26 Tasty Rum Drinks for a Vacation Vibe

Close your eyes and imagine it. You're on a beach. Your toes are in the sand, the sun warms your cheeks, a breeze blows lightly through your hair, and the salty smell of the ocean is all around. Wait! What's that in your hand? Why - it's tasty a rum drink that perfectly suits the feel-good vibe all around you.

Now. Open your eyes and look at your hand. Is it empty? What are you waiting for? Go get a rum cocktail! Your beach vacation may still be months away, but the tropical vibe you can get from sipping a rum drink right now will sustain you and remind you of the sunny, carefree days of your last vacation.

The sweet and sour flavors of the classic rum cocktail, the daiquiri, are popular for a reason. These perfectly balanced rum drinks taste of summer and sunshine, evenings spent watching the sunset, and all the good things in life that snap into focus when you take the time to relax, enjoy a classic rum cocktail, and be in the moment.

Ingredients

• ¾ ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
• ¾ ounce simple syrup
• 1½ ounces white rum
• Ice
• Lime wheel for garnish

Instructions

1. In a cocktail shaker, combine the lime juice, simple syrup, and rum.
2. Add ice and shake to chill.
3. Strain into a cocktail glass filled with ice.
4. Garnish with a lime wheel.

What's so great about mojitos is how flavorful and refreshing they are. And how easy it is to add extra flavors like pineapple (I like to add pineapple and jalapeño) or berries by muddling a few pieces of fruit when you muddle the mint. So if you're looking for a refreshing, sweet, and minty rum drink that's super versatile, start with this recipe and then branch out by muddling your favorite fruit with the mint.

Ingredients

• 10 mint leaves plus a mint sprig for garnish
• 2 lime wedges
• ¾ ounce simple syrup
• 1½ ounces white rum
• Ice
• Club soda

Instructions

1. In a cocktail shaker, muddle the mint leaves with the lime wedges and simple syrup.
2. Add the rum and ice and shake to chill.
3. Strain into a collins glass filled with ice.
4. Top with the club soda and garnish with a mint sprig.

It's a simple highball, but let me tell you - rum has an affinity for Coke. Add a squeeze of lime for an extra pop of flavor. It may be simple, but the Cuba libre is never dull.

Ingredients

• Ice
• 2 ounces rum
• Cola
• 1 lime wedge

Instructions

1. In a highball glass filled with ice, combine the rum and cola. Stir gently.
2. Squeeze the lime wedge over the top and drop it in the drink as garnish.

It has become the poster drink of Polynesian vacations - both because it's so tasty and because it packs a wallop. A boozy mai tai is the ultimate rum cocktail with two types of rum, orange liqueur, and almond liqueur or orgeat. It also has endless variations (coconut rum, pineapple juice, mango juice - the list goes on) so you never get bored.

If you go on a beach vacation and don't wind up with a piña coalada in your hand at some point, are you even doing it right? Whether you're sipping a classic piña colada or an enticing variation, posting a photo of your vacation piña coalada on your Instagram feed is the modern-day rum cocktail equivalent of a "wish you were here" postcard.

If you haven't tried Brazil's signature cachaça cocktail yet, what are you waiting for? Cachaça is a sugarcane spirit from Brazil in the rum family, and the caipirinha is its crowning glory of cocktail mastery. And the Oscar for achievement in rum cocktails goes to...YOU for making it.

Ingredients

• 1 lime, cut into wedges
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 ounces cachaça
• Ice
• Lime wheel for garnish

Instructions

1. In a rocks glass, muddle the lime wedges with the sugar.
2. Add the cachaça and ice. Stir.
3. Garnish with a lime wheel.

Well, blow me down! It's a hurricane. This strong rum drink doesn't come from the tropics, however. It hails from New Orleans, but it has a distinctly tropical vibe. Part fruit punch, part one-two punch (thanks to an ounce-and-a-half each of light and dark rum), hurricanes go down easy.

What's as brooding as stormy skies over the Bermuda sea but as spicy and delicious as a warm hug? It's the dark and stormy, a simple rum highball with a complex and warm flavor profile thanks to ginger beer and dark rum.

Okay. So maybe this hot rum cocktail won't whisk you away to a sunny day on a wind-swept beach in the tropics, but it'll definitely warm you up all the way to your toes during the depths of winter. Whether you're having a classic hot buttered rum or one of its tasty variations, the sweet, buttery flavors of this classic winter cocktail will warm more than your heart.

Imagine a glass full of goodness. Now, imagine that glass also has a decent amount of rum in it, some nice frothy cream of coconut, sweet orange juice, the tropical taste of pineapple, and a grating of aromatic nutmeg. Congratulations - you just conjured up a painkiller cocktail. Now, get going and make it happen.

Ever wake up after a few too many and feel like the walking dead? If you've ever downed too many zombies too quickly, then you know the feeling. And while this rum punch packs a wallop (it has 4½ ounces of rum in a single drink), the zombie is the perfect rum cocktail for when you only have time to be one and done.

Smooth, dark rum is a thing of beauty, and it sings in a simple old-fashioned cocktail that's sweet, sophisticated, and silky.

Ingredients

• 1 demerara sugar cube or brown sugar cube
• 2 dashes cinnamon cocktail bitters
• 1 orange wedge
• 2 ounces dark rum
• 2 ice cubes
• Splash of water
• Orange peel for garnish

Instructions

1. In a rocks glass, muddle the sugar cube, bitters, and orange wedge.
2. Add the rum and stir.
3. Drop in two ice cubes and top with a splash of water.
4. Garnish with the orange peel.

