Muslim-friendly tourism in Australia: Challenges and prospects

Abstract

In recent years, the Muslim travel market has been recognised as an untapped and promising segment by tourism destinations worldwide, including OIC (Organization of Islamic Cooperation) and non-OIC countries. As a result, these destinations have started to develop Muslim-friendly environments for visitors and have tailored their products and services to meet the interests and needs of Muslim travellers. Currently, there is a growing demand for Muslim-friendly tourism globally. Australia is one of the destinations that is demonstrating an interest in positioning itself as a Muslim-friendly destination. However, minimal research has been conducted in this area within Australia. Consequently, there is a lack of awareness among tourism stakeholders in Australia about the true potential of this rapidly growing segment. As a result, no established systems or guidelines are in place to promote this lucrative tourism sector. Therefore, the possibility of developing, managing, and positioning Australia as a Muslim-friendly tourism destination has not yet been explored. This paper examines the challenges and prospects of Muslim-friendly tourism in Australia and provides recommendations for developing this lucrative sector. A literature review and other document reviews were undertaken in this study.