I've booked another cruise for January 2002 port's of call are St.Thomas,St.Martin,Curacao,and Aruba.I would like to know if anyone has had luck in purchasing authentic Cuban cigars at any of these Island's?If so could you give me the name and location's of these shop's?Just came back from a Western Caribbean cruise with success in Cozumel.Thanks for any help.

Are you a cop?

... and what does that comment have to do with anything? It just doesn't make any sense, right Rookie?

Paranoia...It can be a good thing...LOL

Go down about 4 or 5 blocks and you will see a car up on blocks. In it is my cousin. He can tell you where to get em. I ain't from around here. Im from the south side of Chicago. I'm just here on vacation.......

Carribean store owners are very honest people. Just ask them. If you get lucky, the shop keeper will be of Cuban origin, and he may have some Authentic Habanas for less than retail because he has family members with connections. I got the BEST deal on REAL Cohibas for only $120 a box. I guess I was just born lucky...

slimboli: i remember you slapping me in the face via e-mail when we first made contact a while ago. some people are cautious, not wanting to be enticed into trouble by some govt agency. rookie is correct, a little paranoia never hurt anybody. you may just be less cautious than others, but it's impolite to chastise them.

I've seen ads from a Tobacco shop in the shopping mall by the casino in Aruba. Never been there. Try looking for it on line.

... "but it's impolite to chastise them"? I'm not chastising him. There's no law against anyone here telling him where to buy Cubans out of the US, if he's in that country on a visit. He can buy and smoke all he wants while he's there ... now bringing them into the US, that's intirely up to him, and he has to accept the risks involved and be willing to take them ...

Any store with the official "Habanos" sign on its door..I would bet that most of the others are fakes ,,

I did an archive search for "buying cubans" and that was the most common answer. I was just trying to save Joe some trouble. Besides, cubans are everywhere in that area. Joe, the hard part will be finding them in good condition.

slimboli, you chastised me when i was reluctant to e-mail a link to a site in portugal that would ship to the US, when i asked you if you were in law enforcement. you have no idea what my background is, or why i asked, and said i should never contact you again. you implied there might be more to my e-mail than meets the eye. my apologies. i don't know your background either. i would prefer we could post without rancor.

Rick. I can vouch for Desk Sergeant Slimboli. He's not in anyway affiliated with law enforcement. Buy Cubans from La Casa Del Habanos to be safe. They have shops in most tourist locations.

... no hatred, RICKAMAVEN. I don't hate, and besides, that was a long time ago. At that time, you made me very uncomfortable with all the suspicion, third degree, and double talk (that, and the ALL CAPS TYPING). Even if I was in law infrocement, you giving me a website is not grounds for an arrest to you, even if I was a customs agent. If I wanted to bust someone, it would be the site that exports into the US that I would go after. Maybe you were trying to protect that site. But I will tell you, there are sites all over the internet that export Cuban goods into the US, and freely admit 'guaranteed shipment anywhere in the word" in their ads ...

I don't know for certain, but I think that it is OK for any company outside the US to ship Cuban cigars into the states. It is illegal to RECEIVE them. At least that's how I understand the law.

Cmon...Both of you...Quit threadjacking for chrissake

ya that's it a cop!@#$%^& no man sorry to disapoint i'm ruths husband from ci

LOL Just a question no need for sarcasim

Regulations on Cuban Cigars ...

The following is provided by and copyright of Bacchus Data Service, CompuServe Wine Forum, Cigar Section & reprinted with permission.

To find a definitive answer to our question of whether or not possession or importation of Cuban cigars is legal in the US we asked Hubey Plummer, one of our forum members who practices law, to investigate the issue and here are his findings:

It is illegal (and punishable by a fine of not more than $50,000 or imprisonmentfor not more than 10 years or both) for any person under U.S. Jurisdiction to purchase, import, transport or otherwise deal with merchandise which:
Is of Cuban origin...
Is or has been located in or transported through Cuba
Is made or derived in whole or in part from articles which are the growth, produce or manufacture of Cuba.
A transaction between a US citizen within the US and his agent, home office, branch, or correspondent outside the US is prohibited as if he made the transaction.

Gifts of Cuban goods are equally illegal, whether acquired by US citizens abroad or brought intothe US by another to be given as gifts within the US.

Clearly it is illegal to bring cigars made in Cuba (even when they were lawfully exported to another country) into the US via another country. It is equally clear that possession of Cuban cigars in the US is illegal.

To confirm that the interpretation of these laws were accurate, Hubey called Customs to ask thequestion directly and here is what he learned: "I just got off the phone with U.S. Customs.Absolutely NO! Cuban cigars may not be brought into the US by US citizens or anyone else. Hewas very clear on this issue."

I have NOT been able to find ANY cases in which a person was prosecuted for this crime. Iperformed a LEXIS (computer legal database) search and was rewarded with lots of cases aboutpeople trying to get money out of Cuba, but not cigars. I expect that when the issue comes up with customs, the person involved surrenders them and that is the end of it, but that is a guess.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Hubey Plummer has not rendered a legal opinion on this matter. He has only provided us with his findings. You should seek counsel from your attorney on this matter if you cannot interpret the above findings on your own.

Rick,

Like someone said, make sure you buy from a La Casa Del Habanos. These are officially liscenced Cuban cigar dealers. I would be very cautious about buying from someone who "has connections", as counterfeits are rampant and this is a common scam. Familiarize yourself w/ the halmarks of authentic Cubans and counterfeits. Some are listed on cA's website.