Where to pick up cuban cigars?

[RandyandKatie]

I didn't know if getting them at the airport, the resort or in Nigril would be best. Anybody have any thoughts on this?

[Aurora55]

I amhere at Csa they sell them here on Reggae Night which is on Fridays.

[khaos]

A disclaimer first: If you are an American, there is an embargo against cuba and it is illegal for you to buy, sell, or use anything that is cuban. Now that aside, you can do a google search and look at many cigar forums. Most say that the only way you can know for sure that you are going to get authentic cuban and not fakes is to buy from La Casa del Habano. One is found in Montego Bay and the other is found in Falmouth at the port.

I hope this helps.

[usmc7236]

Lot's of fakes to be found in Jamaica (and elsewhere in the world to include Cuba for that matter). I use a trusted internet seller and have them shipped from Europe a few months before my vacation. Its fairly easy to do some web research and learn how to spot fakes.

S/F
Scott and June

[Casey]

What khaos said. We'll be visiting Jamaica for the first time in May. I'm an avid cigar smoker and would not think of trying to buy Cubans outside of an LCDH - way too many fakes around and some of them are 'good' fakes.

[Woodbridgeata]

anyone know how far Falmouth is from TI? I would live to go to the shop.

[dirtleg]

My suggestion is to simply buy a good quality Dominican while at CSA. They are excellent cigars, often better than what are sold as "Cuban", and you don't have to worry about getting fakes or being way overcharged for a cigar that may actually be inferior in quality. Just my 2 cents, enjoy your stogies.

[RandyandKatie]

[QUOTE=khaos;208296]A disclaimer first: If you are an American, there is an embargo against cuba and it is illegal for you to buy, sell, or use anything that is cuban.

Khaos thanks for the info. As for the disclaimer, yes, I know - that is what makes them taste so good!

[Sonofthebeach]

Cigar King in Times Square shopping center close to CSA. Never had any problems.

[WISteve]

Make sure you do your homework on the Cuban cigars before you buy them. There are a great deal of sites that will help you identify reals from fakes. Pay attention to the wrappers. Now I'm thinking about chillin and have a cigar.

[sweetnessinthesand]

I am not a big time cigar smoker, but I am of the mind "when in Rome..." So I did a little bit of research, looking at authentic labels vs fake labels (thank you cigaraficionado.com). When I checked out the Cubans at the Jewel Box in Sans Souci, the labels did match the authentic ones from the website as far as I could tell. I had heard that the ones sold in gift shops are fake, but I couldn't spot anything out of the ordinary on the ones I looked at. I looked at Cohiba's, Monte Cristo's, and Romeo y Julieta's. They all matched the descriptions on the website perfectly. I am not sure how much they normally cost, but the ones at the gift shop were a bigger size, and they were being sold for $15 each, and the largest size ones were $21 each (but all cigars were buy 3 get 1 free). Also, at Duty Free in Sangster Airport, I did see a box of 20 sticks being sold for $180 bucks, but again, I am not sure what size they were.

I know Cigardude is a HUGE cigar buff, and maybe he can give some insight on authentic Cubans, or their quality compared to dominicans, hondurans, or Jamaicans.

[suzyQ]

Hi Woodbridgeata, You pass Falmouth on the way to CTI from Montego Bay--perhaps you can persuade your shuttle driver and fellow riders to make a detour on the way to the resort??? Falmouth is in the parish of Trelawney I believe...Have a great trip!

[leonkelly]

The best way to know if you got a cuban is to purchase it from the gift shop. These are sealed boxed cigars from Cuba. The guy who sells them on certain nights is iffy at best. Even his good ones are filler. Smoke away

[KrisJamie]

Khaos thanks for the info. As for the disclaimer, yes, I know - that is what makes them taste so good!

Most of the one's you'll buy won't be Cuban at all, so maybe you can just pretend with the Dominicans?

[drbcwp]

You go through Falmouth on the way to CTI,

Falmouth might be a bit closer to Mobay than Ocho so it would be an hour or more (driver,traffic) from CTI

[khaos]

I agree with you on the reason they taste so good. I wasn't sure they would post my reply if I didn't put the disclaimer up there. I found out that when you arrive they don't mind it if you go to the lcdh and then come back to pick up a shuttle. I called 2 days ago to check and leave for TI tomorrow.

I can't wait.

[Woodbridgeata]

Hey suzyQ
Thanks for the idea! I will try to have him stop at the shop providing the other guests don't mind. I am an avid cigar smoker and know how to spot fakes. People go as far as counterfeiting the seals on closed boxes, I heard that it even happens at the gift shop. Please beware of counterfeit cigars to all of you. I must be in the wrong business. LOL. 16 LONG DAYS LEFT!!!

