Education

, ,

The Best and Worst Places to Buy Cigars Online (2023)

1 50 213.2k

Cigars are a delicate, temperamental, and hand made product, and there are thousands to choose from. That means that where you buy cigars matters big time.

Fortunately, among the 30+ places to buy cigars online, there are a handful of fantastic online cigar stores that can help you find the perfect cigar, get you a great deal, and deliver it quickly and safely. Unfortunately, for every great retailer, there are two more around with poor product quality, bad customer service, or that are downright scams (more on that below).

Whether you’re buying cigars for yourself or for someone else as a gift, you’re here asking ‘what’s the best place to buy cigars online’? You’ve come to the right place for an answer. I’ve been purchasing cigars online from a variety of retailers for 10+ years and have had enough experiences to be an experienced judge of the best online cigar stores out there. 

So how do I determine the best websites to buy cigars online? The most important components of a cigar store are customer service, price, selection, quality, and the usability of the website. 

So without further ado: 

The Best Places to Buy Cigars Online

Famous Smoke Shop
Visit Website

Renowned for excellent customer service, reliability, and quality. Offers secure packaging, competitive pricing, and swift shipping. Famous Smoke Shop also features Cigar Monster for hourly deals.

Cigar Page
Visit Website

Known for incredible deals on packs of name brand cigars. Although its selection and web design are more limited, it offers excellent service and value.

Smoke Inn
Visit Website

Features an upgraded web design and a vast selection of boutique and hard-to-find cigars. Known for its responsive customer service team and as a favored destination for enthusiasts.

Luxury Cigar Club
Visit Website

Offers a unique cigar of the month club with handpicked boutique and brand name cigars. A fantastic gift option for cigar aficionados.

1. Famous Smoke Shop

best online cigar store - famous smoke shop

Famous Smoke Shop won #1 on my first list of top cigar retailers in 2016, again in 2019, and it wins it again today. It is, in my opinion, the best place to buy cigars online. Why?

In short, it’s at or near the top of the list on all of the important categories: customer service, reliability, quality of product, etc. I’ve ordered thousands of dollars in cigars from Famous, and I know from experience that cigars will always be packaged securely, the price will be lower than any brick and mortar retailer, and if there are any problems, they’ll fix it without hesitation. Their shipping is also insanely fast – I often receive cigars within just one or two days of ordering.

On top of that, their website is fast, simply designed, and purchasing cigars with an account is a breeze. 

They also operate Cigar Monster, which is a take on the ‘deal-an-hour’ fad of the 2000s. An old fad, but still a fun idea with some great deals. 

2. Cigar Page

best onlin ecigar store - cigarpage

Cigar Page is runner up for one reason: stupid good deals. While its selection is a bit more limited than Famous, and its web design is a bit dated, it does have incredible deals on 5 and 10 packs of name brand cigars. Service is on point as well. 

3. Smoke Inn

When I wrote my first ranking in 2016, Smoke Inn was a runner up, with the caveat that its web design needed some work. Then the website upgraded and it’s one of those great online cigar stores that just makes you want to buy more!  Another reason Smoke Inn makes the list is that they have a huge selection of boutique smokes, and hard to find smokes—great gifts for enthusiasts! The website is run by a great team as well who are always there for questions or concerns.

4. Luxury Cigar Club

As the name suggests, Luxury Cigar Club is a new kind of cigar retailer. While the company has a modest online offering of brand name cigars, it’s main feature is a cigar of the month club. Choose between four different subscription levels, and Luxury Cigar Club mails hand picked selections of boutique and brand name cigars. For gift-givers looking to give the cigar smoker in their life a fun gift, Luxury Cigar Club is a great option. 

The Worst Websites to Buy Cigars Online

If the above places to buy cigars online represent the best, the stores listed below represent cigar retailers to avoid. 

