Halal tourism is one of industry’s fastest-growing sectors

Halal-friendly travel is one of the world’s fastest-growing travel sectors. Halal tourism is a subcategory of tourism which is geared towards Muslim families who abide by rules of Islam. The hotels in such destinations do not serve alcohol and have separate swimming pools and spa facilities for men and women.

Malaysia, Turkey and many more countries are trying to attract Muslim tourists from all over the world offering facilities in accordance with the religious beliefs of Muslim tourists. Currently, there exists no internationally recognized standards on Halal tourism.

The Halal tourism industry also provides flights where no alcohol or pork products are served, prayer timings are announced, and religious programs are broadcast as part of entertainment offered on board.

Many international hotels do serve halal food that is slaughtered in accordance with the teachings of Islamic Sharia and is free of any substances forbidden by Islam such as pork and alcohol. Some hotels have employed people from the Muslim world to provide translation services and other assistance that may be needed by tourists from Muslim countries

According to the newly released “State of the Global Islamic Economy Report 2018/19”, produced by Thomson Reuters in collaboration with DinarStandard, in 2017 the Muslim travel market grew by 11.8%, which was nearly double the growth of the global travel market.

Market spend has been growing by $10 billion per year, reaching $177 billion in 2017. This is forecast to reach US$274 billion by 2023, making it one of the industry’s fastest-growing sectors.