Gruppo
Campari has revealed plans to invest $7.2 million to upgrade and renovate its
Appleton Estate Rum Tour in St. Elizabeth, Jamaica. The expansion of Appleton
Estate’s visitor center will create new job opportunities for residents
living in rural areas. The expansion of
Appleton’s visitor center will
provide “a unique visitor experience”, plus an increase the number of tourists to
the island. The investment could also
see the Appleton Estate Rum Tour become “one of the largest tourist
attractions” on the south coast, according to the Jamaica Observer.
The
work includes the renovation of the existing facility, the addition of modern
rooms to facilitate rum tastings, an expansive retail store, and a restaurant
and lounge offering Appleton-infused Jamaica cuisine. Gruppo Campari is also looking to
revive a rail service for the tour by 2017 – which was dropped in the
1990's. This will allow the number of
visitors to be tripled. The group
is also looking at plans to offer a small-scale hotel in the near future.
The upgrading of the facility and its
expansion by another 25,000 square feet is expected to be complete by October
2017.
