Mastercard and global halal tourism authority CrescentRating have jointly released the 2025 edition of their annual Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI.)
For this year, Malaysia reclaimed the top spot, holding it alone rather than sharing the spotlight with Indonesia, with a score of 79.
Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates all tied for second place, with a rating score of 78.
As for Indonesia, it slipped by four points this year and is currently ranked fifth, tied with Qatar, with a score of 76.
These shifts in ranking reflect the evolving state of the global market which has proven to be prime for growth, as well as highly competitive.
How Malaysia stays on top of the list
According to the experts who calculated this year’s rankings, Malaysia’s performance and popularity as a Muslim-friendly destination have been consistent throughout the past ten years.
This may be attributed to the way the country has adopted and implemented a national strategy for halal tourism, considering the needs and preferences of both local and foreign travellers.
In order to do so, the Malaysian government and private sector made significant investments in halal certification systems, inclusive tourism policies, as well as positioning itself well-defined cultural identity that melds local tradition, Islamic heritage, and contemporary comforts into an appealing whole.
Interestingly, considering how it shares traditions and religious heritage with its neighbours Brunei and Indonesia, the way Malaysia has spun its cultural narrative in the context of both conventional and halal-centric tourism has vastly boosted its appeal with a global audience.
As the GMTI points out: “Malaysia sets a benchmark for how destinations can integrate inclusivity into their national tourism strategies. As a multiethnic, Muslim-majority country, it offers travellers the opportunity to experience traditions and festivals in a welcoming and modern context.”
Non-Muslim countries make themselves felt in the rankings
While Middle Eastern nations under the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC), as well as traditionally Muslim North African countries took the bulk of the spots in the GMTI Top 20, it’s interesting to note that non-Muslim and non-OIC countries have been crawling their way up into the top 50.
In a feature we released on our site last month, we at Travel Daily Media had the opportunity to speak to CrescentRating’s head of business development and events Daniswara Nugroho who pointed out how countries like Hong Kong have been working to make their tourism and hospitality venues more Muslim-friendly and halal-compliant.
Indeed, among the GMTI’s ranking of non-OIC destinations, Hong Kong has already surged into third place, as it now boasts of more than 180 halal-certified restaurants and over 60 establishments ranging from hotels to entertainment venues that have been designated as Muslim-friendly by CrescentRating accreditors.
While Singapore remains a prime mover in the rankings, both Thailand and the Philippines are not far behind.
Indeed, the Philippine Department of Tourism (DOT) has been working with local hospitality and tourism companies like Megaworld Hotels and Resorts among others to boost the visibility of halal-compliant facilities, and to increase the number thereof to draw in more visitors from Muslim countries within ASEAN as well as the Middle East.
Given how CrescentRating has forecast that there will be 245 million Muslim travellers abroad in the world by the end of the decade and related spending to hit US$230 billion, it isn’t surprising that non-Muslim countries are stepping up to the challenge of catering to a truly unique and dynamic market.
