Buying Cigars and Rum in Cienfuegos

[Cary Cruiser]

I will be traveling to Havana, Cienfuegos, and Santiago de Cuba on a cruise next year and thought it might be cheaper to buy my rum and cigars in Cienfuegos. Any good ideas on where to do this?

[VidaNaPraia]

I will be traveling to Havana, Cienfuegos, and Santiago de Cuba on a cruise next year and thought it might be cheaper to buy my rum and cigars in Cienfuegos. Any good ideas on where to do this?

 

You may find that brand name rum and cigars of the same quality are sold at about the same price throughout the country. It's a government business, for profit.

Cubans themselves smoke cheap cigars and usually consume the cheaper brands of rum.

You may be offered cigars of unknown provenance, with or without (fake) brand labels, for cheaper prices on the street. The government allows farmers to keep 10% of the crop to roll and sell. Some of them are good, according to the cigar loving friend I buy for. Just realize you are not going to get top brand name high end cigars for 5 CUC or less.

If you're starting out in Havana, wander over to the Partargas store behind the Capitolio to get an idea of prices for cigars you are interested in trying.

[pbenjamin]

http://yulcigars.blogspot.ca/

 

 

The list above shows prices for both cigars and rum. I have no interest in cigars so I can't comment on the accuracy of the prices but the rum prices were exactly what I encountered. If you are buying Havana Club, a convenient location in Havana is Museo del Ron Havana Club, which is a couple of blocks south of the cruise terminal along the street that faces the waterfront. You enter the Museo bar, walk through it and then the store is on the left. There are, of course, other places, but this was convenient to the ship and worked for me.

[VidaNaPraia]

Just for example:

In March, I bought cigars for a friend at the Partagas store, varieties he had requested.

I bought some Cohiba Robusto and Cohiba Siglo II. Those two varieties came in 3 packs and I added 2 singles of Monte Cristo #3. Total was a bit more than $100 for the 8.

[Cary Cruiser]

You may find that brand name rum and cigars of the same quality are sold at about the same price throughout the country. It's a government business, for profit.

Cubans themselves smoke cheap cigars and usually consume the cheaper brands of rum.

You may be offered cigars of unknown provenance, with or without (fake) brand labels, for cheaper prices on the street. The government allows farmers to keep 10% of the crop to roll and sell. Some of them are good, according to the cigar loving friend I buy for. Just realize you are not going to get top brand name high end cigars for 5 CUC or less.

If you're starting out in Havana, wander over to the Partargas store behind the Capitolio to get an idea of prices for cigars you are interested in trying.

Thank you VidaNaPraia - I will only buy from a government run store, and it was my plan to head straight for the Partagas store in our first stop Havana. You bring up a good point about Government pricing being the same all over, so maybe I'll just stick to my original plan. Never had a Cuban one, but I sure like the Partagas stogies available stateside.

[Cary Cruiser]

http://yulcigars.blogspot.ca/

 

 

The list above shows prices for both cigars and rum. I have no interest in cigars so I can't comment on the accuracy of the prices but the rum prices were exactly what I encountered. If you are buying Havana Club, a convenient location in Havana is Museo del Ron Havana Club, which is a couple of blocks south of the cruise terminal along the street that faces the waterfront. You enter the Museo bar, walk through it and then the store is on the left. There are, of course, other places, but this was convenient to the ship and worked for me.

Many thanks, pbenjamin - that is a great list, perfect for planning my purchases.

[VidaNaPraia]

. Never had a Cuban one, but I sure like the Partagas stogies available stateside.

 

The Partagas store in Havana carries most/all Cuban brands----Romeo y Julieta, Cohiba, Montecristo, etc., in addition to the Partagas brand.