This year has taken my cigar journey to another level. What started with a longtime dream — travelling to Havana and Pinar del Río to visit the tobacco farms and cigar factories on My Cigar Adventure To Cuba in March 2025 — quickly evolved into something far bigger than I ever imagined.
If you’ve been following me on Instagram and X, you’ll have caught some of the highlights this past week as I attended my first-ever international cigar event!
A full-on Habanos experience hosted by Phoenicia TAA Cyprus — think Hunters & Frankau’s Middle Eastern counterpart, but on an even grander scale.
And at the centre of it all… the world premiere of the Punch Princesas Edición Limitada 2025, a brand-new cigar that likely won’t reach UK shelves for a couple of years.
Securing the golden ticket
Since I began blogging about the latest cigar events from my sofa — relying on social media posts and contacts attending the shows, including last year’s Habanos World Days in London and The Trinity of Trinidad in Doha — I’ve become far more in tune with international cigar releases.
I first came across A Royal Reveal in August through an Instagram post by cigar aficionado and social media influencer Alex Cigar Dandy.
Curious, I clicked the link (phoenicia.cy/punchprincesas) and registered my interest, not imagining for one second that I’d actually secure a ticket — these events are notoriously exclusive.
A couple of weeks later, in mid-September, an email arrived with a link to purchase a ticket: €450, roughly £385. Well beyond my usual budget. But having missed out on last year’s Habanos World Days — a far pricier event — I knew I had to go for it. I practically squeezed my eyes shut as I typed in my card details. The website was a bit glitchy at first, but eventually… ticket secured! 😁💪💥
The venue? The City of Dreams, in Limassol, Cyprus.
Getting there
I booked my flights and accommodation for Thursday 4th to Sunday 7th December. The shortest long distance trip I’ve ever done. I would have liked to have stayed longer but I’ve used up all my annual leave this year on cigar trips 🙈😬 Initially, I had considered attending the Cigar Smoker of the Year Awards in London, but plans had to change to make this one happen. If I had a ton load of money I’d of course do both.
My return flight with British Airways from Gatwick was around £140. It was an early start, and the flight took roughly 4½ to 5 hours. The plane was mostly empty, guessing that few people travel to Cyprus at this time of year?
Once I landed at Larnaca International Airport, I grabbed a taxi — an eye-watering £112 for a round trip — to my hotel, which cost about £160 for three nights. The price seemed reasonable, though the hotel itself was disappointing: the bed was broken, and there were no lights on the balcony. Still, it served its basic purpose: a base for my mini cigar adventures around the city and a place to crash after the big cigar event.
Checking out the cigar shops and lounges in Limassol
On the day of arrival, I unpacked as fast as I could and hopped into a Bolt taxi to check out some local cigar shops. Iter Cigar Room was sadly closed, but Ligero (which was really close by to Iter) was fantastic, the humidor was HUGE, and lounge was proper slick 👌
It was fairly empty though considering a lot of cigar folk were in town. I’m assuming this is because most attendees of the Phoenicia event are likely to be Cuban cigar enthusiasts, while this venue specialises in New World cigars.
Big up to Andy Garratt of Cigar Lounge International & Halifax Herf for recommending it!
I wrapped up the evening at Cigars & Co — a place that had a selection of both Cuban and New World Cigars – a big shout-out to the owner Massoud Noory for the great company and conversation 🙏.
I’ll try and dive into these spots in a more detailed blog post at a later date.
The following day, I caught up with Giuliano from MK Cigars, who was in Cyprus for the event as well. We went over to La Casa Del Habanos Limassol, enjoyed a Diplomaticos Genios Regional Edition Phoenicia 2023 (€30), and had a great conversation with Neil Millington, formerly a cigar sommelier at The Garden Room at The Lanesborough.
This place was mad, even though the video doesn’t show it below, it got super busy with people piling up on cigars. There was quite the buzz here I must say.
Then onto a cushty little lunch at a Greek place in town. Sadly I didn’t get to make it to the Cigar Lounge at the Marina.
The international pre-parties
Later on, I was incredibly fortunate to be invited by Giuliano to a cigar event at the Casino Bar in The City of Dreams, hosted by Mohammed Al Mansour of The Cabinet Club Kuwait — an absolutely mind-blowing experience.
Unfortunately, I didn’t capture any photos or video from this part of the day, but I did get to meet and spend time with several cigar enthusiasts I’ve followed in Kuwait, including Sir Tamimi, Jr Cigar, and the main man himself, Mohammed Al Mansour 🫡
I also caught up with the brilliant Rob Fox (James J Fox) and Rob Ayala (FoH) of Bond Roberts — the cigar auction platform. They’d recently launched their new Bond Roberts cigars at the Kuwait cigar lounge, which I’d love to visit someday.
