One day in Havana!
BlueB3
Posts: 119 ✭✭✭
I'll be in Havana, Cuba next month as part of a cruise. Looking for any recommendations for "must see/smoke" Cigar destinations. I know that the state stores are the only place that will sell real branded cigars, and to never believe the "my cousin works at the factory..." stories. 
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But everyone's cousin works at the factory. See old Havana, buy some El Credito cigars about $0.05 USD. If you have time in the evening go to Hotel Nacional and have a cigar and a drink outside. Take a classic convertible taxi from the port to the hotel along the Malecon $10CUC. Sooooo much to see and do, one day is impossible. Have Fun!4
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The old Havana Hilton is now the Havana Libre hotel. Nice Habanos shop there, and some nice house rolled cigars at a good price. He is rolling top quality leaf now.
You can walk there from Hotel Nacional
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In Fumo Pax
Money can't buy happiness, but it can buy cigars and that's close enough.Wylaff said:Atmospheric pressure and crap.0 -
Yeah, we're taking a cruise in May, and we dock in Havana ~9am, and depart @ 7am the next morning (I'll be sleeping on the ship) It's only one day, and it's so weird to go someplace that has almost no online footprint to help plan out a schedule.
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Sleeping on the ship is for sissies, you only have 22 hours, go for itA little dirt never hurt4
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What would make a better story to tell the grand kids years from now?....I sleep on the ship while in Cuba. Or, I woke up in some dive bar half naked with a new tattoo on my chest and I only had five mins to get back to the ship while in Cuba.9
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ForMud said:What would make a better story to tell the grand kids years from now?....I sleep on the ship while in Cuba. Or, I woke up in some dive bar half naked with a new tattoo on my chest and I only had five mins to get back to the ship while in Cuba.
With a new wife too 8 -
Yeah, no. I'm fat and 42, there's no sprinting across the city to try and make the boatForMud said:What would make a better story to tell the grand kids years from now?....I sleep on the ship while in Cuba. Or, I woke up in some dive bar half naked with a new tattoo on my chest and I only had five mins to get back to the ship while in Cuba.
And no way in hell I'm getting a tattoo in a place I can't even drink the water.
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That’s why they have rumBlueB3 said:
Yeah, no. I'm fat and 42, there's no sprinting across the city to try and make the boatForMud said:What would make a better story to tell the grand kids years from now?....I sleep on the ship while in Cuba. Or, I woke up in some dive bar half naked with a new tattoo on my chest and I only had five mins to get back to the ship while in Cuba.
And no way in hell I'm getting a tattoo in a place I can't even drink the water.4 -
Holy crap, I leave in a week!!! Booked a tour (half walking, half 50's convertible) for ~1/3 the price of the cruise ship excursion price!! I'm only going to have time for ONE cigar factory tour though, so I think it's going to be the Partagas factory tour. The reviews say you can buy cigars from the rollers on the factory floor, which is nuts!
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Have fun. I can’t wait to make my way to Cuba one day1
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FYI, if they take you to some guys living room and they have two people rolling cigars, that’s not the Partagas factory.BlueB3 said:Holy crap, I leave in a week!!! Booked a tour (half walking, half 50's convertible) for ~1/3 the price of the cruise ship excursion price!! I'm only going to have time for ONE cigar factory tour though, so I think it's going to be the Partagas factory tour. The reviews say you can buy cigars from the rollers on the factory floor, which is nuts!
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That’s pretty much all I got when I toured the Graycliff Hotel in Nassau. It was in June. The restaurant was closed, the factory had two guys rolling, and the showroom measured about 6’x8’.Oyam123 said:
FYI, if they take you to some guys living room and they have two people rolling cigars, that’s not the Partagas factory.BlueB3 said:Holy crap, I leave in a week!!! Booked a tour (half walking, half 50's convertible) for ~1/3 the price of the cruise ship excursion price!! I'm only going to have time for ONE cigar factory tour though, so I think it's going to be the Partagas factory tour. The reviews say you can buy cigars from the rollers on the factory floor, which is nuts!