Thompson Cigars

I hate to say it, but even after writing my first article on online cigar stores more than five years ago, Thompson Cigars still hasn’t improved their reputation much. True, they have a A+ rating on Better Business Bureau, but look under the hood at the customer reviews and you’ll find that, as of this writing (1/15/2022), the company has a 1.3 out of 5 rating. And if you actually read the reviews themselves… they’re pretty ugly, with talk of signing unsuspecting shoppers up for expensive monthly subscriptions without their consent, which is, you know.. Bad.

I don’t have first hand experience, but here are some of the comments on my previous post about Thompson:

“Please avoid Thompson Cigar…they did exactly what you said they would do…Back in the summer my boyfriend spoke to them about starting a monthly subscription starting September 11 2017…and told them he would call them first before he wanted his card charged…Well on September 1 2017 they went ahead and charged his card….he immediately called them and told them to cancel it….after all kinds of back and forth they refused to cancel the order and we would have to wait until after he received the cigars then call them back to have a return slip sent to him…2 months later he was still waiting, he finally got it after several months but at that point decided to keep them, which I’m sure was done deliberately so he did keep them…well they got $120.00 but he won’t ever purchase from them again…Thank you”

“Thompson’s cigar club is a nuisance, as are their pushy sales people!”

CigarBid

Cigar Bid was actually on my “best” list in previous years, but due to my own personal experience they are now on my worst list. Cigar Bid is certainly a website to get good deals, but I’ve found a number of my orders were delivered with dry cigars inside. Cigars that aren’t humidified are mostly ruined, so this is equivalent to getting a box of wine bottles that have oxidized and turned into vinegar. Second, I had one order placed where I was then told they didn’t actually have the product in stock and let me know they’d be sending them somewhere else.

All that said – I have gotten comments on previous posts from purchasers who are very loyal to Cigar Bid, so take what I write with a grain of salt. I’m writing based on my personal experience.

If you want a full breakdown between CigarBid and Cigar Auctioneer, read my detailed breakdown here.

Solo Cigars

I’ve never purchased through Solo Cigars, but I’ve read on countless internet forums now that, not only do they sell fake Cuban cigars, but they’ve also been involved in creating fake accounts on popular cigar forums to try to get people to change their mind about the retailer. Just google their name and look at result 2 – 10. You’ll get the idea. Key point here is: always check the reputation of any cigar retailer you purchase from. Just google their name and add “reviews”.

Do you have a favorite cigar retailer that should be on this list? Or, if you have a question about a cigar retailer, or you’ve had your own experiences (good or bad) with an online cigar retailer listed above, drop it in the comments section below.

Affiliate disclosure: when you purchase something using the retail links on this or other Fine Tobacco NYC pages, we may earn a small commission. Our opinions remain our own!

, , ,

Buy Cigars From These 4 Websites—Avoid the Rest

12 55 594.5k

Unlike other articles outlining the best places to buy cigars online, this article also goes into detail on online cigar stores to avoid. That’s important, because there are some truly terrible websites to purchase cigars from, including companies that have terrible service or are straight up scams. 

So how do I determine the best websites to buy cigars online? After 10 years of personally ordering from a number of retailers, the most important components of a cigar store are customer service, price, selection, quality, and the usability of the website. 

Now, without further ado…

The Best Websites to Buy Cigars Online

1. Famous Smoke Shop

famous-smoke

Famous Smoke Shop was the winner on my original list back in 2016, and it remains there to this day. First, although not perfect, the website is easy to navigate, has a modern and mobile friendly web design, and makes it easy to sort product by price, brand, country of origin, ring gauge, strength, and more.

Second, after a number of years of making large and small purchases with Famous, I’ve never had a bad order—never late, never any dried out product, no bait-and-switch orders, etc. And when I have needed customer service (to change shipping addresses, etc), their customer service department has been friendly and completely on point.

Third, Famous Smoke Shop still maintains Cigar Monster, which is a newer take on the old deal-an-hour fad of the early 2000’s. The benefit there is they have five packs of major brands that are discounted 20%-30%.

