Organisers of the 2022 staging of the Jamaica Rum Festival (JRF) which is slated to take place on Saturday, June 25, and will be presented by Appleton Estate Jamaica Rum, in partnership with the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) and the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF), have advised that the event will now be taking place at The Aqueduct, Rose Hall in Montego Bay.

Initially set to take place at Harmony Beach Park in the western city, the JRF team explains that the decision to switch to an alternative venue comes as a strategic move to deliver the best physical experience for rum lovers.

“In the past, the minister of tourism, the Honourable Edmund Bartlett, has referred to the Jamaica Rum Festival as a ‘tourism product’. Knowing the hard work we pour into this event each year to present our rich rum history to Jamaicans and foreigners, we are looking to overdeliver an immersive and explosive edutainment experience for patrons,” said festival director, Valon Thorpe.

“The Aqueduct has presented us with an opportunity to do that and then some. We’re excited about this new venue and are confident that once patrons immerse themselves in the 2022 JRF experience, they will be just as excited if not more,” he added.

Also looking forward to the fourth staging of JRF is Pietro Gramegna, director of marketing, J. Wray & Nephew Ltd.

“This is our first physical staging of the event since the COVID-19 global pandemic, so we are certainly looking forward to making a statement. The Aqueduct, we believe, is the ideal location to adequately showcase just how much this expansive festival has to offer,” he said.

The 2022 staging promises interactive seminars, demonstrations, culturally immersive activities, Jamaican gastronomy, and phenomenal live entertainment from the likes of Capleton, Sanchez, Romain Virgo, Tessanne Chin, and more.

A suite of culturally immersive activities will also be featured during the festival, giving locals and tourists alike a deeper appreciation of Jamaican heritage and culture.

Key sponsors of the festival include Wray & Nephew White Overproof Rum, Kingston 62, JWN Academy, JSAERE, National Rums, Worthy Park Estate, Hampden Estate, the RJRGLEANER Group, Main Event Entertainment Group, Mystique Integrated, Scotiabank, Wisynco’s Wata, Cran Wata, Coca Cola, and True Juice, CB Foods, Barcode, iPrint, Pure National Ice and the Joy Spence Appleton Estate Rum Experience.

Must be 18 years or older to participate and drink. Drink responsibly.