Oh, and some of the sticks I bought had beetles in them I found out when I got home. So much for Graycliff......1 -
Well, we made it back home safe and sound, and sporting a healthy assortment of real and fake cigars! We ended up skipping the tour all together, as we got off the ship super early and were on the other side of Old Havana when we were supposed to be meeting the guide. Did the fake cigars first just to get it out of the way, bought a box of 25 Cohibas for $100, and figured $4 a stick for cigars I'd be giving away 1/2 of wasn't bad. Bought a bunch of real Montechristo No. 2, some Partagas, and a Trinidad, all from the state store so I knew that they were real.
Notes: Fake Cohiba - so soft! Almost squishy when rolling in your fingers, ash is dark black, and loose, holds about 1/2" before making a mess. Taste wise - not bad. Very light flavor profile, clean burn and consistent flavor throughout.
Trinidad - amazingly tight packed stick, beautiful smooth tan wrapper, and again, smooth light flavor profile, almost silky smooth. Only downside was that it was almost impossible to get a deep draw since it was so tightly rolled, had to relight it multiple times, but the flavor stayed consistently mellow.
Montechristo No. 2 - this sexy beast has a beautiful smooth, almost oily dark wrapper in an amazingly well constructed torpedo. From the first draw to the last puff of the nub it was amazingly delicious. TONS of flavor, with a bit of spiciness like nothing I have smoked before. I was so happy to have smoked my first one the deck during a quiet evening with no distractions. I made it last for over an hour and enjoyed every amazing puff.
I'll post pics once I'm not on mobile11 -
Monte 2s are fantastic, aren't they? You should've bought a box of Corona juniors for $100 though! Bolivar or partagas shorts. Sounds like a good time.
LLA - Lancero Lovers of America0 -
Any pics of the tattoo you "Didn't" get? 3
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Smoking the Trinidad, in Havana Stupid hot/humid at 11am, think it was 85, with 90% humidity. This stick was so tight, it had to be re-lit ~6 times! 
This is the main plaza across from the port, where the Lion's Fountain is. It's pretty small, even though it's listed as a major tourist draw. I think it's because it's literally the first thing you see when leaving the port building.
We came in to port @ Sunrise, and had AMAZING views along the bay. The difference between Havana that the tourists see, and "Old Havana" where the Cuban people actually live/work, is night and day.
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My box of "Cohiba" cigars lol! The tax stamps were actually loose inside the box when I bought them, and the nice lady put them on the corners for me when I bought them. As you can see from the box, the bands, the stamps, and the cigars themselves, these are not Cuba's finest. But, for $4 a stick, not a bad smoke, and I don't cringe when I hand them out to a buddy who wanted a Cuban cigar for free.
Here's the real cigars, bought in the state store right at the port. The ladies working there were awesome, and were super nice/funny.
The Montecristo and Partagas cigarellos are for some friends (but I'll probably keep them as they haven't come over yet...) That's the last of my Montecristo No. 2's (Holy crap that is an amazing smoke!!) The H. Upmann in the tube was an impulse buy when I picked up the Trinidad, because why not?
The tin was another impulse buy, it was $33, but it's supposedly the same blend as the No. 2's, and if they are 1/2 as good as the torpedo, I'll be a happy camper!!! (that stupid warning label is ON THERE!)
Currently everything from Cuba is sitting in my "travel humidor" that I picked up from Harbor Freight as my second humidor is seasoning for another week. It has an 84% Boveda pack keeping the sticks feeling at home.8 -
Just booked another trip to Cuba on Norwegian again for next June!!! Going to take our daughter (she'll be 13 @ the time of the trip) and going with some friends and their daughter as well. Should be another awesome adventure, and we can't wait. Already setting aside funds for cigars/booze!
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Missed this the first time around but looks like a cool run, thanks for sharing.A little dirt never hurt0
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Hmmmm.......A Cuban herf?1
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Looks like a great trip.
Living in South Florida or as some call it North Havana, Cubin sticks are everywhere.
Never know for sure if they are real, but most are made in Cuba and taste good
Logistics cannot win a war, but its absence or inadequacy can cause defeat. FM100-50 -
My local B&M are doing a group cruise next year too.
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https://youtu.be/SvOO1Whi_Gc
