Halal Tourism: Exploring New Horizons

Welcome to Halal Market Mastery! Each week, we’ll provide you with expert tips, best practices and industry developments to thrive in the booming trillion-dollar halal market. Let’s dive in!

Table of Contents

• Halal Tourism: Exploring New Horizons

  • 1. Understanding Halal Tourism

  • 2. Key Features of Halal-Friendly Travel

  • 3. Targeting the Muslim Traveler Market

  • 4. Expanding Halal Tourism Services

  • 5. Halal-Friendly Travel Tech

  • 6. Building Trust Through Certification

  • 7. Leveraging Halal Tourism Trends

  • Key Takeaways

• Upcoming Event

• Recent Industry News

  • 1. Policy & Compliance

  • 2. Industry Development & Trade

Halal Tourism: Exploring New Horizons

The global halal tourism market is expanding rapidly, presenting new opportunities for businesses to cater to the unique needs of Muslim travelers. This week, we explore how halal tourism is reshaping the travel industry and how your business can tap into this growing sector.

1. Understanding Halal Tourism

Halal tourism refers to travel that accommodates the specific religious and cultural needs of Muslim travelers. This includes halal food options, prayer facilities, and family-friendly environments.

• Growing Demand: The Muslim population is expected to reach 2.2 billion by 2030, with Muslim travelers accounting for a significant portion of the global tourism industry.

• Popular Destinations: Malaysia, Indonesia, Turkey, and the UAE are leading destinations for halal-friendly tourism, offering a range of services that cater to Muslim travelers’ needs. Countries like Japan and Thailand are also increasingly becoming popular by adapting their services to attract this segment.

2. Key Features of Halal-Friendly Travel

Businesses catering to halal tourists must offer specific services and amenities, including:

• Halal Dining Options: Ensure that your hotel or travel package includes halal-certified restaurants or dining options that cater to Muslim travelers' dietary needs. Hotels like the Al Meroz Hotel in Bangkok are designed with Muslim travelers in mind, offering halal-certified food.

• Prayer Facilities: Offer access to prayer rooms, prayer mats, and information about local mosques. Major international airports, such as Heathrow Airport and Changi International Airport, provide dedicated prayer rooms. Travel itineraries should also account for prayer times.

• Family-Friendly Environments: Many halal travelers seek family-friendly destinations with entertainment and activities that cater to all age groups in a modest and respectful environment.

3. Targeting the Muslim Traveler Market

Successfully attracting Muslim travelers requires tailored marketing strategies:

• Cultural Sensitivity: Use marketing materials that resonate with the values of Muslim travelers. Avoid imagery or messaging that may be seen as culturally insensitive.

• Digital Platforms: Leverage social media platforms such as HalalTrip and Have Halal, Will Travel to reach tech-savvy Muslim travelers. Highlight your halal-friendly offerings and amenities through social media, websites, and travel apps.

• Collaborations with Halal Influencers: Partner with Muslim travel influencers (e.g. Halal Girls About Town, Navito Halal) who can authentically promote your halal-friendly services and destinations to their followers.

4. Expanding Halal Tourism Services

Expand your offerings to cater to the growing halal tourism market:

• Tour Packages: Create tour packages specifically designed for Muslim travelers, featuring halal-friendly hotels, dining, and sightseeing activities. Travel agencies like Rayna Tours in Dubai offer exclusive halal tour packages, including visits to mosques, halal dining experiences, and modest shopping tours, targeting Muslim families.

• Muslim-Friendly Hotels: Work with Muslim-friendly hotels that offer halal food, prayer facilities, gender-segregated recreational areas, and alcohol-free environments to ensure an enjoyable stay for Muslim travelers.

• Experiential Travel: Offer cultural and religious experiences that align with Islamic values, such as Islamic heritage tours, visits to historical mosques, and wellness retreats that adhere to halal principles.

5. Halal-Friendly Travel Tech

Technology is a key enabler in providing seamless halal travel experiences:

• Halal Travel Apps: Develop or partner with halal travel apps such as Muslim Pro and Zabihah that provide services such as finding halal restaurants, prayer times, nearby mosques, and Muslim-friendly accommodations.

