Halal Tourism: Muslim-Friendly Facilities in Indonesia
Indonesia boasts rich natural beauty, offering a myriad of tourist destinations across its regions, attracting both domestic and international travelers. This underscores Indonesia’s vast tourism potential. Alongside its natural beauty, its cultural diversity and culinary delights allure visitors from around the globe. Popular natural tourist destinations in Indonesia include Bali, Lombok, Labuan Bajo, and many more.
Recently, the concept of halal tourism has emerged, not only offering natural beauty but also adhering to Islamic principles. According to the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy (Kemenparekraf), halal tourism entails extended service amenities tailored to fulfill the experiences and desires of Muslim travelers, such as halal food and prayer facilities, as well as Muslim-friendly amenities like toilet facilities. Hence, Muslim travelers can enjoy the natural beauty while fulfilling their religious and dietary needs.
IHATEC Marketing Research conducted a survey to assess the prevalence of Muslim-friendly facilities in Indonesian tourist destinations. This survey, conducted from February to March, targeted over 450 respondents across Jabodetabek, Surabaya, Medan, and Makassar.
The survey inquired about the ease of finding Muslim-friendly facilities while traveling. These facilities include prayer rooms (with ablution facilities, prayer mats, cleanliness, and gender separation), halal-certified restaurants, nursing rooms, clean and enclosed toilets, and Islamic-compliant recreational activities (free from prohibited elements in Islam such as pornography, gambling, and alcohol).
The survey results indicate that prayer facilities are easily accessible, followed by halal-certified restaurants and Muslim-friendly toilets. However, Muslim-friendly nursing rooms are relatively hard to find.
Additionally, the survey explored the services provided by travel agencies. Of the total respondents, only 17% utilized travel agency services in the past year.
Furthermore, 17% respondents were asked about their level of agreement with the following statements:
- Travel agencies facilitate prayer activities, providing prayer schedules and prayer facilities.
- Travel agencies compile lists of Muslim-friendly accommodations and destinations.
- Travel agencies provide travel guides to prevent unseemly activities and offer halal food and beverage options.
The survey results reveal that the majority agree that travel agencies offer halal food, travel guides to prevent unseemly activities, and facilitate prayer activities. These three statements share the highest agreement percentage at 94.9%.
While travel agencies’ provision of Muslim-friendly accommodation and destination lists is less of a priority for respondents, it remains essential for adhering to Islamic principles during travel.
Therefore, halal tourism in Indonesia holds significant potential and continues to evolve. Enhancing Muslim-friendly facilities in tourist destinations and travel agencies will further attract Muslim travelers from across the globe.
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