2. Gotham Cigars

Gotham Cigars comes ranked as the number two online cigar retailer for a couple of reasons. First, the websites does a good job of appealing to a broader arrow of cigar smokers, including those looking for cheaper, machine made cigars (which are all of their top sellers). Second, the website is very clean and easy to navigate, which might not sound like a big deal but if you’ve ever tried to shop on some of the more archaic cigar websites (*cough* Cigar Auctioneer *cough*), you’ll know that having an easily navigable experience is a big plus. 

3. Smoke Inn

smokeinn

When I wrote my last ranking in 2016, Smoke Inn was a runner up, with the caveat that its web design needed some work. Well, somewhere in the last two years this site upgraded. It still isn’t 100% intuitive to navigate, but the product pages are slimmed down and much easier to understand than most other online cigar retailers.

Two other reasons Smoke Inn makes the list. First, they have the standard cigar selection, and second, they also have a huge selection of boutique smokes (good gifts for the enthusiast in the family).

4. Cigar Page

cigarpage

Cigar Page’s slogan is “A smorgasbord of cigar deals,” and boy does it deliver. The website specializes in five and ten packs from major brands, and really does have excellent deals. I haven’t purchased from this website personally, so I can’t vouch for the quality of the product, and hence why I strongly recommend Famous Smoke. But some of the deals are impressive, so if you’re a current cigar smoker it’s a website to look at.

And now, with the best websites out of the way, it’s time for…

The Worst Websites to Buy Cigars Online

If you’re going to buy cigars online, you need to know that there absolutely are retailers to avoid. Here are the cigar retailers you should pass over in favor of our recommendations above.

Thompson Cigars

I hate to say it, but even after writing my first article on online cigar stores more than five years ago, Thompson Cigars still hasn’t improved their reputation much. True, they have a A+ rating on Better Business Bureau, but if you look at the reviews page, you’ll find negative review after negative review. They seem to have a reputation for signing unsuspecting shoppers up for expensive monthly subscriptions without their consent, which is, you know.. Bad.

I don’t have first hand experience, but here are some of the comments on my previous post about Thompson:

“Please avoid Thompson Cigar…they did exactly what you said they would do…Back in the summer my boyfriend spoke to them about starting a monthly subscription starting September 11 2017…and told them he would call them first before he wanted his card charged…Well on September 1 2017 they went ahead and charged his card….he immediately called them and told them to cancel it….after all kinds of back and forth they refused to cancel the order and we would have to wait until after he received the cigars then call them back to have a return slip sent to him…2 months later he was still waiting, he finally got it after several months but at that point decided to keep them, which I’m sure was done deliberately so he did keep them…well they got $120.00 but he won’t ever purchase from them again…Thank you”

“I placed an order online with Thompson Cigar and within half an hour cancelled it. I received an email acknowledging the order was cancelled. Much to my surprise, I received an email telling me it had shipped. When I called their CSC line, I was told there is nothing that can be done (is the CSC out of the country?) I usually order from another large online vendor but they did not have what I wanted to send and had heard good things about Thompson. My mistake and will not order again. Consumer beware.”

“Thompson’s cigar club is a nuisance, as are their pushy sales people!”

Cigars International

Cigars International on my worst list boils down to the fact that they still have an F rating with Better Business Bureau. The rating is largely due to an IT issue that surfaced in February 2017 that resulted in thousands of customers being charged for orders that then had extreme delays in delivery. You can read the ground floor from the consumer point here. The problem has mostly been fixed, but I’ve still seen reviews surfacing around the internet from customers who are still reporting problems. 

CigarBid

Cigar Bid was actually on my “best” list in previous years, but due to my own personal experience they are now on my worst list. Cigar Bid is certainly a website to get good deals, but I’ve found a number of my orders were delivered with dry cigars inside. Cigars that aren’t humidified are mostly ruined, so this is equivalent to getting a box of wine bottles that have oxidized and turned into vinegar. Second, I had one order placed where I was then told they didn’t actually have the product in stock and would be sending me something else. 

If you want a full breakdown between CigarBid and Cigar Auctioneer, read my detailed breakdown here.

