The 21st Habanos Festival | LUNO

The 21st Habanos Festival takes place from February 18 to 22 in Havana, Cuba. Each year, cigar experts and connoisseurs from more than 60 countries gather in the Cuban capital to discuss the state of the industry and to present new products. But the 21^st Habanos Festival isn’t just a place to sample the best cigars in the world (or though, if that’s all you wanted to do there, you could). You’ll also get to see many luxury goods manufacturers, tobacco growers, artists, bartenders, and chefs, all coming together because of their love for cigars.

Source: twitter.com/habanos_oficial

This is a special year for the festival, because they will also be celebrating Havana’s 500^th anniversary. The festival will also celebrate the anniversaries of a couple cigar brands, with special galas for the 20^th anniversary of San Cristóbal de La Habana and the 50the anniversary of Trinidad.

The business of cigars plays a large role in the Habanos Festival. For example, companies such as Habanos S.A. have 27 brands of cigars which they sell throughout the world, but most of their sales are in Spain, China, France, Germany, and of course Cuba. The U.S. only accounts for 18% of their sales. In 2018, Habanos S.A sold 450 million Premium cigars worldwide. At the Habanos Festival, expect the presentation of new and exclusive cigars, like Cohiba’s new exclusive production of Novedosos which will be distributed by La Casa del Habano.

Source: twitter.com/habanos_oficial

Source: twitter.com/habanos_oficial

Now the Habanos Festival is not all about business. There will be great Cuban cuisine with musical performances from la Orquesta Aragón De Cuba, Toques del Río, and Buena Fe. There will also be an auction, seminars, along with speeches by tobacco industry experts like Miguel Bárzaga and Dr. Rogelio Garrido de la Grana. Beyond the Palacio de Convenciones (Convention Center), the festival has arranged visits to the La Corona and Laguito factories, and plantations tours in the Vuelta Abajo region in Pinar del Río where you can meet the workers who gather the tobacco. Near the end, there will be an award ceremony for the best cigar brands.