This Tropical Bay Breeze recipe is a delightfully fresh cocktail made with coconut rum and pineapple juice mixed with sweet cranberry juice and Grenadine. It’s a cool summer drink with all the fruity flavors of a tropical paradise.

This Tropical Bay Breeze recipe is a popular drink served on tropical islands. It’s a cool summer cocktail that’s easy to make as a single drink or by the pitcher for a crowd. Plus, it’s an “on the rocks” style drink, so no need to mess with a blender, yet you still get the tastes of a fruity tropical drink.

On a trip to Ambergris Caye (a quaint island off the coast of Belize), I ordered this tasty rum drink for the first time. It turned out to be the perfect compliment to my view overlooking the beach and vibrant blue-green tropical waters.

When I inquired about the recipe, it was a bit of a secret, as my waitress didn’t want to give me the exact details. Not sure why, as I soon found out it’s a common drink served in just about every island bar. It was just new to me!

After mixing a few of my own back home, I’m pretty sure this is the not-so-secret recipe I tasted at that beach bar. And every sip takes me right back to that gorgeous view overlooking the beach.

No time to make a Tropical Bay Breeze right now? Save it for later and Pin it!

Is a Tropical Bay Breeze the Same as a Malibu Bay Breeze?

The Tropical Bay Breeze drink is very similar to a Malibu Bay Breeze, but it has a slightly fruitier flavor and it’s a tad sweeter. And (of course) a Malibu Bay Breeze drink can officially only be made with the brand name Malibu Coconut Rum.

The fruitier flavor comes from an extra ounce of pineapple juice in the recipe. Coconut rum and pineapple juice are wonderful complimentary flavors and I like the extra pineapple taste of the Tropical Bay Breeze drink.

The added splash of Grenadine is the secret ingredient that punches up the sweet taste just a little and changes the look into this glorious red color.

Bay Breeze vs Sea Breeze

The Malibu and Tropical Bay Breeze drinks are completely different than a Sea Breeze drink. Instead of coconut rum (or any kind of rum), the Sea Breeze is a vodka based cocktail.

The Sea Breeze completely omits pineapple juice and is more tart since it features a mix of cranberry juice and grapefruit juice.

What is Grenadine and How Does it Taste?

As mentioned above, Grenadine is an added ingredient that helps set the Tropical Bay Breeze drink apart from the Malibu Bay Breeze cocktail. In the United States, Grenadine syrup is readily available and super cheap to buy. It’s a very popular ingredient in tropical cocktails and it turns out we’re basically buying red colored sugar water. Not necessarily a bad thing.

Authentic Grenadine is more tart and made from pomegranate fruit juice. The taste is quite different than the typical Grenadine syrup we bring home from the store.

Authentic Grenadine syrups versus the popular brands we find in the stores is quite different, but people enjoy the store bought brands because the added sugar is simply more appealing to most people’s taste buds.

Making homemade or using authentic Grenadine syrup is best for serious mixologists or a special occasion that calls for an authentically made cocktail. Otherwise, simply enjoy the more common sweet flavor and bright color of the store brands, which is exactly what I used in this recipe.

Here’s how to make a Tropical Bay Breeze drink for a fresh, sweet and “tastes like the islands” cocktail. You can use the print button below if you want to print out this recipe. Give it a try!