Are you bananas for coconut? Want something fruity, tropical, and sweet? Then this, my friend, is the drink for you. The Bahama breeze is as luscious and bold as a rum drink can get.

Surf's up, and it's in your glass! If it doesn't feel tropical unless it's blue, then boy have we got a treat for you. The blue Hawaii is the perfect rum drink (it's got a little vodka, too) to sip on as you visualize catching a big wave at Mavericks, Nazaré, or Waimea Bay.

It rhymes, it sounds tropical, and it definitely has rum. Oh - and it's filled with all sorts of other good stuff too, like rum, pineapple, and grenadine. What is it? It's the Bahama mama - the rhymingist rum drink around. And it should be in your glass - now!

Not a classic yet, but if you share this recipe with all your friends, and they share it with all their friends, and so on, then it's well on its way to becoming one. Take one sip and you'll see why you should do exactly that.

Ingredients

• 10 mint leaves, plus a mint sprig for garnish
• ¼ grapefruit, cut into wedges
• ¾ ounce simple syrup
• 2 ounces white rum
• Ice

Instructions

1. In a cocktail shaker, muddle the mint leaves with the grapefruit wedge and simple syrup.
2. Add the rum and ice and shake to chill.
3. Strain into a rocks glass filled with ice.
4. Garnish with a mint sprig.

Who knew Tom and John had a brother? We did! This is his rum drink.

Ingredients

• ¾ ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
• ¾ ounce simple syrup
• 1½ ounces white rum
• Ice
• Club soda
• Lemon wedge and cherry for garnish

Instructions

1. In a cocktail shaker, combine the lemon juice, simple syrup, and rum.
2. Add the ice and shake to chill.
3. Strain into a collins glass filled with ice. Top with the club soda.
4. Garnish with a lemon wedge and a cherry.

Pink drink fans rejoice. If you like your rum cocktails served up in a martini glass, then this rum cosmo is sure to be your new fave.

Ingredients

• ¼ ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
• 1 ounce cranberry juice cocktail
• ¾ ounce orange liqueur
• 1½ ounces coconut rum
• Ice
• Orange peel for garnish

Instructions

1. Chill a martini glass.
2. In a cocktail shaker, combine the lime juice, cranberry juice cocktail, orange liqueur, and coconut rum.
3. Add ice and shake to chill.
4. Strain into the chilled martini glass. Garnish with an orange peel.

A two-ingredient drink you can mix in the glass? It's the perfect way to pour yourself a drink that tastes a little fancy but takes almost no effort at all.

Ingredients

• 2 ounces dark rum
• 1 ounce coffee-flavored liqueur
• Ice

Instructions

1. In a rocks glass, combine the dark rum and coffee-flavored liqueur.
2. Add ice and stir.

What's a rum lover to do when you want something hot and delicious that isn't a hot-buttered rum? Rum toddy, anyone?

Ingredients

• 5 ounces boiling water
• Ginger tea bag
• ¾ ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
• ¾ ounce pure maple syrup
• 1½ ounces spiced rum
• Orange wheel, cinnamon stick, and candied ginger for garnish

Instructions

1. In a mug, steep the ginger tea bag in the boiling water for five minutes. Discard the tea bag.
2. Add the lemon juice, maple syrup, and rum. Stir.
3. Garnish with an orange wheel, cinnamon stick, and candied ginger.

Coffee, rum, and coconut in a creamy hot beverage? Yes. Please.

Ingredients

• ¾ ounce coffee-flavored liqueur
• 1½ ounces dark Jamaican rum
• 4 ounces freshly brewed hot coffee
• ½ ounce coconut cream
• Grated nutmeg for garnish

Instructions

1. In a coffee mug, combine the coffee-flavored liqueur, rum, and coffee.
2. Add the coconut cream and stir.
3. Garnish with a grating of fresh nutmeg.

This martini is sweet and nutty with a hint of warm molasses from the dark rum. It truly is the nectar of the Gods.

Ingredients

• 1½ ounces dark rum
• 1 ounce amaretto
• 2 ounces apricot nectar
• 1 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
• Ice
• 1 lemon slice

Instructions

1. Chill a martini glass.
2. In a cocktail shaker, combine the rum, amaretto, apricot nectar, lemon juice, and ice. Shake to chill.
3. Strain into the chilled martini glass. Garnish with a lemon slice.

As tasty as the dessert, but there's no need to set it on fire. That's the promise that comes with this boozy dessert-in-a-glass rum cocktail.

Ingredients

• 1 ounce RumChata
• 1 ounce dark rum
• ½ ounce banana liqueur
• ½ ounce butterscotch liqueur
• Ice
• Banana slices
• Cinnamon

Instructions

1. In a cocktail shaker, combine the RumChata, rum, banana liqueur, butterscotch liqueur, and ice.
2. Shake to chill and strain into a rocks glass.
3. Garnish with the banana slices and sprinkle with cinnamon.

Rum is a versatile spirit that mixes with many ingredients to make fun and delicious cocktails. So bust out your inner mixologist and see what types of rum drinks you can mix up.

• Orange juice
• Pineapple juice
• Ginger beer
• Sour mix
• Apple cider
• Sparkling apple cider
• Tea
• Coffee
• Hot chocolate
• Coconut water
• Club soda
• Lemon-lime soda
• Cola
• Ginger ale
• Root beer
• Cream soda
• Eggnog
• Lime juice

Food-friendly rum is such a versatile ingredient, it makes a great cocktail base and pairs well with your favorite snacks. With some imagination, some great recipes, and a cocktail shaker, the sky's the limit. Don't believe it? Try some white rum cocktails or coconut rum drinks, and you'll become a believer for sure.