Area of interest to mainstream: Evolution of Halal tourism in world journey business – INA NEWS

The Halal and Muslim-friendly tourism market is anticipated to develop to $410.9bn by 2032, up from $256.5bn in 2023, in accordance with business predictions, with fashionable vacationer locations launching numerous initiatives to money in on the rise in demand.

Worldwide Muslim vacationer arrivals within the first half of 2024 have been listed at 80 million, in accordance with Crescent Ranking, which mentioned the steep rise is about to proceed and figures may attain 230 million by 2028.

Business specialists say the worldwide Islamic Halal economic system, which incorporates investments in addition to tourism amongst others, is about to achieve $7.7 trillion this yr, greater than double the $3.2 trillion in 2015 and considerably increased than the $5.7 trillion it was valued at in 2021.

What’s Halal tourism?

Halal is an Arabic time period which means “permitted” and extends to extra than simply meals.

Halal, or Muslim-friendly, tourism would cowl all the things from halal meals, prayer services, availability of water in bathrooms for laundry and ablution, gender segregation choices, in addition to an surroundings and expertise free from “forbidden” acts, together with alcohol and playing.

Why was there a necessity for halal tourism choices?

“Muslim leisure travellers have related motivations to others. They need to expertise the tradition of their vacation spot,” Fazal Bahardeen, CEO of Crescent Ranking, instructed Al Jazeera.

“The important thing distinction is that they search to get pleasure from these experiences with out compromising their fundamental faith-based wants. It’s not only a type of non secular tourism.”

A report by Crescent Ranking predicts that the Muslim journey market is anticipated to achieve $300bn by 2026, serving as “a strategic alternative for locations and operators to attach with a rising viewers”.

Is the Muslim-friendly tourism market spreading?

AbdulMaalik Tailor, CEO and founding father of Halal Tourism Britain, reckons Halal tourism “is an untapped market that has potential”.

“Initially, Muslim travellers would solely do non secular pilgrimages or go to ‘again house’,” he instructed Al Jazeera. “However because the group grew, particularly the youthful generations with their surplus spend, it turned obvious that their wants needed to be catered for.”

Bahardeen says many fashionable vacationer locations are actually “recognising this potential and enhancing their choices to be extra inclusive”.

Whereas Malaysia and Thailand are among the many hottest locations, different fashionable ones embody Singapore, United Kingdom, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Thailand.

In July final yr, Thailand unveiled a halal business motion plan aimed toward selling native merchandise and bolstering business requirements. The nation set its hopes on the rising halal business to assist enhance to its tourism-reliant economic system, which has struggled for the reason that COVID-19 pandemic.

With a 4M improve in Muslim vacationers in 10 years, Thailand has opened its first Halal lodge. pic.twitter.com/kPETOFWnEF

— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) March 24, 2017

In November, the Hong Kong Tourism Board launched an initiative to “drive growth of Muslim-friendly tourism services to raise customer experiences”.

In an announcement despatched to Al Jazeera, it mentioned it wished to “encourage eating places, inns, points of interest, venues, and different institutions to assessment their Muslim-friendliness, whereas selling the significance of Halal certification among the many commerce”, sharing an inventory of inns, eating places and points of interest that had obtained the required certification.

Since 2019, Taiwan has persistently been amongst locations ranked extremely by Crescent Ranking whereas the Philippines retained its title as an rising Muslim-friendly vacation spot for the second straight yr in 2024.

Final yr, the Philippines’s Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco mentioned the tourism division “recognises the importance and potential of Halal tourism in contributing to the expansion and variety of our tourism business”.

“Catering to the wants of Muslim travellers by growth of Halal tourism is essential in guaranteeing that we increase our competitiveness within the world tourism market,” she added.

Zanzibar hosted a Halal Tourism Exhibition final yr, hoping to draw not solely funding but additionally curiosity. A Zanzibar tourism official instructed Al Jazeera that the transfer may even assist enhance companies that have been already providing such initiatives.

Tailor, of Halal Tourism Britain, mentioned the “improve in non-Muslim nations catering to Halal tourism exhibits a optimistic pattern out there’s development”.

What’s contributing to the rise in Halal tourism?

Whereas the rise in Muslim inhabitants development stays an element that has pushed the demand increased, in accordance with Tailor, one other main motive is the rising center class with disposable revenue that’s wishing to journey extra.

“Extra locations, whether or not Muslim or non-Muslim, have gotten conscious of the potential and are actively advertising themselves as such to create completely different experiences,” he mentioned.

“We additionally have to recognise that the age we live in, the narrative may be instructed now by Muslim influencers and Muslim manufacturers benefiting from it too, while recognising that non-Muslims who might establish as Halal travellers are more and more wishing to have the shared experiences.”

Roughly 70 p.c of the worldwide Muslim inhabitants is aged under 40.

Crescent Ranking predicts that “by 2034, the Muslim inhabitants will expertise substantial will increase within the center age teams [21-30 and 31-40]that are key journey demographic segments on account of their financial exercise and journey propensity”.

Bahardeen says he has been a part of the business for the final 16 years, and “the adjustments in halal tourism have been profound”.

“Once we began, it was a distinct segment idea with restricted consciousness. At this time, it’s broadly recognised throughout the journey business, with complete segments devoted to accommodating Muslim travellers. The extent of consciousness, innovation, and funding on this sector has developed considerably.”