Indonesia continues its halal tourism success

(Photo: YOGYAKARTA, INDONESIA, January 1, 2012: Gamelan orchestra at Ratu Boko palace. / Aleksandar Todorovic / Shutterstock.com)

As Indonesia celebrates its success in halal tourism with the announcement that $29 million a year will be used to promote the country further in the sector, the nation’s travel experts say it is an ideal destination for Muslim tourists.

Last month, Indonesia walked away with the largest haul of Halal Travel Awards by any country outside of the Gulf, winning three out of the 14 categories at the World Halal Travel Summit in Abu Dhabi.

The country was voted the Best Halal Tourism Destination and the Best Halal Honeymoon Destination, whilst the Sofyan Hotel Betawi in the capital, Jakarta, received the Best Halal Hotel award.

TARGET: FROM 2 TO 5 MILLION MUSLIM VISITORS BY 2019

The news prompted Indonesia to announce its four-year target to increase halal tourism from 2 million visitors a year to 5 million by 2019.

The country has pledged 10 percent of its annual tourism marketing budget of $291.4 million to achieve this goal.

According to the nation’s travel experts, this should not be difficult for the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country -- about 87 percent of the nation’s total population is Muslim, which is around 256 million people.

”Indonesian people understand the needs of a Muslim, whether they are tourists or not,” says Novani Nughrahani, a travel and tourism journalist at The Jakarta Post. “The large Indonesian Muslim community makes it easier to find halal food, mosques or a special room for prayer in buildings and shopping malls.”

The country’s current president, Joko Widodo, is a Sunni Muslim, and so was its very first president, Sukarno, yet Indonesia does not see itself as a Muslim country.

According to Indonesia’s leading travel blogger, “Trinity” at the Naked-Traveler.com, this is actually another reason Muslims like to go there. “Indonesia is the country with the world’s largest Muslim population, but we’re not a Muslim country, we’re secular, so it’s a lot easier for tourists to holiday in Indonesia compared to Middle Eastern countries, for example.”

‘OBVIOUS ASSETS’

Trinity also believes Indonesia has all the obvious assets to succeed in the sector.

“We have summer all year round, we’re the biggest archipelago country where the beaches and underwater attractions are the best in the world.

“It’s cheap to travel and live in Indonesia, we have more than 300 ethnic groups and centuries of civilisation, so it’s rich in culture and history,” the blogger adds.

All of this, combined with the familiarity and knowledge that comes from being home to a large Muslim community, make it is easy to see why both Nughrahani and Trinity feel Indonesia will continue its success in the halal tourism sector.

“Most people you ask will know the direction of the qibla, as well as where the nearest mosque is located,” says Nughrahani. “In most parts of the country, you don’t need to worry about accidentally eating non-halal food. If you wear a hijab or appear to be a Muslim, people will immediately warn you if you’re about to order or eat non-halal food.

“There are also cultural attractions like historic buildings, dance and music rooted in Islam,” adds Nughrahani.

MUSLIM VISITORS ‘BIGGER SPENDERS’

Halal tourism has always been a rich source of income for Indonesia, since Muslim visitors, on average, spend 20 percent more than other tourists.

In the past, the country has promoted the regions of Aceh, West Sumatra and Lombok of West Nusa Tenggara as halal tourism destinations.

This focused promotion led to Lombok winning the two Halal Travel Destination awards in October.

Lombok’s success has made Indonesia determined to realise its potential in halal tourism, as comments by Tourism Minister Arief Yahya revealed last month when he announced the 2019 target.

“Indonesia is the country with the world’s largest Muslim population, but we have not explored halal tourism,” he told reporters at a press conference in October.

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