While halal travel is commonly something equated with the Middle East, travel professionals need to be aware that it also applies to other parts of the world, particularly South and Southeast Asia which both have sizeable Muslim populations.
Indeed, an Al-Jazeera report from February of this year shows that the halal / Muslim-friendly tourism market is expected to grow to US$410.9 billion by 2032, nearly twice the total seen at the end of 2023.
Crescent Rating, the leading global authority on halal travel, also pointed out that the number of Muslims travelling globally regardless of whether for business or leisure could hit 230 million by 2028.
This rise, of course, is dependent on how rapidly different nations can launch and implement key initiatives to attract Muslim travellers, particularly amenities that take their religious practices into consideration on top of their dietary requirements.
East Asia, in particular, needs to step up its game, given the rising number of Muslim travellers making their way to China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan.
Travel Daily Media was recently able to sit down with Crescent Ratings’ head of business development and events Daniswara Nugroho who shared his findings and insights on how East Asia can make travel more appealing to visitors from Islamic Southeast Asia and the Middle East.
Working with East Asian hospitality providers
Nugroho explained to us that Crescent Rating recently worked with the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) in order to build up their Muslim-friendly service ecosystem from the ground up, an initiative which was spearheaded by the HKTB itself.
As he recalls: “We did a seminar with their stakeholders, mostly the hoteliers, as well as main venues, attractions, and shopping malls throughout Hong Kong. We shared critical touchpoints with them regarding the needs of Muslim travellers.”
Those in attendance at that talk were introduced with the Crescent Rating system which is used to evaluate establishments based on how Muslim-friendly they are.
Nugroho said: “Along the way, we managed to rate 16 establishments in Hong Kong, and we noted that some of them have made improvements in their offerings, especially when it comes to halal food and the availability water in washrooms; some have even added bidets to their toilets.”
However, Nugroho also pointed out that the adoption of more Muslim-friendly practices has been slow in both the Macau SAR and Mainland China.
Indeed, it may still take some time for hotels and other establishments in Macau to come to the same level of halal-preparedness as their counterparts in Hong Kong.
With regard to hospitality providers in the Chinese Mainland, Nugroho said: “We haven't been able to penetrate the Chinese market because, so far, we don't have a local partner or counterpart we could actually work with. But we are working on getting to the tourism boards in the country.”
Interestingly, while China has had ethnic Muslim areas like the Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang in the northwestern part of the country, it has been a challenge even for organisations like Crescent Rating to gain traction in the country.
Crescent Ratings' Daniswara Nugroho addresses attendees at MITE 2025 in MacauOn cruises and measures in other parts of the region
In recent months, regional cruises have begun to become more popular among Asian travellers, especially following the brand refresh for Star and Dream Cruises in March of this year.
When asked if regional cruise lines were beginning to adopt halal-centric practices, Nugroho replied with a resounding yes.
Nugroho explained: “We’ve worked with Resorts World Cruises [the previous brand identity for StarCruises] in Singapore, and we’ve actually rated them based on how Muslim-friendly they are. To date, one of their cruises is already Muslim-friendly.”
Indeed, some vessels like StarCruises’ Star Voyager are already equipped with facilities like halal kitchens that offer menus specific to a Muslim clientele; during our coverage of the Star Voyager’s maiden voyage in March, we noted that specific dishes were offered to such guests at the appropriate times for both iftar at sunset and suhoor before dawn.
Nugroho added: “ We are currently (3:46) launching another cruise in Antarctica with Albatros Expeditions, and we’re going to set plans early next year with them. It's going to be Muslim-friendly, so it means that they have bidets for washing, as well as halal food. And, yes: they will also have a prayer room.”
Beyond the cruise sector, the proliferation of halal-friendly amenities is already being seen in countries like the Philippines which has its own Muslim population in its southern provinces, and where hotel management companies like Megaworld have already made significant inroads towards inclusivity.
Naturally, such amenities are already available in nations that are predominantly Muslim like Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia, with hotels and attractions offering wash areas, prayer rooms, religion-compliant menus, and even regular calls to prayer within their premises.
However, Nugroho said that there is still much work to be done: tourism-heavy nations like Thailand and Vietnam still lack much of the necessities required by Muslim travellers, but organisations like Crescent Rating are already in talks with relevant authorities to ensure that the right measures will be set in place some time in the future.
