No longer niche, halal tourism could be a US$157 billion industry by 2020

The halal travel segment is proving to be an industry-shaping force, with Muslim travellers projected to spend US$157 billion by 2020, among the findings revealed at the in Dubai earlier this week.

Also released at the summit are figures that show that Muslim travel spend is driven by millennial travellers, and that Saudi Arabia remains the top performing market, set to grow 17 per cent over the next three years alone to reach US$27.9 billion.

Faeez Fadhlillah, founder and CEO of Salam Standard and Tripfez, said: “The biggest countries and some of the fastest-growing economies in the world are found in Asia and the Middle East. These regions typically have large Muslim populations which are young with prosperous middle classes.

He added that second- and third-generation Muslim communities in developed economies such as Europe and North America now have far more purchasing power, generating increased demand for faith-based travel and tourism.

Omar Ahmed, founder and CEO of Sociable Earth, shared: “Certainly, the halal travel market has graduated from its niche status to become an industry-shaping force, in its own right. It has become mainstream.”

“It is also clear that mainstream travel and tourism organisations will now have to become far more pro-active if they want to attract increasing numbers of halal travellers and tap into the potential of this massive market.”

Meanwhile, the panel agreed that halal travel has many facets and meant different things to different people depending on their own Islamic values.

Ahmed shared that Sociable Earth is focusing efforts on niche areas such as Muslim solo travel and also hijab-free holidays. “Our data shows huge potential for women travelling together in groups to enjoy hijab-free holidays and experiences, a trend that we feel will become increasingly popular.”

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