Malaysia, Singapore best halal tourism destinations
Singapore-based halal tourism agency Crescentrating has released its 2014 Ranking of Halal Friendly Holiday Destinations on 60 global destinations. The Muslim travel market segment was estimated to be worth $140 billion in 2013, representing almost 13 per cent of global travel expenditures. An increasing number of destinations are now keen on tapping into this segment and adapting their services to take into account the unique faith-based needs of Muslim travelers.
Top 10 Halal Friendly Holiday Destinations for 2014 in the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and non-OIC category
| Top 10 Halal Friendly Destinations 2014 (OIC Destinations) | Top 10 Halal Friendly Destinations 2014 (non-OIC Destinations) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Malaysia | Singapore |
| 2 | United Arab Emirates | South Africa |
| 3 | Turkey | Thailand |
| 4 | Indonesia | United Kingdom |
| 5 | Saudi Arabia | Bosnia & Herzegovina |
| 6 | Morocco | India |
| 7 | Jordan | Hong Kong |
| 8 | Qatar | Germany |
| 9 | Tunesia | Australia |
| 10 | Egypt | Tanzania |
The main criteria taken into account in the ranking includes its suitability as a family holiday destination, the level of services and facilities it provides for Muslim travelers and the marketing initiatives of the destination targeting this segment.
Malaysia continues to hold on to its top position as the most halal friendly holiday destination, followed by United Arab Emirates and Turkey in the OIC destinations. Indonesia has moved up to 4th position as the country has launched number of initiatives in the past 12 months to focus on this segment. Singapore leads the list in non-OIC category for the second year.
Japan has made the most improvement among the 60 destinations tracked. Japan released a travel guide for Muslim travelers last year. Recently some of the airports in Japan have also taken steps to improve their services by offering Halal food and prayer rooms.
Italy, Belgium, Ireland and Mexico were the bottom four non-OIC countries in the rankings, as they had “not really focused” on the possibilities of the Muslim market. Among OIC destinations, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Nigeria ranked at the bottom.
Singapore-based halal tourism agency Crescentrating has released its 2014 Ranking of Halal Friendly Holiday Destinations on 60 global destinations. The Muslim travel market segment was estimated to be worth $140 billion in 2013, representing almost 13 per cent of global travel expenditures. An increasing number of destinations are now keen on tapping into this segment and adapting their services to take into account the unique faith-based needs of Muslim travelers. Top 10 Halal Friendly Holiday Destinations for 2014 in the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and non-OIC category Top 10 Halal Friendly Destinations 2014 (OIC Destinations) Top 10 Halal Friendly...
Singapore-based halal tourism agency Crescentrating has released its 2014 Ranking of Halal Friendly Holiday Destinations on 60 global destinations. The Muslim travel market segment was estimated to be worth $140 billion in 2013, representing almost 13 per cent of global travel expenditures. An increasing number of destinations are now keen on tapping into this segment and adapting their services to take into account the unique faith-based needs of Muslim travelers.
Top 10 Halal Friendly Holiday Destinations for 2014 in the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and non-OIC category
| Top 10 Halal Friendly Destinations 2014 (OIC Destinations) | Top 10 Halal Friendly Destinations 2014 (non-OIC Destinations) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Malaysia | Singapore |
| 2 | United Arab Emirates | South Africa |
| 3 | Turkey | Thailand |
| 4 | Indonesia | United Kingdom |
| 5 | Saudi Arabia | Bosnia & Herzegovina |
| 6 | Morocco | India |
| 7 | Jordan | Hong Kong |
| 8 | Qatar | Germany |
| 9 | Tunesia | Australia |
| 10 | Egypt | Tanzania |
The main criteria taken into account in the ranking includes its suitability as a family holiday destination, the level of services and facilities it provides for Muslim travelers and the marketing initiatives of the destination targeting this segment.
Malaysia continues to hold on to its top position as the most halal friendly holiday destination, followed by United Arab Emirates and Turkey in the OIC destinations. Indonesia has moved up to 4th position as the country has launched number of initiatives in the past 12 months to focus on this segment. Singapore leads the list in non-OIC category for the second year.
Japan has made the most improvement among the 60 destinations tracked. Japan released a travel guide for Muslim travelers last year. Recently some of the airports in Japan have also taken steps to improve their services by offering Halal food and prayer rooms.
Italy, Belgium, Ireland and Mexico were the bottom four non-OIC countries in the rankings, as they had “not really focused” on the possibilities of the Muslim market. Among OIC destinations, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Nigeria ranked at the bottom.
