Muslim Friendly Tourism:
Regulating Accommodation Establishments
In the OIC Member Countries
22
Table 6: Key Features from Selected Conventional and Alternative Standards
Standard What It Measures Required/
Voluntary
Additional Information
HOTREC Hotelstars
Union24
Conventional quality; 270
criteria
Voluntary overall
(required in some
countries)
16 members, expanding;
Publicly run or privately
run; Periodic revisions
American Automobile
Association (AAA)
Conventional quality; 36
minimal requirements
plus Diamond criteria25
Voluntary US-specific, with Canadian
Automobile Association
(CAA) for Canada
Automobile
Association (AA)
Conventional quality Voluntary UK-specific; Harmonized
with government standards
(Common Quality
Standards)26
Philippine Star Rating
System
Conventional quality; 7
dimensions; 175-200
indicators
Required27 Recent (2009) update,
replacing policies from 1991
Egypt New Norms28 Conventional quality;
focus on both physical
attributes and service
levels; 297 items
evaluated29
Voluntary Recent (2006-2012)
updates, replacing policies
from 198230
Green Key Global Alternative standard;
Focus on sustainability
(14 dimensions)
Voluntary Self-assessment followed by
audit
ASEAN Green Hotel31 Alternative standard; 11
major criteria; Focus on
environment
Voluntary Regional standard;
Re-evaluation every 3
years
ISO 13811 Alternative standard;
Focus on environmental
sustainability
Voluntary Limited adoption to date;
Leading sustainability
groups engaged
ISO 14001 Alternative certification;
Focus on environmental
management system
standard
Voluntary More widespread
adoption; Not specific to
hotel industry
Source: DinarStandard
The selected conventional standards, which are presented in the table above, are mainly
perceived as signals of quality to consumers as well as comparison tools, while environmental
standards signal improved environmental impact and sustainability and can be used by hotels
as differentiation tools.
24 De Barrin, Christian. "HSU Slovenia." HOTREC, June 2014. Web. 5 Oct. 2016.
25 AAA Tourism Information Development. Approval Requirements & Diamond Rating Guidelines. Heathrow, FL: AAA
Tourism Information Development, 2012. AAA Publishing, June 2012. Web. 5 Oct. 2016.
26 "AA Hotel Services." AA. Automobile Association Developments, 2016. Web. 05 Oct. 2016.
27 Arnaldo, Ma. Stella F. "DOT Releases New Hotel Ratings System." ABS CBN News. Business Mirror, 28 June 2012. Web. 5
Oct. 2016.
28 Project Summary: Review and Implementation of the New Hotel Classification System . Rep. UNWTO, 9 May 2013. Web. 17
Oct. 2016.
29 Dunn, Jimmy. "A New Hotel Ranking System for Egypt." Tour Egypt. Tour Egypt, 2012. Web. 17 Oct. 2016.
30 Dunn, Jimmy. "A New Hotel Ranking System for Egypt." Tour Egypt. Tour Egypt, 2012. Web. 17 Oct. 2016.
31 ASEAN Green Hotel Standard. Rep. Jakarta: ASEAN, 2016. ASEAN Green Hotel Standard. ASEAN, Jan. 2016. Web. 17 Oct.
2016.