Registration Opens for Festival del Habano XXII

Habanos S.A. has opened registration for the 2020 Festival del Habano.

The annual Cuban cigar festival will take place Feb. 24-28, 2020. The pricing is nearly identical to last year:

• Welcome Evening (350 CUC)
• Visit to Plantations (85 CUC)
• International Seminar (400 CUC)
• Visit to Habanos Factories (40 CUC)
• Gala Evening (700 CUC)

CUC is the Cuban Convertible Peso, the current used by visitors to the country. It exchanges 1:1 with the U.S. dollar, though due to embargo restrictions, U.S. dollars are not accepted.

There are two changes.

First, Habanos S.A. has not announced its other big dinner. This past year, that was a party on Wednesday to celebrate Hoyo de Monterrey, priced at 500 CUC. It’s unclear whether Habanos S.A. plans to have an additional evening beyond the welcoming evening on Monday and the gala on Friday.

In addition, the Accompanying Program—a series of tourist day trips to things like beaches and museums—is now 1,875 CUCs, down from 1,920 CUC last year.

The Festival del Habano is Cuba’s cigar festival that sees a large contingent of those in the Cuban cigar industry—including distributors and stores from around the world—as well as fans of Cuban cigars descend on Havana for a week-long celebration. Habanos S.A. also shows off most of its new releases for the year, celebrates anniversaries of brands—2020 will likely honor Montecristo and Romeo y Julieta—and hosts events like the International Habanos World Challenge, and previously, the Habanosommelier.

In addition to the celebration of cigars, Cuban rum, music and dance are regularly celebrated.

It concludes with the gala dinner where a handful of elaborate humidors are auctioned off, with proceeds—usually over $1 million—benefitting the Cuban health system.