Muslim Friendly Tourism:
Developing and Marketing MFT Products and Services
In the OIC Member Countries
28
2 Conceptual Framework and Global Landscape of MFT
Products/Services
2.1 Definition of Muslim Friendly Tourism
The tourism industry uses a variety of terms to describe the products and services targeting
Muslim travelers. uses the term “Halal Travel” while some hospitality
providers describe their hotels as “Shariah compliant” as in the case of Sofyan Hotels in
Indonesia, others use “Halal hotel” as in the case of Adenya Resort in Turkey, “Dry hotel” as in
the case of Porto Hotels in Egypt, or “Muslim-friendly” as in the case of Shaza Hotels. In the
literature, academics mostly use the terms “Halal Tourism” and “Islamic Tourism” in
reference to tourism products and services addressing Muslim travelers’ needs. In a previous
study, commissioned by COMCEC, Muslim-Friendly Tourism was equated with Halal Tourism
and defined as “the activities of Muslim travelers who do not wish to compromise their faith-
based needs while travelling for a purpose, which is permissible.”31
1. Islamic vs. Halal Tourism
Early definitions of Islamic Tourism have focused on tourism with religious nature but
academics later expanded the definition to incorporate any “tourism in accordance with
Islam, involving people of the Muslim faith who are interested in keeping with their personal
religious habits whilst traveling.” Halal Tourism definitions stress more the idea of Shariah
compliance; many academics define it as “any tourism object or action that is permissible
according to Islamic teachings to use or engage in by Muslims in the tourism industry.” 32
A variety of attributes have been pointed out by academics as necessary for tourism products
and services to be Halal or Shariah compliant. Shariah compliance for food products is more
established and far less ambiguous than that of other products and services in the tourism
industry. Theoretically, a Shariah compliant hotel should also be free of alcohol drinks and
any entertainment that is incompatible with Islamic principles, as well as having separate
entertainment facilities for men and women. Additionally, some academics posit that Shariah
compliance also relates to the financial and human resources aspects of hotel operation and
management in that they comply with Islamic principles. However, there is a lack of
consensus on the necessary attributes for a Shariah complaint hotel which consequently
makes it difficult to measure the level of hotels’ Shariah compliance. 33
31 “Muslim-Friendly Tourism: Understanding the Demand and Supply Sides in the OIC Member Countries.” COMCEC, Feb.
2016. Web.
32 Battour, M., and Ismail, M.N. “Halal Tourism: Concepts, Practices, Challenges and Future.” Tourism Management
Perspectives (2015)
33 Razalli, Mohd Rizal and Abdullah, Suzzaini and Hassan, Mohamad Ghozali (2012) Developing a model for Islamic hotels:
Evaluating opportunities and challenges. In: International Conference on Knowledge, Culture and Society 2012 (ICKCS
2012), 29-30 June 2012, Jeju Island, South Korea. (Unpublished)