How to Store Cigars in Florida Humidity

Florida Is a Special Case for Cigar Storage

Most cigar-storage advice is written for people fighting dry air. Central Florida has the opposite problem: ambient humidity routinely sits above 75%, which is too wet for cigars. Over-humidified cigars burn unevenly, plug up when you draw, taste sour — and worst of all, warm damp conditions are exactly what tobacco beetles need to hatch. Here's how to store cigars properly in Orlando's climate, whether you're a local building a collection or a visitor keeping a few sticks alive for the week.

The Target: 65–70% Humidity, About 70°F

Cigars keep best at 65–70% relative humidity and around 65–70°F. In Florida, that means two rules:

• Never leave cigars in a car. A parked car in Orlando summer can pass 130°F inside. Heat above ~72°F risks hatching beetle eggs (they exist harmlessly in nearly all tobacco until heat activates them), and the temperature swing wrecks the oils that carry flavor.
• Don't rely on open air. Outdoor humidity here will push cigars past 75% within a day or two. A sealed container with two-way humidity control beats a fancy unsealed box every time.

Three Storage Setups That Work

• Zip bag or food container + Boveda pack (visitor setup): for a vacation's worth of cigars, a 65% or 69% two-way humidity pack in any airtight bag or container is genuinely all you need. The pack absorbs moisture in Florida instead of releasing it — that two-way action is the point.
• Travel humidor: a crushproof sealed case with a humidity pack protects cigars in luggage and day bags. Worth it if you're smoking through a park week or a golf trip.
• Desktop humidor (local setup): season a new wooden humidor before first use (wipe-free method: set a bowl of distilled water or a seasoning pack inside for a few days until the wood stabilizes). Then run 65% packs rather than the old sponge-style humidifiers — in Florida the sponge just adds water you don't need. A cheap digital hygrometer tells you the truth; analog dials are usually off by 5–10%.

Signs Your Cigars Are Too Wet (and the Fix)

Spongy feel, tight draw, wavy burn line, and a matte sheen on the wrapper all point to over-humidification. The fix is patience: move them to a container at 65% and let them come down slowly over one to two weeks. Never "dry-box" them in the sun or a hot car — fast drying cracks wrappers.

Watch for Tobacco Beetles

Pinhole-sized round holes in a wrapper mean beetles. Isolate that cigar immediately, inspect its neighbors, and freeze suspect cigars in a sealed bag for 3 days before returning them to storage (then let them re-acclimate sealed at room temperature for a day to avoid condensation shock). Keeping storage below 72°F prevents the problem in the first place.

Buying Fresh in Orlando

Every cigar we sell is kept under proper humidity control until it leaves the counter. If you're visiting and don't want to babysit storage, buy what you'll smoke within a couple of days — our Orlando cigar shop is open around the clock at 535 World Center Drive near Disney, so restocking is never a problem. New to cigars entirely? Start with our beginner's guide to cigar basics, and see the premium cigar brands we regularly carry.

Must be 21+. Tobacco products are for adults 21 and over. Cigars and all tobacco items are available for in-store purchase and local Orlando-area delivery only — never shipped. Underage sale is prohibited.