In Salford there are informal meets going on all the time - outside betting shops, outside pubs, in bus queues, outside the supermarket...don't think you'll find many cigars, though. Air-fare might be a bit steep, but hey - this is a "spend-it-before-you've got-it" kind of hobby.
It's probably worth it...there are almost no informal meets here anymore. There's one i go to every week, but it's just a few people and they all use the same e-cig-a-likes. Nothing new and daring at all. And no one there can tell me what price to put on the vintage pack of smokes that's been steeping in the glove box of my car for the past three and a half years.