When you travel to a warm-weather destination like the Caribbean or Mexico, the first thing to do after checking in at the hotel is order a tropical drink. The fruit juices seem sweeter and fresher and the rum more nuanced and potent.
Forbes Travel Guide’s incognito inspectors sipped their way through the region and found the hotel bars that are must-visits. These spots are part of Forbes Travel Guide’s Star Bars, an inaugural list of the world’s best hotel bars. To find the 58 honorees — the number pays tribute to FTG’s 1958 founding as Mobil Travel Guide — expert inspectors visited each one multiple times and sipped cocktails. The winners were determined by data collected as part of FTG’s 2024 and 2025 Star Ratings, based on several exacting standards. The top publicly accessible bars achieved the highest scores for their beverage program and presentation, as well as providing seamless service and an exceptional guest experience.
Whether you crave mezcal in Mexico City or a creative cocktail in Grand Cayman, these top hotel bars will sate you:
1826 Tequila Bar
Rosewood San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
As its name suggests, Rosewood San Miguel de Allende’s handsome wood-lined 1826 Tequila Bar carries a premium collection of tequilas as well as mezcals. For a flavor-packed tipple, try the Margarita al Pibil — the marinade of achiote and citrus juice typically used in the pork dish cochinita pibil lends the drink deep, smoky notes.
If that makes you hungry, peruse delectable Mexican fare like quesabirrias (birria meat-stuffed quesadillas with a dipping sauce) and tuna tostadas. Visit on Tuesdays to enjoy your meal and margarita with live jazz.
Carlotta Reforma
The Ritz-Carlton, Mexico City
The Ritz-Carlton, Mexico City’s 38th-floor bar puts Chapultepec Forest and the rest of Mexico City on display from its floor-to-ceiling windows. Drink in the vast vista with the Secret Margarita, a deceptive take on the classic. The margarita looks like water, but it’s made with Defrente tequila, Contraluz Cristalino mezcal, Alma Finca orange liqueur and clarified lime.
Come for the daily 6 p.m. Pasaje sunset ritual. Bartenders in beaded Huichol masks pass trays of complimentary drinks shrouded in smoke as haunting melodies play.
Cocina del Mar Bar
Esperanza, Auberge Resorts Collection, Los Cabos, Mexico
Sitting on a promontory that juts into the Sea of Cortez, Esperanza’s bar offers a dramatic setting for sundowners. Watch the sun sink into the waves while sipping seasonally changing cocktails that celebrate Mexico’s cultural heritage, each inspired by one of the country’s cultural zones.
For example, the sweet, spicy and tart El Tajín (Ilegal mezcal, mandarin liqueur, apricot, Ancho Reyes chile liqueur, lime and Amarena cherries dusted in Tajín seasoning) pays tribute to Veracruz’s famed archaeological site.
Lester’s Bar
Eclipse at Half Moon, Montego Bay, Jamaica
Lester’s Barhonors Michael Lester, a Polish-born artist who settled in Jamaica and captured the island’s rhythm and energy in his colorful paintings. One of his most well-known works, Junkanoo, hangs behind the refined wood bar.
The bold painting, which depicts Jamaica’s vibrant street parade and festival of the same name, also inspired the Junkanoo Sour, a twist on the classic with Appleton Estate Signature Blend, Disaronno amaretto, lime, cold-pressed pineapple juice, Angostura bitters and a flamed cinnamon finish. (Editor’s note: Eclipse at Half Moon is closed due to Hurricane Melissa and will reopen December 15.)
Library by the Sea
Kimpton Seafire Resort + Spa, Grand Cayman
There’s a great story behind Kimpton Seafire’s bookish bar along Seven Mile Beach: literary works informed the cocktails, which are listed on the menu according to genre, like crime fiction and sci-fi fantasy.
That translates to drinks such as B612, For Consuelo, which nods to The Little Prince. The libation of Tanqueray No. Ten gin, cacao distillate, rose water, hibiscus, Italicus, oloroso, goat kefir and Cocchi di Torino arrives in a locally crafted B612 asteroid vessel with the Little Prince sitting on top.
Manor Bar
Rosewood Baha Mar, The Bahamas
Sidle up to Rosewood Baha Mar’s white marble-topped bar for the sophisticated ambiance and classic cocktails. The jovial bartenders will stir up a Smoked Old Fashioned with Buffalo Trace bourbon, orange and Angostura bitters and simple syrup. The smoky flavor comes from burning applewood chips into a decanter, and the drink gets garnished with a brandy-infused cherry and dehydrated orange.
Make it a classic bar meal by adding on the beef sliders with truffle mayo and cheddar and the truffle Parmesan fries.
Zapote Bar
Rosewood Mayakoba, Riviera Maya, Mexico
Nestled in the jungle, Rosewood’s open-air Zapote creates cocktails based on Riviera Maya animals and Mayan folklore, spotlighting regional ingredients and Mexican spirits. The Hummingbird, for example, combines Lillet Blanc, Aperol, olive and lavender, hitting floral, citrus and herbal notes. A smoky bubble dome caps the drink, which sits on a wood pedestal along with a whimsical hummingbird affixed with a spring. Push the bird and its long beak pops it.
The live-fire grill churns out Middle Eastern dishes, a tribute to the region’s Lebanese heritage.