Solo Cigars

I’ve never purchased through Solo Cigars, but I’ve read on countless internet forums now that, not only do they sell fake Cuban cigars, but they’ve also been involved in creating fake accounts on popular cigar forums to try to get people to change their mind about the retailer. Just google their name and look at result 2 – 10. You’ll get the idea. Key point here is: always check the reputation of any cigar retailer you purchase from. Just google their name and add “reviews”.

Do you have a favorite cigar retailer that should be on this list? Or, if you have a question about a cigar retailer, or a comment (good or bad), drop it in the comments section below.

Affiliate disclosure: when you purchase something using the retail links on this or other Fine Tobacco NYC pages, we may earn a small commission. Our opinions remain our own!

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Our Man In Havana Part II: Robaina Tobacco Farm Pinar del Rio

4 0 4.4k

Spending a week in Havana with all the that there is to appreciate and explore is easy to do. Since I was only staying for a few days however  I needed to make them count. With my driver and translator with me I set out to the Pinar del Rio region of Cuba to visit local tobacco farms with my main stop being the renowned Robaina Tobacco Farm. Alejandro Robaina was a famed tobacco grower who’s tobacco was so prized that in 1997 he was awarded a brand named in his honor called “Vegas Robaina”. Sadly Alejandro Robaina passed away in 2009 although his grandson Hiroshi continues with his growing tradition and legacy. If you’ve never smoked a Vegas Robaina cigar you should as they can be wonderful however do not think you are smoking a cigar directly from the Robaina Farm. This NOT a single estate cigar.  It is merely a blend from many farms created to have a distinct flavor profile for the brand “Vegas Robaina”.  This was another reason I was really looking forward to visiting and possibly having the chance to smoke a Finca or “Farm” cigar from the actual Estate.

As you drive up the dirt road to the farm you see a large overhanging sign with the words “Alajandro Robaina 1845” clearly noting the farms history.

Upon entering we were greeted by a guide who explained the history of the farm and Alejandro Robaina’s legacy. As we walked we were shown the acres of tobacco growing in the field as well as a special plot of seeds beginning to grow.  We were told  this plot was for something they were still unsure of how it was going to be used or quite possibly they didn’t want to tell us.

 

After seeing the tobacco as it was growing our next stop was the curing barn where tobacco is dried and cured after it is harvested.  The tobacco is hung from the barn as seen below.

If you have never visited a tobacco farm before seeing the process firsthand gives you an appreciation of the time and care involved in creating this craft product. Our guide highlighted pictures of the various stages of the tobacco process and the journey it takes from seed to cigar.

As part of the tour a cigar roller was in the barn rolling a fresh cigar. I was fortunate enough to be the one who was gifted the smoke as it came off the table. As I stated earlier the brand Vegas Robaina is a blend from various tobacco farms used to create the flavor characteristic of the name brand. The cigar I was given was probably the truest expression of a cigar from Alejandro’s farm and his tobacco.

Wrapped in newspaper to aid in drying the fresh tobacco before smoking, a true Robaina cigar:

 

Next we were taken to the dining area where events are held and an homage to Alejandro is purposefully represented.

The last stop was the famous rocking chair where Alejandro Robaina was said to sit and smoke. I can only imagine the decades of contemplation and reverence that was put into each harvest day after day year after year. As I headed off in the early afternoon to my next adventure I left feeling a newfound appreciation for the cigar making process as well as how respected Alejandro was in his homeland and the world.

 

 

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Our Man in Havana Part One: Travel & Cigars in Cuba

14 5 21.7k

 

 

Ah, the mystical Island of Cuba. For the U.S. it’s the forbidden country that secured the embargo on September 7th 1962 when John Fitzgerald Kennedy re-instated the Trading With The Enemy act of 1917. Since then U.S. citizens have only be able to travel to Cuba for very strict diplomatic or humanitarian reasons and return with no goods from the country… until now. Last year President Obama repealed the travel ban on Cuba creating more broad allowances for U.S. citizens to travel there. Better still the former president lifted restrictions on bringing back goods from Cuba to the United States. For beloved cigar smokers this was fantastic news. Having traveled around the world smoking Cuban cigars, finally being able to visit the country and farms where the famed tobacco is grown is a cigar aficionados dream come true. In this first report I will touch upon the ease of travel to Cuba and the state of cigars I found in Havana.  Also included is a list of the best places to purchase cigars and where I found some older vintages lying around.

