Probably at few times in recent history has the movement and mobility of people of the Islamic faith been so significant yet so misunderstood. Islam is simultaneously a major world religion that affects consumption and business practices globally; a market of an estimated 1.8 billion people, including a rapidly growing international tourism market; a major influence on foodways as a result of specific food requirements; and an area of contested political identity in many countries. In this climate there is therefore a clear need for an improved understanding of the significance of Islamic tourism and hospitality in both Muslim and non-Muslim majority countries and destinations.
To engage in travel and come to understand and engage with the world is an integral part of Islam. International travel by Muslims, what is widely called Islamic tourism, has become a major market targeted by Muslim and non-Muslim majority countries alike. Yet, like many faiths, Islam requires its adherents to follow certain behaviours and practices. Halal, what is lawful under Islam, therefore becomes a major factor in Islamic consumption as well as the capacity to provide services to Muslim customers. Although food is a significant component of the halal concept, the notion of what is permissible and appropriate goes beyond food to cover many aspects of hospitality and tourism. This Handbook has therefore been prepared so as to provide a source book for those interested in gaining a better understanding of different aspects of Islamic tourism and hospitality from a range of different perspectives and contexts.
Despite the size of the Islamic tourism market and its influence on lodging and accommodation design, food provision, and wider entertainment and hospitality provision, knowledge of the market and its requirements by non-Muslims is often extremely limited. The notion of ‘halal’ being a case in point. The word halal literally means permissible, and in translation it is usually used as lawful. The concept covers all aspects of Islamic life. However, to many non-Muslims the term is often understood only in relation to meat that has been killed in an Islamic fashion. Such a situation is clearly of significance when the notion of halal covers so many dimensions of tourism-related consumption and their appropriateness. Moreover there are differing interpretations of halal and its implementation within the various major Islamic traditions and in different Islamic countries that also necessitate a more sophisticated understanding of the concept than has previously been the case, even including previous works on Islamic tourism. For example, while a number of countries have been moving to formalise halal regulations and certification arrangements there may be negative responses from some businesses to such measures because of their impact on notions of trust and their role in commodifying religion, i.e. potentially changing what is a personal sacred relationship with God to something that is profane and which is embedded in neoliberal ideologies of branding, competitiveness, strategy and marketisation. Indeed, there are significant tensions between Islamic hospitality as derived from the teachings in the Qur’an and the hadith and the demands of contemporary commercial tourism and hospitality enterprises as well as governments and politicians who seek to promote halal and Islamic tourism for economic and political advantage.
Despite religious and other differences many countries are seeking to develop tourism from Islamic markets. Such travel may be overtly religious in purpose, e.g. pilgrimage in its various forms, or may be leisure, business or visiting friends and relations based. Destinations and the businesses within them may need to modify hotel and restaurant designs in order to cater to some Islamic markets while for other markets and businesses changes will be minimal. Even the nature of tourism marketing itself may need to be adapted to the needs of the Islamic market, while the wider business environment will also have significant implications for Islamic tourism and hospitality. Therefore, this book seeks to provide a contribution to improving understanding of a major international tourism market and its implications in the context of businesses, communities, destinations and the wider socio-political context, while also providing a critical account of some of the wider debates and issues surrounding halal hospitality today.
This Handbook is divided into several parts to help provide a greater understanding of the main issues associated with Islamic tourism and halal hospitality. After a comprehensive introduction the book is divided into five major parts on halal hospitality and lodging, halal markets and developments, heritage tourism, emerging issues and relationships in certification, and issues and challenges. The majority of the chapters on halal hospitality and lodging have a Malaysian focus which highlights that country’s move to position itself as an international halal hub. Part II on halal markets and development reflects some of the diversity that is to be found in the Islamic tourism market and presents chapters drawing from both market and destination perspectives. Part III consists of three chapters each highlighting some of the issues associated with the potential commodification of Islamic heritage by tourism and the advantages and disadvantages this may bring. The chapters also begin to recognise some of the political issues associated with Islamic heritage. Part IV presents chapters that examine emerging halal certification issues including in relation to non-Muslim countries and logistics. Part V presents chapters that discuss major issues and challenges with respect to halal hospitality and Islam. For example, several chapters examine the way in which halal and Islam has become a part of the politics of identity. However, it is important to recognise that this is not just in Western countries but also applies to Islamic-majority countries as well and how halal certification and the Islamification of the marketplace may be used more for political and economic ends than the promotion of the spiritual values of halal and Islam. The book then concludes with a brief chapter that discusses a research agenda for halal hospitality and Islamic tourism.
Hospitality and by its nature, tourism, is a defining element in bringing different people together in a political, cultural and religious context. It is integral to our humanity and belief system and reflects as to whether our statements with respect to hospitality are more than just words. Importantly, this is reflected in terms of how we welcome others into our own homes, how we welcome them into our public space and our countries, and how we welcome them into our commercial spaces of hospitality and lodging. Tourism, arguably, brings all these different spaces of hospitality into one and sheds substantial light on how we welcome strangers and others. The search for knowledge is intimately connected to the act of travel. How do we then welcome our fellow travellers? Hospitality is therefore a space to reflect on ourselves and our ethical and moral conduct. At a time in which some politicians seek to build walls and fences to keep people out and others either seek to exterminate other voices even when they have been given assurance that they would be held safe or ignore the persecution of their fellow human beings for economic and political gain, then hospitality research provides a space for reflection indeed. We therefore hope that the chapters in this book will provide such a space for critical reflection on tourism and hospitality not only in an Islamic context but beyond.
C. Michael Hall and Girish Prayag