Okay first, LOVE THEM!!! They are really wide straws, meant for drinking with that tapioca tea, hence why they are so wide. You use them like you use regular cake dowels, easier and cleaner cut. You can order them off Ebay. And last, but not least, I have stacked a 5-tier cake before with them with no problems. Yes folks, thats a 12-10-8-6-4 tiered cake. 
HTH
You can buy them off of E-Bay, too. I love them!
I actually use smoothie straws which I get at Walmart, but I'm not sure how they compare with the bubble tea straws. Another local cake decorator clued me in on the smoothie straws and I am in her debt. I love them! I imagine they're similar to the bubble tea straws but I wasn't able to find those. Could be they were right in front of my face and I looked right past them. 
Sometimes I do that.
I purchased them at Restaurant Depot. I have also seen them at Panera Bread - for their smoothies. Maybe they would sell you some. I just transported a three tier cake with bubble tea straws and a center dowel over 1 1/2 hour drive. Arrived perfectly.
I went to a random asian market I pass by near my job. I got maybe 200 straws for $2...they are great! Call the markets in your area or just go in 1 and ask them, they'll know what you need
I was weary of the idea of straws holding up my cakes, but after reading so much praise of bubble tea straws on CC, I ordered some and decided to give it a try.. To anyone who's doubtful: these babies are STRONG. And sooo much easier to cut and cheaper than wooden dowels.. I am thrilled to have found this method and I am never going back to dowels again (except for center dowelling the whole cake cuz the straws obviously aren't long enough or able to cut thru cakeboards). The only small little drawback though is that you lose some cake in the middle of the straws.. But like someone else said, for kids it's a treat to suck the cake out of em 
I ordered a pack of 50 on amazon for 5 bucks and free shipping.
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