Airport shops (Punta Cana, DR)

[WeekendSmoker]

So I was in Punta Cana recently and in the airportshop they have cigs from the DR as well as Cuba. They had Monte Christos #2, DR for 310USD, Cuban for 280USD / case of 25.
Q1: why is the difference in price not the other way around?
Q2: are (non US of course) airport shops allowed to sell (supposedly real) cubans?

Rgds
WeekendSmoker
PS. I did not buy anything aside from water

[WeekendSmoker]

Nothing? Nada?????

Originally Posted by WeekendSmoker

So I was in Punta Cana recently and in the airportshop they have cigs from the DR as well as Cuba. They had Monte Christos #2, DR for 310USD, Cuban for 280USD / case of 25.
Q1: why is the difference in price not the other way around?
Q2: are (non US of course) airport shops allowed to sell (supposedly real) cubans?

Rgds
WeekendSmoker
PS. I did not buy anything aside from water

[Tour De Cigar]

cant reall say y the differents in price i can take a guess.. i know the prices can range for different reason... series, size, and the rareness,etc... maybe the moto#2 was a top of the line cig. and the cuban was not.. i dont kno... but 280usd still is a lot... or maybe the dr cig are rare over there.. reason im saying this is because when i was in mexico, monttery and cancun all i saw over there was cuban cig. no dr or nic... and i went to few shops too.. also keep in mind there are a few DR and NIC cig prices that are much higher than the cuban it just depends on the brand.... i hope this help a tiny bit...

[jkim05]

the majority of dominican cigars are not permitted to be sold in the dominican republic because of special trade restrictions, and therefore must be exported and reimported. It has to do with free trade zones and tax shelters from corporate income taxes and import taxes on raw goods. that's why they cost more there, along with the fact that they can charge tourists high premiums.
for question two, yes they can sell cuban cigars. As to the verity of the cigars, cannot tell you for sure, though I do know some airport stores do carry real cigars.

[floydpink]

jkim is absolutely correct. I spent a great deal of time in the DR back before I married. My friend runs a hotel on the North Coast and it's one hell of a fun place to party and a 10 am flight from Orlando put me in Puerto Plata by lunch and the flights are cheap.

I am told the free trade zone is off limits for tours etc and is where Fuente and other cigars are rolled. I believe all are for export only.

Fakes are rampant in the DR and I found most Cubans were only available in high end resorts.

It's perfectly legal for them to sell Cubans in the airport, just avoid the glass top Cohibas.

Cubana flies out of Santo Domingo every afternoon at 3pm, so I'd guess there is plenty of cigars arriving, but am not sure.

[quackpipe]

weekend smoker (or anyone else)- I am going to Punta Cana on Monday (7/9/07) and will be there for a week. This is my first time and I would love to come back with a nice stash of sticks. Can you recommend any places to go for good (quality/price) smokes? Any help would be appreciated!

[WeekendSmoker]

I had some at the resort I was staying at - some local brand, aggresively marketed and stupidly expensive (try 20 bucks for a stick) while the supposed owner of the brand could not tell me what type of wrapper was on it. Needless to say I did not buy a box. Aside from that there were a fair number of people on the street hawking (supposed) cubans and 2 foot long cigars. The two brands which were everywhere were montechristo and R&Y (all DR). They were consistently expensive (the cheapest I saw was 6 bucks for a monte#2).
So I guess I'm pretty useless in assisting you in your quest - I hope somebody else can help...

Originally Posted by quackpipe

weekend smoker (or anyone else)- I am going to Punta Cana on Monday (7/9/07) and will be there for a week. This is my first time and I would love to come back with a nice stash of sticks. Can you recommend any places to go for good (quality/price) smokes? Any help would be appreciated!