Afterwards, Rob Fox very kindly invited me to the Habibi Cigar Club Dubai party, which was equally incredible. Following his entourage through the hotel (yep he had a full crew with him including cigar mastermind Hamlet Paredes), we arrived at Anaïs Restaurant & Bar, where an outstanding party was in full swing with some of the most fascinating people in the cigar world!
I ended up chatting with so many people while the DJ played and the cigars, food, and drinks flowed. A surprising number of guests recognised me from my social media and this blog — which was absolutely surreal!!!
Jasim Ahmed, Big Smoke KW, and Sarah Donv, are very active in the cigar community and frequently attend Habanos-related events.
We smoked the Diplomaticos Cancilleres, the Habibi edition cigar with its second cigar band. I didn’t realise this was such a new cigar, until I just looked it up on the Cuban Cigar Website.
The atmosphere was electric, and it was amazing to see so many international figures I’ve been following online all gathered in one place.
By the time I got back Friday night to my hotel, I was utterly exhausted and slept through most of the day to gear up for the big cigar launch on the Saturday night.
The big launch night
On the evening of the event, my anxiety was sky-high. I was proper nervous. Dressed in full black tie—with a red silk-style dinner jacket, black trousers and black shoes—I ordered a Bolt from my hotel and made the 20–25-minute journey back to The City of Dreams in Limassol.
The complex is enormous, and feels almost Dubai-like, on this night it was transformed for the world premiere of the Punch Princesas Edición Limitada 2025.
The massive exhibition centre beside the hotel was cloaked in Punch branding, including enormous silver letters spelling out Punch Princess—and yes, it looked iconic.
I arrived early—definitely giving off “keen first-timer” energy haha.
Feeling a bit like a billy-no-mates at first, my nerves disappeared as soon as I ran into some familiar faces, including the wonderful Rosalie and the legendary James Barber of Barber Tobacconist in Harrogate, along with Alex Groom of the Cuban Cigar Website.
As the doors opened, hundreds of attendees, approx 550 of us entered, in full black tie and dress.
We exchanged digital tickets for wristbands and were handed an impressive humidor pack containing:
- Punch Short de Punch
- Punch 48 (Habanos Specialist Exclusive)
- Punch Punch
- Punch Triunfos
Inside, the atmosphere was electric. Performances by “princesses,” AI princes and princesses, Punch-branded Rolls Royces, champagne, canapés, photo booths—everything felt alive. Attendees mingled through the hall which was transformed into an imaginative London ballroom, a nod to Punch’s 1840 origins and its namesake, the British puppet character Mr. Punch.
This premiere wasn’t just a product launch; it honoured both the heritage and the women of Habanos. The name Princesas (“princesses”) symbolises a tribute to the mothers, wives, daughters, partners, and granddaughters in attendees’ lives—and the many women working throughout the Habanos value chain, from seed to inspection.
A quirky highlight of the night? These AI-generated portraits — including our very own Rosalie — definitely made us chuckle.
Eventually, we were ushered into the Gala Dinner hall.
Being there in person felt surreal. I have followed these events online for years on this blog. Now I was living it. I actually felt a bit emotional – which is kind of funny on reflection – as explaining to folk outside of our cigar bubble – that we are celebrating the launch of a cigar – people will think we are all barmy! But that’s what makes us lot special, right? 😄
A Royal six-course feast
The dinner featured a meticulously curated six-course menu paired with wines, cocktails, and Punch cigars.
The menu looked like this:
– Poached Lobster with Mediterranean Quinoa & Caviar
– Foie Gras with Hibiscus Jelly & Granola
– Citrus Confit Codfish
– Aged USDA Creekstone Tenderloin
– Chocolate Coffee Délice with Salted Caramel
– Royal Cheese Platter
There was real attention to detail—even the butter was stamped with the Punch logo. Only Phoenicia could elevate butter branding to such a level!
It was a real treat being able to smoke at the table as we ate, and midway through the dinner we were each handed a Punch Double Corona to enjoy.
We sipped the signature Imperial Verde cocktail (Havana Club 3 Años, herb-infused vermouth, lime & mint cordial, celery bitters), and later in the evening a bottle of Havana Club Íconica arrived at our table to finish the night in style.
At Table 23, I was seated with Rosalie and James Barber of Barber Tobacconists, Giuliano of MK Cigars, Blue Curran of The Emory, Antonios Giannousakis of Birley Cigars, Valentino Bau of The Arts Club and Vanessa Vieira of The Birley Clubs.
On the stage
During the evening
- Mr. Mohammed Zeidan (Chairman, Phoenicia Cyprus) welcomed us to Limassol.
- Mr. Walid Saleh (CEO, Phoenicia Cyprus) presented the long-awaited Princesas, highlighting the tribute to women.
