Excellence Punta Cana
- Thread starter pbibby
- Start date
I haven't been before, but I'm going to be in Punta Cana the first week of June. Hopefully some good info will get posted on this thread
Our resort had 2 small cigar shops and the CCs looked real to me but waaaaay over priced. I'm talking like $50+
TapaDeezNuts
+1 and they weren't even kept nice at the resort, some were damaged looking. BYOC is the best option imo and if I come across anything else it's just a bonus!
Will shoot you a PM when I'm back at the laptop...
The DR is an awesome vacation destination... It's relatively inexpensive... People are great.. Local food is awesome... And there is some really cool history all over Hispanola if you're into that sort of thing...
You'll have a great time...
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
The DR is an awesome vacation destination... It's relatively inexpensive... People are great.. Local food is awesome... And there is some really cool history all over Hispanola if you're into that sort of thing...
You'll have a great time...
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Like mdwest said, you will have a great time here. I know the guy who distributes the real CC's to hotels, so you can buy them cheaper at our capital city (Santo Domingo) which is fairly close with the new highway from Punta Cana to Santo Domingo (prolly 2 hours or a bit more). Punta Cana has 2 or 3 tobacco manufacturers but they ain't that great, although you could meet their factories which is always a great experience.
I won't be in the DR by July, but I would've helped moving around if you came to Santo Domingo.
I won't be in the DR by July, but I would've helped moving around if you came to Santo Domingo.
I was there last summer for a destaination wedding. Property is beautiful. Food is pretty good. My favorite meal was getting the made to order omelet at the breakfast buffet. Plan on a lot of walking on the property as restaurants/activities can be spread out.
- They have cigars on the property with a humidor in the downstairs lobby (I don't beleive any were CCs), though I can 't imagaine how they can be kept in the proper conditions considering the heat. I smoked 1 bight by a friend and it was fine but I basically smoked from my own stash.
- The folks selling/pushing tours and other stuff in the lobby areas gets old really fast. You get tired of telling people "no thank you" consistently.
- We did do one excursion, the dune buggies. That was a lot of fun for a group of 10. If you do it, be sure to wear clothes you don't mind getting dirty and make sure to have sunglasses and a hat cause stuff is flying in your face AND the bandana around your mouth is a must. The funniest pics from our vacation were the after dune buggy pics...everybody was covered in dirt/dust. But the ride is really cool and the scenery is nice. They even stop off at a cigar roller half way through they ride. I only bought fresh rolled sticks because the premade stogies were sitting on the shelf out in the open exposed to those temps and humidity. Funniest thing was one guy at the cigar rolller spot pushing his "Cuban" Cohibas for $5 each. I told him there is no way he would sell a real Cuban cigar for that amount (so I didn't even bother inspecting it) and he did his best to convince me otherwise (lol). Ironically, he gave 5 Cohibas to a guy in the group who bought a box of the no name locally rolled cigars (Free CCs!!!)
So I enjoyed the resort but really disliked all the vendor/up sales on the property. Smoking on my balcony was a real treat with the view.
- They have cigars on the property with a humidor in the downstairs lobby (I don't beleive any were CCs), though I can 't imagaine how they can be kept in the proper conditions considering the heat. I smoked 1 bight by a friend and it was fine but I basically smoked from my own stash.
- The folks selling/pushing tours and other stuff in the lobby areas gets old really fast. You get tired of telling people "no thank you" consistently.
- We did do one excursion, the dune buggies. That was a lot of fun for a group of 10. If you do it, be sure to wear clothes you don't mind getting dirty and make sure to have sunglasses and a hat cause stuff is flying in your face AND the bandana around your mouth is a must. The funniest pics from our vacation were the after dune buggy pics...everybody was covered in dirt/dust. But the ride is really cool and the scenery is nice. They even stop off at a cigar roller half way through they ride. I only bought fresh rolled sticks because the premade stogies were sitting on the shelf out in the open exposed to those temps and humidity. Funniest thing was one guy at the cigar rolller spot pushing his "Cuban" Cohibas for $5 each. I told him there is no way he would sell a real Cuban cigar for that amount (so I didn't even bother inspecting it) and he did his best to convince me otherwise (lol). Ironically, he gave 5 Cohibas to a guy in the group who bought a box of the no name locally rolled cigars (Free CCs!!!)
So I enjoyed the resort but really disliked all the vendor/up sales on the property. Smoking on my balcony was a real treat with the view.
Last edited:
I've never done the dune buggies excursion...that sounds awesome!
I guess Ive never had the desire to purchase CC's while in the DR (been there several times over the years)... there are a lot of awesome smokes made locally there that are readily available..
to me its kinda like taking a trip to Italy, and then seeking out French restaurants to eat at...
When I travel I want to experience the local culture... to include its people, food, drink, smokes (where applicable), music, sites, history, etc..
When I'm home I can smoke all the sticks I want from other parts of the world.. (CC's arent really all that hard to come by around here if you know where to look and who to talk to...)...
to me its kinda like taking a trip to Italy, and then seeking out French restaurants to eat at...
When I travel I want to experience the local culture... to include its people, food, drink, smokes (where applicable), music, sites, history, etc..
When I'm home I can smoke all the sticks I want from other parts of the world.. (CC's arent really all that hard to come by around here if you know where to look and who to talk to...)...
Oh I totally get you. Didn't mean to imply I wasn't going to smoke some dominican. I certainly am. Just wondered was all. Thanks brother!
Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S3 using Tapatalk 2 because, you know, I love Tapatalk 2.
Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S3 using Tapatalk 2 because, you know, I love Tapatalk 2.
not lecturing at all... smoke what you like thing and all that... 
just putting out there my personal position....
for example.. when I hit Istanbul this summer.. I will probably not take a single stick with me... instead Ill buy another meer pipe from a local shop.. pick up something heavily laden with latakia that was made in the region.. and smoke that... probably hit a hookah shop or two and smoke some shesha.. etc...
just part of my routine when I travel... to try and immerse myself in the culture as much as I can.. while still acting like a silly american tourist in the process..
just putting out there my personal position....
for example.. when I hit Istanbul this summer.. I will probably not take a single stick with me... instead Ill buy another meer pipe from a local shop.. pick up something heavily laden with latakia that was made in the region.. and smoke that... probably hit a hookah shop or two and smoke some shesha.. etc...
just part of my routine when I travel... to try and immerse myself in the culture as much as I can.. while still acting like a silly american tourist in the process..