Muslim Friendly Tourism:
Developing and Marketing MFT Products and Services
In the OIC Member Countries
40
 In Spain, the Macia Condor hotel, in Granada, provides Muslim tourists with
information on nearby Halal restaurants and mosques in addition to indicating Qibla
direction and prayer times.52
 Florida Reality Investments, a U.S. company offering holiday rental properties,
equipped fifty of their rental properties in Orlando near Disney World and other
parks with furnishings to ensure preservation of modesty and privacy of Muslim
travelers such as providing curtains around the pool deck.53
3. Activities
A growing number of cultural, entertainment and shopping venues and recreational facilities
in their bid to appeal to Muslim traveler needs have started offering Halal food and prayer
spaces. In London, Westfield shopping center provides prayer rooms while Selfridges extends
opening hours before and during Ramadan.54
 In South Korea, Gyeonggi-do attractions, such as Woongjin Playdoci and Everland
amusement parks, the Korean Folk Village in Yongin, and Petite France in Gapyeong
provide prayer rooms with prayer mats and Qibla signage. 55
 In Japan, a popular department store in Tokyo opened a prayer room while some
karaoke establishments started offering Halal food options as well as providing prayer
rooms.56
 In Australia, a number of theme parks and shopping centers in the Gold Coast provide
prayer rooms and Halal food options.57
 Additionally, some recreational facilities like spas have begun to offer tailored
services to Muslim travelers such as the gender-segregated Halal spas in Thailand that
offer male masseurs for men and female ones for women.58
4. Food and Beverage
The number of Muslim-friendly and Halal certified restaurants is on the rise in many
countries. The availability of Halal food is one of the important things that Muslim travelers
look for and providing them with local cuisine that is Halal allows them to have a more
enjoyable well-rounded experience at the destination. There is still a variety in terms of the
level of Shariah compliance of Muslim-friendly restaurants; some may only offer some Halal
options while others may have Halal only food prepared in Halal certified kitchens. In the UK,
almost a 100 KFC outlets and a fifth of Nando's restaurants offer Halal-certified chicken. The
same is true of Chicken Cottage, Dixy Fried Chicken, Pizza Express and Perfect Fried
Chicken.59 In South Korea, Namiok restaurant in Nami Island specializes in traditional Korean
52 Please refer to Spain case study for more information.
53 Batrawy, Aya. “Halal tourism on the rise, with apps and curtained pool decks.” Stuff. 27 Oct. .2015.
54 Ilyas, Sara. “How fashion is courting the Muslim pound.” The Guardian. 12 Jun. 2015.
55 “A Slim Destination for Muslim travelers.” South Korea: Gyeonggi-Do Tourism Organization. Web.
56 Please refer to Japan case study for more information.
57 Mick, Hans. “Arab tourists flocking to Gold Coast.” ABC. 29 Sep. 2007.
58 Please refer to Thailand case study for more information.
59 Battour, M., and Ismail, M.N. “Halal Tourism: Concepts, Practices, Challenges and Future.” Tourism Management
Perspectives (2015)