The MasterCard-Crescentrating Global Muslim Travel Index 2015 will soon reveal the best destinations for Muslim travellers this year, when it is launched on the 4th of March 2015 with new and updated rankings.
In 2013, CrescentRating released Halal-friendly travel scores for the first time for each destination. Crescentrating's Halal Friendly Travel (CRaHFT) Score is based on a scale of 1 to 10 and takes into account how Muslim-friendly the destination is. Factors such as the availability of Halal food, prayer facilities, Halal-friendly accommodation as well as other facilities affect the final Halal-friendly travel score as well as its overall ranking.
50 destinations were covered in 2013 - for both OIC destinations (Muslim countries) and non-OIC destinations (non-Muslim countries). The rankings for each category have been listed below:
Top Muslim-Friendly OIC Destinations
|
Position |
Country |
CRaHFT Score |
|
1 |
Malaysia |
8.3 |
|
2 |
Egypt |
6.7 |
|
3 |
UAE |
6.6 |
|
4 |
Turkey |
6.6 |
|
5 |
Saudi Arabia |
6.4 |
|
6 |
Indonesia |
6.1 |
|
7 |
Morocco |
6.1 |
|
8 |
Jordan |
6.1 |
|
9 |
Brunei |
6 |
|
10 |
Qatar |
6 |
|
11 |
Tunisia |
6 |
|
12 |
Oman |
6 |
|
13 |
Bangladesh |
5.9 |
|
14 |
Maldives |
5.7 |
|
15 |
Kuwait |
5.7 |
|
16 |
Iran |
5.6 |
|
17 |
Pakistan |
5 |
|
18 |
Lebanon |
4.8 |
|
19 |
Senegal |
4.5 |
|
20 |
Kyrgyzstan |
4.4 |
|
21 |
Tajikistan |
4.4 |
|
22 |
Uzbekistan |
4.3 |
|
23 |
Kazakhstan |
4.3 |
|
24 |
Azerbaijan |
4.3 |
|
25 |
Nigeria |
4 |
The rankings for the best Muslim-friendly destinations for OIC destinations was once again topped by Malaysia – for the third consecutive year. It also saw the emergence of Saudi Arabia amongst the top 10 destinations since an increased number of Muslim travellers were choosing to spend their holidays while performing Umrah or visiting as part of a trip taking them for Umrah as well as to other destinations such as Jordan and Turkey.
Top Muslim-Friendly Non-OIC Destinations
|
Position |
Country |
CRaHFT Score |
|
1 |
Singapore |
6.3 |
|
2 |
Bosnia & Herzegovina |
5.9 |
|
3 |
Thailand |
5.9 |
|
4 |
South Africa |
5.8 |
|
5 |
India |
5.6 |
|
6 |
United Kingdom |
5.3 |
|
7 |
Sri Lanka |
5.2 |
|
8 |
Australia |
4.7 |
|
9 |
Germany |
4.5 |
|
10 |
Hong Kong |
4.5 |
|
11 |
Kenya |
4.5 |
|
12 |
Tanzania |
4.5 |
|
13 |
China |
4.5 |
|
14 |
USA |
4.5 |
|
15 |
Austria |
4.5 |
|
16 |
Philippines |
4.2 |
|
17 |
Spain |
4.2 |
|
18 |
Canada |
4.2 |
|
19 |
Russia |
4.1 |
|
20 |
New Zealand |
4.1 |
|
21 |
Italy |
3.9 |
|
22 |
Taiwan |
3.9 |
|
23 |
Japan |
3.9 |
|
24 |
Ireland |
3.9 |
|
25 |
Mexico |
3.7 |
Singapore was ranked the best Muslim-friendly destination in the non-OIC category, with a score of 6.3. Singapore was followed by Bosnia & Herzegovina, Thailand, South Africa, India, United Kingdom, Sri Lanka, Australia, Germany and Hong Kong, which rounded off the top 10.
In just two days, the rankings for 2015 will be released. MasterCard-Crescentrating Global Muslim Travel Index 2015 will feature 100 destinations, with criteria and weightingspublished along with its release. The new rankings combine MasterCard's in-depth knowledge of the shopping, travel and tourism sectors together with CrescentRating’s expert Muslim Travel insights on destinations and travel & tourism services, making it the most comprehensive research item ever to be released by CrescentRating.