Travel:
Traveling to Cuba was as easy as booking a flight with Delta straight to Havana. You can pay with your credit card through Delta however you can’t use any U.S. credit cards when you are in Cuba. Cuba is strictly cash for Americans and you can exchange U.S. dollars for Cuba’s CUC’s at the airport or any bank in Havana. Be aware that U.S. dollar incurs a 10% transfer fee when exchanging to CUC’s. You will also need a travel visa along with one of the twelve reasons you are traveling to Cuba. Most visitors will fall under the “People To People Educational Act” so long as you visit a cigar factory, farm, rum distillery or art  museum. Touring a cigar farm, a rum distillery or viewing art is a pleasure in Cuba and the culture is what you are looking for. You will need to purchase a travel visa as well as book a hotel in advance. I suggest using a third party travel site which takes care of all those things for you. You can pay in advance which leaves you only having to bring money to spend on your trip. I recommend the  Educational Adventures Company as they were excellent in making those arrangements as well as getting you into any factories or farm tours. They will also set you up with a translator and driver if you desire. The prices were very reasonable and their service fantastic. http://www.theeducationaladventurescompany.com/ If you wish to book on your own you need to contact the U.S. Office of Treasury and request a visa for purchase. In booking a hotel you would need to book online.

Havana:

Arriving in Havana I grabbed my taxi and headed to the Casa Particulares I was staying at. The first order of business was to relax on their rooftop have a mojito and view the city as a whole during the early afternoon. Havana is as you see it in pictures; a run down third world country with half built structures, renovated 50’s American classic cars and beautiful French/Spanish architecture from the days when those countries ruled the island.  The people are friendly and eager to please in what is now a boom in American tourism. In speaking with the Casa owner he said since Obama repealed travel restrictions they saw a rise in visitors from the U.S. to a million last year and near two million this year. The fear the Cubans have is keeping up with the demand. Before hitting the Casa Del Habanos which are the authorized Cuban cigar dealers and the ONLY place you should be buying cigars, I hit a Paladar which is a restaurant run by the locals and not the government. Stay away from any government run establishments as the food and service are mediocre at best. I had some of the best octopus of my life at a local Paladar and was handed a cigar to smoke with my meal. This was a local farm cigar and the flavors of earth and fresh tobacco where present. It was more of a one dimensional smoke but the earthiness hit the spot with the perfectly cooked slightly smoked octopus.

Smoked octopus with semi sweet glaze:

Cigars:

With some hearty fare and a cigar to match it was time to hit the La Casa del Habano. As I said before these are the only official stores that carry authentic Cuban brands. In Havana you will be solicited to buy Cuban cigars on the street for an even cheaper price than the stores. Do not do this unless you want to smoke fakes. If someone tells you their brother’s cousins friend works at the Partagas Factory and gets cigars from there they are lying. At best you’ll get a cigar blended with fresh farm tobacco which will taste nothing like the brands you know. At worst it can be short filler or scraps from a rolling table floor. Don’t waste your money or time on these “faux” sticks. Go to the the La Casa’s and spend your money on an authentic selection of smokes as these will be the best prices you’ve seen as a consumer anywhere in the world. My advice is to flip over boxes and dig deep into their inventory. You may find some boxes with several years of age on them and it is worth the hunt. The proprietors do not mind you rummaging through their stock and will often help you. I was fortunate enough to find boxes with as much as seven years of age on them.

A box of Montecristo Open Juniors from ’10

Montecristo #5’s from ’13

Partgas Super Partagas from ’14

They were fully stocked with most brands from 2016 although there were no Cohiba Behikes or Esplendidos to be found at the places I looked. I stayed away from most 2016 vintages as the past crops in Cuba haven’t been great. I did pick up some boxes of ’16 Trinidad Reyes and current Vegueros Tapados which smoked well despite being young and will most certainty benefit from age. I feel the 2016 vintages are hit or miss from what I’ve smoked so be cautious or pick up single sticks to sample yourself. Most La Casa del Habanos carry single sticks although the selections vary. Below is a list of three La Casa del Habanos you should definitely visit.

