Muslim Friendly Tourism (MFT):
Understanding the Supply and Demand Sides
In the OIC Member Countries
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venue to be able to provide the following services:
1) Halal food availability
2) Prayer room with wudhu facilities
3) Water-friendly toilets
Sports events
Catering to major sports events will require the event venue to be able to provide the following
services:
1) Halal food availability
2) Prayer room with wudhu facilities
3) Water-friendly toilets
Travel agents/Tour operators
Travel agents and tour operators play a key role in facilitating travel by Muslims, especially for
groups who travel with larger families. In the process of developing tour packages and operating
tours for Muslim travelers, tour operators need to be aware of the preferences and unique needs
of Muslim travelers.
As such, the key guidelines for Travel Agents and Tour operators are as follows:
1) Staff trained to understand and cater to Muslim clients
2) Staff trained to look for Muslim friendly services when putting together packages
Muslim Friendly Tour packages/Halal Friendly Tour packages are tour packages that take into
account some faith-based needs of the Muslim travelers.
Tour guides
The key guidelines for tour guides wanting to cater to the Muslim market are:
1) Trained on faith-based needs of Muslims and other requirements
2) Understanding of Islamic etiquettes
3) Understanding of Islamic history
Human capital
Human capital is a critical aspect that needs to be developed with knowledge, expertise and
training in catering to Muslim travelers in the tourism industry. Even in OIC member states,
especially in GCC, where the hospitality segment is largely served by non-Muslim staff, due
regard is to be given to human resource development.
The areas for training include:
1) Management
2) Customer service staff
3) Information Centre staff
4) F&B staff at hotels and restaurants
Destinations management organizations/administrations
Destinations as a whole need to look at a number of areas to become Muslim-friendly
destinations. The GMTI 2015 study looks at nine criteria in three areas that contribute to the