Marriott Hotel leads the way to boost the Halal tourism economy in the Philippines
The Manila Marriott has become the first premium hotel chain to be rated for its Halal friendly services to help accelerate the vision of Philippines to become one of the world’s preferred destinations for Muslim tourists.
The five star Manila Marriott Hotel has been recognized by CrescentRating, the leading authority in Halal travel, with a rating of five for its halal friendly services and facilities. Among other Muslim friendly services, the Hotel has a Halal food section in the Marriott Café.
Crescent Rating of the Hotels and Resorts in the Philippines is part of a series of initiatives recently unveiled by The Philippine Department of Tourism (PDOT) to create a long-term infrastructure across the country to diversify its visitor arrivals by attracting Muslim visitors- especially from the neighboring ASEAN region and the Middle East.
Travel experts predict these initiatives could be worth millions of dollars to the tourism industry in the country.
The Muslim travel market is now widely recognized as a key growth tourism sector projected to be worth more than $200 billion by 2020, according to the MasterCard-CrescentRating Global Muslim Travel Index 2016 report.
“Marriott Hotel Manila is excited to be a leader in promoting Halal Friendly services and offerings to the region and beyond. We look forward to extending not only our world class Filipino Hospitality to our local, regional and global customers, but also an environment of awareness, sensitivity and exemplary service expected from a multitude of discerning customers. We are thrilled to partner with The Philippine Department of Tourism (PDOT) in this important initiative”. Bruce Winton, General Manager for Marriott Manila said.
Fazal Bahardeen, CEO of CrescentRating, said “We are delighted to welcome a prestigious brand such as Marriott as a member of Crescent Rated Hotels.
“Marriott are leading the drive from the front and more Hotels will be granted a Crescent Rating in the Philippines soon.”
“We predict that this commitment by Marriott will be worth millions of dollars to the local economy over the next few years and will drive visitor arrivals to the country.”
The Philippine Department of Tourism (PDOT) recently partnered with CrescentRating on a series of activities to increase awareness of the availability of Halal food, mosques and other Muslim-friendly holiday experiences and facilities in the Philippines.
Philippines close proximity to the large Muslim populations of Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore coupled with its rich diverse culture make the country an attractive destination for family tourists keen to explore one of the most unique places in Asia.
The Philippines receives approximately 566,000 visitors from the Middle East, parts of ASEAN, as well as India and Israel annually.
Tourism Philippines said this new drive to attract inbound Muslim tourists formed a key strand on its long-term strategy to maximize its economic growth in the halal tourism industry.
Secretary Ramon R. Jimenez, Jr. of the Philippine Department of Tourism (PDoT), said: “Our Philippine Halal Tourism project has been successful in generating awareness and creating a Halal consciousness among the Filipino people. We have finally broken real ground and set very realistic targets to begin the important work of making Halal a real industry in the Philippines.
“It is important because it is a given in the Filipino culture that our best and most important welcome to any visitor is with food. And if we are not Halal, there is a very important segment of society in the world that we are not extending a proper welcome to.
“We commend Manila Marriott Hotel for being the first premium hotel chain to be rated for its Halal friendly services and for joining us in making our brand of welcome special, through food that is proper and acceptable to our countrymen and friends around the world.”
The Philippines is a Southeast Asian country comprising more than 7,000 islands and offering a unique travel experience from its beautiful coastlines, lush mountain ranges and bustling city centers.
The MasterCard-CrescentRating Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI) 2016, the most comprehensive research that has been released on the sector, revealed that in 2015, there were 117 million Muslim travellers representing 10% of the entire travel economy. Philippines was ranked 46th on the list with a GMTI 2016.
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This is an interesting topic. Good to know that halal food is available there. Is it so difficult to find halal food in hotels? Even in big cities ad Manila?
ReplyDeleteHello Paola,
DeleteYeah it is so hard to look for halal foods here. That's why some of my friends prefer to cook their own foods. If there is halal foods in the restaurant, they tend to charge more. I am glad that Marriott have offered halal foods, I also like halal.
Growing up, my dad would only have us stay in Marriots. While I'm not quite as loyal as he is (I also love home swaps!) Marriots are always the way to go. It's crazy to think that other hotels are overlooking the huge number of people who eat Halal! I'm glad some hotels are taking this seriously and paving the way.
ReplyDeleteThank you Dear!
DeleteThere are still misconception of only the Muslim people eat halal foods, but nowadays many people also prefers it because of less (or no meat at all) dishes, and actually healthy. I like halal foods because of their unique spices, and I don't like eating lots of meat. But I'm a Catholic :D
This is really cool! I spent long years in the middle east, so I completely understand and respect their views on halal meat. its really cool that other nations are recognizing and catering to their requirements!