  1. La Casa del Habano
    5th and 16 Av. 5 y Calle 16, Miramar

This is where I found the oldest vintages of Cuban cigars and the staff were most helpful.

2. La Casa del Habano, Club Habana
Av. 5, entre 188 y 192, Miramar, Playa

The place to enjoy a custom rolled “Monsdale” cigar which was created by the late Enrique Mons. It’s a thicker lonsdale with a pigtail cap. Flavors of caramel, butterscotch and toast in this unique blend.

3. La Casa del Habano, Hotel Habana Libre
Calle L entre 23 y 25, Vedado

The largest selection of boxes of cigars in all sizes. If you enjoy the hunt this is the spot for you.

End of Day One:

Loaded with cigars and satiated from delicious Cuban fare it was time to watch the sunset with a mojito and cigar reflecting on the first day in Havana. In Part Two I travel to the tobacco fields and the famed Robaina Farm. Stay Tuned!

Sunset in Havana:

 

, ,

3 New Cigar Etiquettes for the 21st Century

4 2 8.0k

Cigar Etiquettes

Cigar smoking is an activity born of hundreds of years of practice and tradition. And like any other traditional pastime, smoking etiquette developed as ground rules to make enjoying cigars more comfortable for everyone.

Some traditions, like dipping your cigar in cognac, have become irrelevant. Many old practices remain important. But times have also changed, making new smoking etiquettes necessary. Today, the smoking room is intruded on by more than just the occasional rude patron. We are now intruded upon by wall-mounted televisions, tablets, and smartphones. Social media has turned cigar bragging–once constrained to the lounge or private conversation–into a non-stop sport.

For many a smoker, it is increasingly common to show up at a cigar lounge, sit down next to fellow cigar smokers, and spend the next hour in silence, checking email, posting cigar pictures to Instagram, or listening to music. All of this has served to turn many cigar lounge experiences–always understood to be essentially social in nature–into solitary moments in the midst of our fellow smokers.

Obviously, the answer isn’t to ban all technology. But bearing in mind that cigar smoking has always been a social activity, here are three new etiquettes that will keep the heart of the activity intact.

1. Keep your smartphone, iPad, or computer put away for the first ten minutes after you light up.

The first few minutes at a cigar lounge are the most pivotal to creating a social experience. Instead of checking your Facebook, greet each person in your immediate area, introducing yourself and shaking hands. You’ll find that seven times out of ten, your conversation will continue or start up again later during your visit.

2. If no one is watching the television – turn it off

Our world is full of distractions pulling us away from relating to other people in the real world. If the television is on and no one is watching, what purpose does it serve besides shielding us from having to talk to those around us? Once the TV is off, the silence will create both a more relaxing environment (which is what cigars are all about) and naturally lead patrons into conversation with each other.

3. Don’t ask about work

We are more connected to our work than ever before. In the last hundred years, our market economy has focused our attention on work and encouraged us to judge ourselves and others by what we do, or worse, how much we make. And now with smartphones, leaving the office doesn’t disconnect us from our work the way it used to.

When talking to a new friend at a lounge, remember that smoking is a leisure activity. The last thing most people want to talk about after work is work. Instead, talk about cigars, family, or the book you’re reading. Even politics is better than talking about work, because at least conversations about politics can, in the best circumstances, make us a friend and encourage us and help us be better citizens. Of course, not everyone wants to spend their time at a lounge talking to others. The important thing is not to ignore others completely.

If you find yourself forgetting rules of etiquette like these, just remember that they basically boil down to a common-sense question: “is what I am doing making the room more, or less, comfortable for others to be in?”

Do you have a cigar etiquette that you think belongs on this list? Or a smoking lounge pet-peeve that you find being played out over and over again? Drop it in the comments section!

1 2 3 4›»