tool dedicated to Muslim travellers, offers a wealth of information on hotels and resorts around the globe that cater to their specific requirements.
The inventory includes more than 10,000 addresses with major international chains on board, including AccorHotels, Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts, Rotana, Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas and Rixos Hotels, just to name a few with a strong presence in MENA.
As Faeez Fadhlillah, CEO, Salam Standard, explained, the catalogue is based on the feedback of 50,000 Muslim travellers from around the world.
“We conducted an extensive global campaign asking those surveyed what services and amenities were most important to them when travelling,” disclosed Fadhlillah. “Our aim is to encourage hotel operators to offer more facilities for Muslim travellers, ensuring they experience the holiday of a lifetime.”
In light of the unprecedented growth of Halal travel, destinations and businesses are indeed eager to stake claim for a share of the burgeoning sector, with an increasing number of locations and establishments setting up dedicated services and offering amenities specially designed to cater to the distinctive wishes and desires of those committed to their religion and traditions even while on the go.
Foods and beverages that are permissible for Muslims to consume, availability of prayer rugs and the Qibla signage highlighted in all rooms and suites are all important services and touches, that, as Persson noted, are provided by Jannah Hotels & Resorts properties, all of which are alcohol-free, too.
“We understand that Halal tourism is the fastest growing sector in the hospitality industry, and seeing this growth, we respond to the increasing demand for Halal alternatives for [this] rapidly growing market,” underlined Persson.
Similarly, as a dry hotel, Ramada Abu Dhabi Corniche considers the Halal segment a crucial contributor to the business, emphasised Ibrahim, noting that the property is one of the few four-star addresses listed in Etihad Airways’ Islamic stopover programme.
“We have already hosted many Hajj and Umrah groups through our collaboration with [the airline],” informed Ibrahim, further disclosing that this, along with cooperations with Halal-focussed booking platforms, helped to bring the volume of guests preferring Halal options to 20 percent.
Being a dry hotel, however, is not enough.
“We also added the concept of separate timing for male and females and have created a separate female-only floor,” explained Ibrahim.
In fact, based on the findings of Amadeus’ report, women are strong influencers in destination choice and holiday planning, while when travelling together as a family, destinations offering praying options are highly regarded and so are smart transportation alternatives, preferably with private drivers.
Hotels, in general, are applauded for their comprehensive service, but when it comes to privacy, apartments are preferred, according to the report, which also identified high level of freedom and the respect of religious principles as decisive factors.
To help industry stakeholders gain a competitive edge over their international peers, regional tourism organisations are laying a strong emphasis on putting forward the destination’s Halal proposition and wide range of products.
As H.E. Jassim Al Darnaki, acting director general, Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi), noted, Abu Dhabi is placing itself at the heart of this market in the Gulf region, and the emirate is well-placed to meet specific Muslim demands on a number of fronts with these including food and beverage, segmented family and gender-specific products and dedicated sessions for females at top attractions.
In addition, as Al Darnaki pinpointed, the emirate also offers a plethora of high and medium-quality dry hotels.
To promote the UAE capital as a welcoming destination for the specific segment, Abu Dhabi played host to the first World Halal Travel Summit in October 2015, allowing industry stakeholders to showcase their carefully-designed products and offerings to existing and potential partners.
Al Darmaki pledged to continue the work by partnering with local, regional and even international partners to bring attention to the wide array of Halal offerings available in the emirate, in order to capitalise on the booming segment.
All in all, industry professionals agree that Halal travel is currently one of the fastest growing segments of the industry, representing a major opportunity – one which they all are eager to leverage on.
