St. Martin may not have the same tradition of rum production as the surrounding Caribbean islands, but you can visit a distillery here that makes real Caribbean rum from local sugar cane.
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There is currently only one distillery on the island open to the public. Topper's Rhum may have only started production in 2008, but it has quickly become a premium brand of Caribbean rums, and is even consistently ranked as the 10th-15th best-selling Caribbean rum in the US.
Excursions and admission
Topper's Distillery is a family-owned business, but their distillery is on par in size with much more well-known brands.
There are regular daily tours of the distillery's facilities, which will give you an insight into the production of the rum and even allow you to sample a few samples.
The tour lasts about an hour and is held 5 times a day from 10:00 to 17:30.
We recommend booking online, as especially on days when several large cruise ships arrive on Sint Maarten at the same time, capacity can sell out.
For a tour of the distillery you currently pay 33 usd.
Information and reservations on the website: toppersrhumtours.com.
How to get there
Topper's Rhum Distillery is located right on the main road between Cole Bay and Simpson Bay. Free parking is available in front of the distillery.
There is also a very busy minibus service that runs along this road, on the Philipsburg - Cole Bay - Simpson Bay - Airport - Maho route.
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