Registration for the 2019 edition of the Procigar Festival in the Dominican Republic is open.
The upcoming festival, which marks the 12th edition, runs from Feb. 17 – 22, and as it did last year and well as in several years past, will kick off at Casa de Campo in La Romana, which sits on the eastern side of the country. That city is home to Tabacalera de García, which is best known as the home to much of Altadis U.S.A.’s production and is the largest cigar factory in the world.
On Feb. 20, the festival moves to Santiago de los Caballeros, which is considered to be the home of the Dominican cigar industry. Attendees have the opportunity to visit cigar factories and tobacco fields during the day followed by gala dinners at night. The festival not only includes an abundance of cigars—many of which are new releases or special sizes—but also the opportunity to meet and mingle with the people behind them, often for one-on-one conversations.
The festival also includes lunches and seminars with cigar makers and the opportunity to visit a local beach for a day of relaxation or an adventure excursion at one of the country’s numerous natural attractions.
The annual event celebrates the people and cigars of the Dominican Republic, while also raising money for Voluntariado de Jesús con los Niños, a non-profit organization for sick children, and the Sociedad San Vicente de Paul, a senior retirement home for low income elders, via an auction during the gala evening that closes the festival.
Registration for the 2019 Procigar Festival costs $1,200 per person and does not include airfare or hotel accommodations.
Read halfwheel’s coverage of the 2018 Procigar Festival here.