FAAN Amjad Honour vs FAAN Qasida Dunes: which FAAN perfume should you buy?

Both are winter bottles with the same projection, so this is a choice of character, not of volume. FAAN Amjad Honour is one of our best sellers in the Amjad line. FAAN Qasida Dunes is the dry, smoky one of the Qasida line.

Quick verdict

• Honour: round, resinous, sweet at the base. 5/5 longevity, 44.99 euros.
• Dunes: dry, peppery, leathery. 4/5 longevity, 53.99 euros.
• If you cannot decide: choose Honour. It is the better value and the more versatile of the two.

Amjad Honour vs Qasida Dunes: notes side by side

Patchouli is the one note on both lists by name. But olibanum is another name for frankincense, so both open on the same resin. Honour then goes warm and sweet with saffron, rose, vanilla and amber. Dunes goes dry with cypriol, an earthy, smoky root note, and leather. Only Honour has oud, ambergris, benzoin and the flowers. Only Dunes has the two peppers, leather and sugar.

The first hour and the dry-down

Honour opens with smoky frankincense, cardamom and a bright lemon edge, and the Sichuan pepper tingles. Within the hour the rose and saffron arrive, and the patchouli sits underneath. By the dry-down it is vanilla, amber and benzoin with a dark oud floor.

Dunes opens drier and sharper. Black and white pepper sit on top of the olibanum. The heart is patchouli with leather, and the smoke is clearer than in Honour. The base is sandalwood and labdanum, with a little sugar to soften the edges. It never turns as sweet as Honour.

Strength and staying power

Both are rated 4 out of 5 for projection. In longevity, Honour has 5 out of 5 and Dunes 4 out of 5. Honour is an Extrait de Parfum and Dunes an Eau de Parfum. A typical Extrait wears longer than a typical Eau de Parfum, and the ratings follow that. Those are our ratings, not lab numbers.

In practice: three sprays of either will be noticed in a room. Honour is the one more likely to still be on a shirt the next morning.

Season, occasion, audience and price

• Season: both are listed for autumn and winter.
• Moments: Honour, evenings and special occasions. Dunes, evenings and cool days.
• Audience: both are listed as unisex.
• Price: Honour is 44.99 euros and Dunes is 53.99 euros, both for 200 ml. That is about 0.22 euro per ml against 0.27 euro per ml.

Honour is cheaper, lasts longer and has more going on. Dunes is the one to buy when you specifically want the leather and the dry pepper.

Who should pick which

Choose Honour if you like warmth, resin and spice, if you want a bottle for special occasions as well as winter evenings, or if value matters. Choose Dunes if you like dry, leathery, smoky scents, if you find vanilla and amber too sweet, or if you want something more angular. If neither feels right, which FAAN perfume to choose walks through the range, and you can read more about the resin in frankincense in perfume. See all FAAN perfumes.

FAQ

Which lasts longer, Honour or Dunes?

Honour. It is rated 5 out of 5 for longevity against 4 out of 5 for Dunes.

Is Dunes sweeter than Honour?

No. Honour has vanilla, amber and benzoin in the base. Dunes has a little sugar, but it stays dry and peppery.

What if one of them is sold out?

Ask to be notified on the product page. Delivery takes 3 to 6 working days in the Netherlands and 5 to 8 working days in the rest of the EU.

Related reading

• FAAN Amjad Honour review: notes, strength and when to wear it
• Frankincense in perfume: what it smells like and which FAAN bottles use it
• Which FAAN perfume to choose: a simple guide