• Virtual Experiences: Offer virtual tours or online experiences that cater to Muslim travelers, giving them an idea of the services and halal-friendly aspects of your destination before booking.

• Digital Payments: Ensuring that your business offers digital payment solutions like Islamic e-wallets (e.g. PayHalal) helps build trust with halal-conscious consumers who prefer using Islamic-compliant payment methods.

6. Building Trust Through Certification

Certification plays a significant role in gaining the trust of halal-conscious travelers:

• Halal-Certified Hotels and Services: Work with halal certification bodies such as Jabatan Kemajuan Islam Malaysia (Jakim) and Japan Halal Association to ensure your services meet the standards required by Muslim travelers.

• Transparency: Be transparent about your halal offerings. Display your halal certifications prominently on your website, marketing materials, and travel packages to reassure travelers.

7. Leveraging Halal Tourism Trends

Staying on top of trends can help you capture a larger share of the halal tourism market:

• Eco-Friendly and Ethical Travel: Many Muslim travelers are becoming more environmentally conscious. The Jannah Hotels & Resorts in Abu Dhabi offer halal-certified services while promoting sustainability through eco-friendly initiatives like waste reduction and energy conservation, aligning with the values of environmentally conscious Muslim travelers.

• Luxury Halal Travel: Cater to the growing segment of affluent Muslim travelers by offering luxury travel experiences that meet halal standards, including premium accommodations, private tours, and exclusive dining experiences.

• Halal Cruises: Halal cruises such as Dreamcation are becoming popular, offering an immersive travel experience with fully halal menus, prayer facilities, and Muslim-friendly entertainment.

Key Takeaways

The halal tourism market is growing rapidly, offering significant opportunities for businesses to cater to Muslim travelers. By providing halal-friendly services, leveraging digital platforms, offering tailored experiences, and building trust through certification, your business can thrive in this expanding sector.

For more insights or for personalised advice, click below:

Upcoming Event

Join us at the Next Level Conference from 19 - 20 Oct 2024, where forward-thinking entrepreneurs, professionals, and side-hustlers gather to unlock new pathways to success.

This is your opportunity to hear from industry leaders, including Ms. Dewi Suratty, CEO of Halal Practitioner, as she shares her insights on "Unlocking Trillion Dollar Opportunities in the Halal Market". Whether you're looking to elevate your business or explore lucrative new ventures, this event will equip you with the knowledge and strategies to thrive.

Don’t miss out— click HERE to secure your spot now!

Recent Industry News

1. Policy & Compliance

• Jakim revokes over 3,000 Halal certifications for non-compliance (New Straits Times, 12 Oct 2024)

• Indonesia's BPJPH signs 52 Halal certification deals with 24 countries (Antara, 11 Oct 2024)

• Modi Government streamlines Halal certification process amid protests from Hindutva groups (The Munsif Ready, 11 Oct 2024)

• Major Turkish steakhouse chain faces backlash as pork found in Halal-certified meats (Turkiye Today, 9 Oct 2024)

• Pakistani council: Lack of HS codes for global Halal trade is major obstacle (Report.az, 8 Oct 2024)

• 88 foreign Halal certification bodies receive Jakim accreditation (Bernama, 5 Oct 2024)

• Selangor govt takes seriously lax attitude of entrepreneurs towards Halal certification (Bernama, 5 Oct 2024)

• Indonesia Ministry clarifies Halal certification of wine-related products (Tempo, 4 Oct 2024)

2. Industry Development & Trade

• Rising star in global market: Azerbaijan’s Halal food industry takes shape (Azernews, 11 Oct 2024)

• Malaysia sees prospects to establish cooperation with Canada in Halal sector (The Sun Daily, 11 Oct 2024)

• Thailand-Brunei focus on food security and investments in Halal food industry (Pattaya Mail, 11 Oct 2024)

• Indonesia certifies 5.3 million products as Halal, says minister (Antara, 10 Oct 2024)

• Azerbaijan's Halal products to gain global recognition with new certification (Azernews, 9 Oct 2024)

• Malaysia inks deal with Pakistan to import Halal meat and Basmati rice (The Star, 3 Oct 2024)