25 Rum Cocktails That Taste Like a Much-Deserved Vacation
After a long day, all we want is to lounge by a pool, soaking up the sun with a tropical drink in hand. While a vacay may be a tall order, you can thankfully make an endless number of rum cocktails at home, so you can at least get a taste of paradise without having to book a flight. Whether you’re all about coconutty piña coladas, New Orleans hurricanes or soul-soothing mulled cider (because summer does not have dibs on this island spirit), these 25 rum drinks are practically guaranteed to delight—and are easy to make, even for newbie mixologists.
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1. Piña Colada
Time Commitment: 5 minutes
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, <30 minutes, crowd-pleaser
With drinks this iconic, there’s no beating the O.G. We tapped the bartender at Caribe Hilton, the Puerto Rican resort where the cocktail was invented in 1954, for the original recipe.
2. Queen’s Park Swizzle
Time Commitment: 10 minutes
Why We Love It: <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly
This tiki drink dates back to 1920s Trinidad. If you like mojitos, you’re bound to love this minty, citrus-kissed bev that’s finished with Angostura bitters.
3. The Lono Tiki Cocktail
Time Commitment: 10 minutes
Why We Love It: special occasion-worthy, <10 ingredients, <30 minutes
Three types of rum—light, dark and coconut—unite to create this island-inspired sipper. Think coconut, banana, mango and a dash of hazelnut liqueur.
4. Frozen Strawberry Daiquiri
Time Commitment: 10 minutes
Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly <10 ingredients, <30 minutes
The standard daiquiri stars lime juice, but none of your guests will mind the addition of summer berries. Use frozen fruit instead of ice cubes to get the optimal consistency without diluting your drink.
5. Brazilian Breezer Tiki Cocktail
Time Commitment: 10 minutes (plus infusing time)
Why We Love It: <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, special occasion-worthy
The star ingredient—Coco Loco—is a labor of love, since it takes about one week for the pineapple, tequila and coconut rum to infuse. But once you taste it, you’ll see it’s well worth the wait.
6. Hot Buttered Rum
Time Commitment: 15 minutes
Why We Love It: <30 minutes, crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy
One thing we love about rum? It works just as well in winter drinks as it does summer, so you can sip it all year round without getting bored. Consider this one a grown-up alternative to hot cocoa.
7. Coquito
Time Commitment: 40 minutes (plus chilling time)
Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy
Speaking of wintry rum drinks, Christmas is incomplete for many Puerto Ricans without a pitcher of coquito on the table. We asked a native chef for his go-to recipe (and it’s easier to follow than you think).
8. Frozen Brunch Punch
Time Commitment: 10 minutes
Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients, <30 minutes, beginner-friendly
All the OJ of a mimosa pitcher, but way more unexpected. (Although we could see a bonus splash of Champagne working well.)
9. Chai Hot Toddy
Time Commitment: 15 minutes
Why We Love It: <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly
Warming chai tea spices, like cinnamon and ginger, will keep you shockingly cozy in the dead of winter. They’re best served by a roaring fire, if you ask us.
10. Mulled Cider
Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
Zhuzh up store-bought cider with citrus zest, cinnamon sticks, cloves and star anise to create the ultimate cocktail base. It pairs just as well with whiskey as it does rum.
11. New Orleans Hurricane
Time Commitment: 5 minutes
Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients, <30 minutes
There’s no better way to wash down a shrimp po’boy. The key to this fruity fave is fresh passionfruit juice and a spoonful of grenadine, which gives it that Insta-worthy sunset effect.
12. Slow Cooker Cranberry Hot Toddy
Time Commitment: 4 hours and 5 minutes
Why We Love It: slow cooker recipe, crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients
It’s the cashmere sweater of cocktails. And since it comes together in your Crockpot, it basically prepares itself. Keep the drink warm in the slow cooker and let your guests serve their own.
13. Dark and Stormy
Time Commitment: 5 minutes
Why We Love It: <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly
Chilled ginger beer + dark rum = the most refreshing classic cocktail of all time. Give it a generous spritz of lime to drive the island feel home.
14. Mojito
Time Commitment: 5 minutes
Why We Love It: <30 minutes, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients
The recipe is single serve, but there are also instructions for preparing a bulk batch. You can use store-bought simple syrup or go the extra mile by making your own honey syrup.
15. Apple Pie Moonshine
Time Commitment: 1 hour and 30 minutes
Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy
Everyone’s go-to autumn dessert, in liquid form. Spiced rum has notes of cinnamon and vanilla, so it pairs seamlessly with the apple juice, cider and vanilla vodka.
16. Passionfruit Mai Tai
Time Commitment: 5 minutes
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, <30 minutes
The original Mai Tai is a far cry from the fruit juice-laden versions that are popular today. This is closer to the traditional recipe, besides the pure passionfruit juice that sweetens it up.
17. Rum Old Fashioned
Time Commitment: 5 minutes
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, <30 minutes, special occasion-worthy
Fans of the famous whiskey drink will still appreciate this rendition, made with two ounces of aged rum and two large strips of orange zest.
18. Biscoff & Cream Boozy Milkshake
Time Commitment: 5 minutes
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly
Caramelly, gingery Biscoff cookies give this summer essential a cold-weather twist. Not only is it loaded with white rum, but it’s also spiked with bourbon cream liqueur.
19. Christmas Snowstorm Margarita
Time Commitment: 10 minutes
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, <30 minutes, special occasion-worthy
Yup, creamy margaritas are a thing, courtesy of coconut milk. The sugared cranberries on top are guaranteed to wow your guests.
20. Strawberry Champagne Mojito
Time Commitment: 45 minutes
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, special occasion-worthy
These bubbly beauts have alfresco brunch written all over them. Champagne stands in for traditional soda water, but you could use prosecco or cava if that’s what you have on hand.
21. The Hemingway Daiquiri
Time Commitment: 5 minutes
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly
Inspired by the frozen libation at the El Floridita Bar in Havana, Cuba, where Ernest Hemingway used to have his drinks. Picture a standard daiquiri, plus grapefruit juice and Luxardo Maraschino liqueur.
22. Rum Punch
Time Commitment: 5 minutes
Why We Love It: <30 minutes, make ahead, crowd-pleaser
The easiest way to quench a crowd’s thirst? A punch bowl, of course. Here, two types of rum meet citrus, pineapple juice and grenadine.
23. Coconut Lime Mojito Shooters with Blueberry
Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: <30 minutes, special occasion-worthy
These tiny, over-the-top shooters will make you look like a legit mixologist. Prepare extra of the blueberry syrup for lemonades, sodas, pancakes or milkshakes.
24. Orange Hibiscus Mai Tai
Time Commitment: 10 minutes (plus chilling time)
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, special occasion-worthy
You can chalk its stunning pink hue up to dried hibiscus flowers, which are steeped in honey and water to create the base of the cocktail.
25. Painkiller Cocktail Popsicles
Time Commitment: 4 hours (includes freezing time)
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
Because we’ll never outgrow our craving for ice pops on a hot day—especially boozy ones. Toasted coconut flakes make for a crunchy finishing touch.