- Mr. Rodrigo Jimenez (Strategic Marketing Director, Habanos S.A.) shared the brand story, emphasising Punch’s signature medium strength, sweetness, and balance—qualities aficionados instantly recognise.
Entertainment was great: operatic performances of Il Sole Mio by Pavo, dance acts by Oshow, live music from the Limassol Jazz Big Band, the Shakalis Greek Dance Group, and even Mr. Alain Crevet (CEO of S.T. Dupont) leading The Managers band to close the night.
A Royal Reveal: The Punch Princesas debut
Midway through dinner came the magical moment—the world premiere of the Punch Princesas EL 2025. Actors playing Prince William and Kate theatrically delivered cigars to each table, a charming touch that fit the night’s royal theme perfectly.
I accidentally spoiled the surprise by stepping out to the toilet just before they entered the gala dinner room—and honestly, it was the last thing I expected to see in Cyprus lol. Still, it somehow made me feel right at home 😂
I returned to my seat just in the nick of time to watch the reveal. I managed to capture some footage from it below:
Punch Princesas Edición Limitada 2025
That’s when we were handed our cigars to cut, light, and savour.
- Vitola: Edmundo
- Length: 135mm
- Ring Gauge: 52
- Factory Style: Totalmente a Mano, Tripa Larga
- Tobacco: Aged minimum two years from Vuelta Abajo, Pinar del Río
- Presentation: 20-count boxes; special 3-pack airport editions
The cigar itself looks stunning—mature reddish-brown wrapper with a silky sheen—with a unique 185th-anniversary band, limited edition band plus a foot band.
My particular cigar was a little on the dry side.
The profile:
- First third: Subtle bitterness
- Second third: Rounded medium intensity
- Final third: Creamy, medium body
Overall though, a satisfying experience, but I’d like to do a proper review of the cigar when I’m at home with it – as it’s always tricky to sit with a cigar when there is so much going on around you at an event.
Retail prices in Cyprus: €999 per box (€49.95 per cigar). A 3-pack at Larnaca Airport went for €166, with 2,000 additional 3-packs produced for Phoenicia territories.
As the evening came to a close there were folk dancing, cigars being smoked, live music being played, and conversations taking place with fellow aficionados from around the globe. I left around 01:30—well past my usual bedtime, but it was absolutely worth it.
You can watch highlights from the night right here:
Alternatively you can watch the whole evening on YouTube:
What was in the gift bags?
The gift bag was packed with plenty of Trinidad items, but what I really appreciated were the 3x Punch Princesas cigars, the 2x ashtrays, and the S.T. Dupont lighter.
The airport humidor on trip back to London
On my way back to London, I passed through Larnaca Airport, and it was the first time I’ve ever seen a cigar roller in an airport — along with some special cigars on display. The humidor was fully stocked, although someone on my social media did mention it’s not always that full.
Final thoughts
Phoenicia really know how to put on a show — they went all out, and I absolutely loved it. Honestly, I think it’s one of the best cigar-related events I’ve ever attended. It’s not often you get to experience something like this!
The whole thing felt like a mini version of the Habanos Festival, at least from everything I’ve seen and heard about it, so it was like getting a little taste of that experience. I had an incredible time with some truly amazing people.
The cigars were great too, though I’d like to try another Punch Princesas to sit with it properly and give it a proper review.
Would I go again? If I had the money, yes, but this was a very expensive trip for me – so I doubt I’d be able to do this as a regular thing. In total, I spent around £800–£1000, including the cigars I picked up while I was there. Still, the ticket included about nine cigars, a six-course meal, and an unforgettable night, so there was a lot packed in.
I was really anxious going into the event beforehand, probably because I was travelling alone, but was it worth pushing through that anxiety? Definitely. I had an amazing time. The food was great as well, even though I’m not usually a fish eater — but once it arrived, I couldn’t say no.
The hotel I stayed in was pretty rubbish, but honestly, I wouldn’t have stayed anywhere else because anything better would’ve cost more. My favourite cigar lounge ended up being Ligero, the non-Cuban shop — an absolutely fantastic spot well worth a visit.
There wasn’t a lot to see in Limassol, though maybe that was just down to the time of year.
If I could change one thing, it would be the music. Halfway through, a Queen tribute act came on which, while fitting the theme, felt a bit cheesy (and I do like cheese — just at the right moment!). It drifted into full family-party vibes later on – the crowd loved it though. But I’d have preferred something a bit cooler or more elegant… like the rest of the evening – and yep that makes me sound like a right snob now! 🙈😬😁
Overall, though, this was a weekend I’ll never ever forget. I have to give a big shout out to Giuliano, Rob, Rosalie, James and Moka Cigars – thank you for your company – it really made my experience even better 🙏❤️.
More info?
You can learn more about Phoenicia at https://phoenicia.cy/
And there are more reports from the event below:
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