is responsible for themselves
Membership is individual and so is conduct. Nobody is anyone else’s chaperone, and the internal rules apply to each person on their own account.
What the space is for
These are quiet, private members’ spaces for adults. They are not venues for celebrations, and treating one as the destination for a group event misreads what it is. If that is what your group is looking for, Barcelona has an entire hospitality sector for it.
What will not work
- Turning up as a group without anyone having applied.
- One person applying and bringing the others in.
- Booking or reserving the space for a group event.
- Anyone in the street offering to get a whole group in at once.
- Assuming that because one application was accepted, the rest will be.
Frequently asked questions
1. Can we apply as a group?
No. Each adult applies in their own name and identifies themselves individually. Some associations have their own conditions when several people apply at once, so ask.
2. Can a member bring friends who are not members?
No. Access is restricted to registered members. Anyone coming in has to be a member in their own right.
3. What if only some of us are admitted?
That is a real possibility, since each application is decided separately. It is the main reason not to build a group plan around the outcome.
4. Can we reserve the space for a private event?
These are shared members’ spaces, not venues for hire. That is not what the associative model is.
5. Does a group get in faster if we all ask at once?
If anything the opposite: more applications mean more to process. Contacting the association early is the only thing that helps.
In short, on membership when travelling as a group: the process is individual, the decisions are individual, the conduct is individual, and the only thing a group can usefully do together is start early. Kush Weed Coffeeshop is a private association of adults on Carrer de Freixures, in the Santa Caterina area, with access restricted to registered members on prior application and identification. If you would like to know how the membership application works and what conditions apply, get in touch and we will explain them.