Hong Kong has emerged as a major hub for cigar collectors in recent years, with many high-end cigar shops and lounges opening up across the city. It’s the Asian epicentre for cigars, especially Cuban cigars.

Pacific Cigar Company, the exclusive distributor for Cuban cigars in the Asia pacific region headquarters  in Hong Kong. Min Ron Nee, a well-known Cuban cigar collector and writer of ‘An illustrated Encyclopaedia of Post Revolution Cigars’ resides in Hong Kong. This book is the bible for hardcore fans of Cuban cigars.

He’s not the only collector with a huge collection in the city, and many of these wealthy cigar collectors have personal lounges that can rival, and even top , the best cigar bars in the world. If you’re lucky, you’re invited to one or some of them. Inspector X hasn’t been this lucky, but friends of the Inspector have and made him envy.

But there are public lounges too, and in a multi-part article we list a few that we think are worth a visit if you ever find yourself in the buzzing city.

The Harbour Cigar Divan

The Harbour Cigar Divan, located in the Wan Chai area of Hong Kong Island sports a big collection of cigars, mostly Cuban cigars of course as the place is operated by Pacific Cigar Company with a big lounge on the second floor.

18 Ship Street, Wanchai, Hong Kong Hong Kong Island. Hong Kong (photo credit: pacific cigar company)

Bertie Cigars

If you look for more than just Cuban cigars, Bertie Cigars is the place to be. The lounge is owned by Cigraal, the import and distribution company from Eric Piras who has its own brand, Confidenciaal, and imports El Septimo, Arturo Fuente, CLE/Eiroa, Flor de Selva, Dunbarton Tobacco and Joya de Nicaragua amongst others. So you’ll have plenty of choice for New World cigars, but Bertie is not ignoring the Cuban smokers either as they carry a good selection of those

4/F Duke Wellington House 14-24 Wellington Street Central Hong Kong (photo credit: Bertie Cigars)

 La Casa del Habano Sheraton

On the ground floor of the Sheraton hotel, you will find the La Casa del Habano with an impressive collection of Cuban cigars and with a lounge. The lounge offers a relaxed environment, so comfortable that some regulars are now considered family. Because of the reliability of the La Casa del Habano brand, and the certainty that you will find genuine Cuban cigars here and not counterfeit cigars, who are rampant now these days unfortunately, the shop attracts a lot of Mainland Chinese.

The lounge is decorated in a very unique, eclectic style with Cuban and Spanish touches. Stuccoed walls with elements of Spanish tiling and Cuban hand-painted reproductions of classic cigar labels grace the walls. The ceiling and background walls are a light tobacco yellow which complement the woven leather seats and dark stained wood display furniture with heavy marble tops. A Spanish tiled and timbered floor sets off the room with an inventive mixture of accessories and artwork related to cigar smoking.

Sheraton Nanjing Kingsley Towers & Hotel No.169 Hanzhong Road, Baixia District, Nanjing 210029 China

Pacific Cigar Divan

Pacific Cigar Company is the exclusive Habanos distributor for Asia Pacific and is headquartered in Hong Kong. They run several lounges and shop, with the Pacific Cigar Divan being one of them. This gorgeous lounge is extremely comfortable and has a nice outdoor balcony as well if you want to breath some fresh air.

The humidor is stocked with Cuban cigars, as you would expect in a lounge operated by a Habanos distributor but rumour has it that several New World brands will be accepted in the humidor soon.

Pacific Cigar Divan 24/F, Euro Trade Centre, 21-23 Des Voeux Road, Central, Hong Kong. Photo credit: Pacific Cigar Company

Davidoff of Geneve Peninsula

Besides Cubans, another very popular brand in Hong Kong is Davidoff and it shows as the Swiss company has three shops in the city. The shop at Peninsula was opened last year and includes a modern lounge, in the style of many other Davidoff shops around the world.

Of course, you will find a plethora of Davidoff cigars here, but that doesn’t mean that the shop exclusively tells Davidoff cigars, or Davidoff owned brands. The humidor stocks plenty of Cuban cigars as well.

Shop ML10, Mezzanine Floor, The Peninsula, Salisbury Road, Kowloon, Hong Kong, photo credit: Davidoff AG

header photo  by Ruslan Bardash on Unsplash