Halal has never looked so good for Singapore. A survey ranked the Asian country as the top non-Islamic destination for Muslim tourists, weeks after official data showed overall visitor numbers fell last year for the first time since 2009. Singapore beat Thailand, Hong Kong and Taiwan, as well as established tourist hotspots such as France, the U.S. and U.K. to become the most "friendly" non-Muslim destination for Muslim visitors, the Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI) compiled by travel firm CrescentRating and payments giant MasterCard showed, which surveyed travelers from 100 countries. Muslim tourists are one of the fastest-growing travel groups. They look for restaurants serving food that is halal – permissible under Islamic rules – as well as readily-accessible mosques or prayer rooms. Travelers are also conscious of safety. Rising anti-Muslim sentiment in some Western countries is a worry, helping to give Asia top marks in the GMTI. Last year, 108 million Muslim travelers spent $145 billion, equivalent to 10 percent of global travel spending, the survey showed. By 2020, this amount is expected to rise to $200 billion. "The halal lifestyle is a key component of the global travel industry," Fazal Bahardeen, CrescentRating's chief executive, told Reuters. "More so because destinations are trying very hard to diversify their tourists." Thailand came second after Singapore as the top non-Muslim destination, while the U.K. took third place. Malaysia holds first place on the top-10 worldwide travel destinations for Muslim tourists, followed by Turkey.