ReplyDeleteHello Anju,
DeleteYes and recently I've noticed that hotels are starting to add more halal foods and stuffs to their services to cater the growing Islamic market. I think that is a big change to a better tourism.
This is another great thing about the Marriott. I have stayed at nice Marriott hotels and they always provide great service. Nice to see that they are conscientious of other traditions and cultures!
ReplyDeleteMarriott is one of the best!
DeleteThis is just great. I didn't expect Philippines to have a destination for halal food. I personally feel halal tastes much better than the regular cut and is definitely better for your health too... I love the pictures of all the dishes.. yummy!!!
ReplyDeleteI started to enjoy halal food because they are much healthier. Thanks for visiting dear!
DeleteHow interesting! This hotel certainly is accommodating for every culture. It's very good of them to cater to the various needs of the people. I would love to get to Manila sometime.
ReplyDeleteHello Dear,
DeleteLet me know when you are visiting Manila soon! Maybe we could grab some coffee and I could be your guide :D
It seems to be more and more of a trend for hotel chains to cater more and more specifically to their guests' needs. Thinking about it, it's strange that this food issue hasn't come up before, which I suppose shows how much individual travelers have to adjust when they leave home.
ReplyDeleteYeah, most of us didn't understand them (some thinks they are over acting) but its not. I know someone who is a Islamic lady, who really can't eat anything not halal, and also witness how she suffer everyday, because our working have lots of restaurants, but no halal food. So everyday she brings crackers with her. And she said she cooks her food when she reached home.
DeleteI'm not on a halal diet but I will always appreciate good food! I love that they are being so inclusive with their menu as it means my friends and I can head over without worrying about not being able to eat!
ReplyDeleteYeah, that's also good. Friends can dine together, and no one will left behind because halal is also served :D
DeleteWhat a beautiful resort, I really liked the gourmet choices and every little detail taking into consideration people'd preferences in food. Very thoughtful.
ReplyDeleteYeah Marriott is very thoughtful! I think I'm gonna visit them again soon, I miss their services :)
DeleteInteresting! Love that they are attempting to draw in all sorts of cultures. I have always been a fan of Marriot!
ReplyDeleteThank you for visiting Shane!
Deleteit looks like the food there is very good, it made me hungry. In Indonesia I never saw all the food like in the pictures, I want to try it. But I want more chose ice cream. I like to eat ice cream.
ReplyDeleteI think their ice creams are not too sweet!
DeleteIt is nice to see something that helps put at ease someone's discomfort of food. Since I am a vegan, not too sure of what makes halal food but I do know that Muslims are particular about it. Glad they have another option.
ReplyDeleteI have Muslim friends and whenever they visit Manila, they always stays in Marriott because according to them, everything are very convenient :)
DeleteThis is fantastic news ! A lot of muslim people I know find food a problem when they travel. It is great that this chain is realising the need and providing for this market.The food looks great.
ReplyDeleteThanks Verushka!
DeleteI hope that more hotels will follow this kind of initiative to cater the growing number of Islamic tourists.
Thanks for this information, I'm vegetarian but I will definitely share this with my friends who are always looking for halal food. And Marriott hotels are never a disappointment.
ReplyDeleteThank you Aditi!
DeleteGood they have such a wide spread of halal food!
ReplyDeleteHere almost every hotel has it. Marriott does give great service!
Yeah, that is good that in your place, halal foods are everywhere. That is one factor that many Islamic tourist are concern with, here in Manila there are few restaurants and hotels that offers halal foods, and if they have its very pricey!
DeleteI admire that Marriott think of their clients and guests with care.
I think it's great when hotels blend in with the areas that they are located at and offer services suitable for the prefferences of the majority of the travelers in those places. What is halal food more exactly?
ReplyDeletehalal foods basically foods that are accepted according to the teachings of Islam. The quickest identification is no meat like pork. Chicken is halal, and vegetables. If you use spices with mixed of pork flavor, that is not halal.
DeleteO0o0o The food looks so delicious. Halal travel is becoming huge as much of the Muslim population starts traveling more and more. What a great way to appeal to all types of travelers. I'm not Muslim but the food still looks delicious :P
ReplyDeleteYeah, years ago at first I was in hesitant to eat Halal foods.. then when I tried the Indian food (most of them are halal, I didn't know at first) then I started to enjoy it. Now I'm loving it. It's quite more healthy :)
Delete