**4.1. Halal and Muslim-friendly hotels**

In recent years, it has been observed that the numbers of Sharia compliant hotels is growing in some Muslim and non-Muslim destinations. For example, Al Meroz Hotel is a fully Halal hotel located in Thailand. Some destinations promote these hotels and claim to be 'Sharia compliant' as 'Muslim-friendly hotels [4, 22]. Muslim-friendly hotels deliver Muslim guests with all services that compliant with Islamic teachings such as Qibla direction, Halal food, alcohol-free beverages and prayer room with call for prayers [9, 11, 30, 31]. Japan is one of the non-Muslim countries that take initiatives towards training the hospitality staff by launching Muslim-Friendly Project [32]. The objective of this project is to offer training for hospitality industry employees in Japan to improve understanding of needs and concerns of Muslim tourists visiting Japan. Halal food will also be provided for Muslims at the Tokyo Olympic Games 2020. Another best practice in Halal tourism is Kyoto city which is located in the central part of the island of Honshu, Japan. Travel guide in Kyoto city website is provided for Muslims in four languages: Arabic, English, Turkish and Malay [33]. The website provides list with Muslim-friendly hotels. These hotels and inns provide Muslim visitors with a Qibla compass, a map for Kyoto Mosque and prayer mats and serve Halal food.

Aerostar Hotel in Moscow is Muslim friendly as one of the hotel's kitchens is certified Halal [34]. The hotel provides a copy of the Quran, a prayer mat and the Qibla direction in 20 of their rooms. The shampoo and soap provided in the rooms are certified Halal. Two prayer rooms are available: one for men and one for women. Fairmont Makati and Raffles Makati hotels in the Philippines become Muslim-friendly by providing Quran copy, prayer room and Arabic-language TV channels [28] (TTG Asia).

It is noted that Availability of Muslim-friendly hotel is considered one of the most important attributes that attract Muslim travellers and encourage them to visit the destination. The following attributes summarize the needs of Muslim guests in hospitality industry.

#### *4.1.1. Muslim-friendly hotel room*