[Woodbridgeata]

I just got my usual shipment of Dominicans. I will taking a few with me and try to get tho the shop in Falmouth on the way to the resort

[ORV]

Hi Woodbridgeata, You pass Falmouth on the way to CTI from Montego Bay--perhaps you can persuade your shuttle driver and fellow riders to make a detour on the way to the resort??? Falmouth is in the parish of Trelawney I believe...Have a great trip!

The LCDH is in the cruise ship village in Falmouth. Not sure you can get in there without being on a cruise. You might want to check the details on this. I was just there last month. One thing to be aware of is that you will pay much more at a LCDH than at gift shops or local souvenir stores. But you can be assured they are real.

[sweetnessinthesand]

Lot's of fakes to be found in Jamaica (and elsewhere in the world to include Cuba for that matter). I use a trusted internet seller and have them shipped from Europe a few months before my vacation. Its fairly easy to do some web research and learn how to spot fakes.

S/F
Scott and June

Do you use a company or person that you purchase through? I would be interested in learning more about that. Also, what are your experiences with travelling through airports with cigars? Transportation, safety/fragility, customs, immigration, etc. you can email me at smartguyj88@aol.com if you like. Thanks!

[Cigar Dude]

I am not a big time cigar smoker, but I am of the mind "when in Rome..." So I did a little bit of research, looking at authentic labels vs fake labels (thank you cigaraficionado.com). When I checked out the Cubans at the Jewel Box in Sans Souci, the labels did match the authentic ones from the website as far as I could tell. I had heard that the ones sold in gift shops are fake, but I couldn't spot anything out of the ordinary on the ones I looked at. I looked at Cohiba's, Monte Cristo's, and Romeo y Julieta's. They all matched the descriptions on the website perfectly. I am not sure how much they normally cost, but the ones at the gift shop were a bigger size, and they were being sold for $15 each, and the largest size ones were $21 each (but all cigars were buy 3 get 1 free). Also, at Duty Free in Sangster Airport, I did see a box of 20 sticks being sold for $180 bucks, but again, I am not sure what size they were.

I know Cigardude is a HUGE cigar buff, and maybe he can give some insight on authentic Cubans, or their quality compared to dominicans, hondurans, or Jamaicans.

Unfortunately, I agree with you. I suspect the cigars to be fakes. But, that being said I also believe that the owner of the Jewel Box believes they are real. Whoever he gets them from has convinced him they are real but the ones I saw were not. I am sorry to say this too because what better place to get a legit cigar than the resort itself!

As far as going to Falmouth, it's about 45 minutes from Montego Bay and about an hour from CSS. It is an actual LCDH which means they will be selling the real deal but their prices are VERY high. As an example, a box of PSD4's ran around $450! As a comparison the same box in Grand Cayman sells for $225 and it's also at an LCDH. Sorry, but I'm not paying double.

Jamaica is full of fake Cuban cigars. You can get the real deal at the airport but not on incoming flights. You can only get to the shop for departure flights. That sucks.

I would bring my own special sticks with me when you visit the island. That's what I do. I can enjoy Jamica without worrying about looking for cigars. I'll already have my own!

[chrisnsue]

I bring about 10-15 of cigars bought in the states with me. I but 2 to 3 Cubans from the Jewel Box (at CSS) while I'm there for $18-$20 a stick. The Jewel Box cigars are in sealed Cuban boxes, and the are high quality so I'm sure they are real, and if not, I don't really care, since they taste great.

That's my 2 cents.

Chris

[Woodbridgeata]

Cigar dude, I always like to hear from you, even if its not the best news! I hate being ripped off so I ll bring my old faithful El Rey Dumundo maduro's. I will be at TI from April 13-20 , if any Canadians will be there at that time and would be so kind as to bring a few Cohibia Siglo V's with the, I will be happy to buy them. You can't miss me. Big dude with a claddah tat on right arm ans scorpion on left.
See you then
Bob

[sweetnessinthesand]

Thanks for the update Cigardude. I hope the ones I looked at were real, because they matched the website perfectly from what I could tell. But, like Chrisnsue said, as long as they tasted great, thats all that matters. I also wish you could buy Cigars at the airport ARRIVAL instead of jus departure. It would make things so much nicer.

On a slightly separate note, Cigardude, or anyone else for that matter. What other noncuban cigars have you tried or do you recommend from the gift shop in CSS? I enjoyed the free Jamaican cigar they give you, but it smoked so fast, it was gone before I could really enjoy it. Any suggestions on what to try or ones to stay away from for return trips would be greatly appreciated.

[Casey]

I bought one cigar (RyJ) in the gift shop and it was good. The first Monday night we went to the Havana night for "sampling of Cuban cigars and rum". The rum was available for sampling, but the cigars were for sale only. And I can't vouch for all the cigars on sale, but the barber pole wrapped "Cohibas" were definitely fake! Cohiba does not make a barber pole (two shade) wrapper. I mentioned my concern to the manager and he said he was not aware and would look into it.