It’s obvious that hoteliers need to be extremely cognisant about the needs of travellers and, in that context, they need to ensure cultural and religious sensitivities are understood and served consistently to Muslim guests as part of the overall guest experience and brand proposition.
Progressive hospitality organisations have dedicated resources that ensure these cultural bridges are created and managed efficiently with appropriate programmes, policies and processes across all operational departments. Ethnicity and cultural mapping tools are also used extensively to build an authentic and relevant narrative on behalf of clients. Appropriate proof-points that connect to the aspirations of guests from all cultures are very important for guests as they alleviate doubt and concerns.While many hotels are addressing this, when it comes to understanding the needs of Arab travellers, especially Muslims, there’s still a greater need for hoteliers to align to the values of these guests with deeper insights and more imaginative experiences.Halal hospitality is not just about the type of food being served in a hotel. It’s an over-arching philosophy that ensures a guest experience is aligned to cultural values and personal aspirations. The Middle East remains a key feeder market to hotels in the UK, Europe and Asia, and many hotels simply wink at this very important prerequisite for Muslim travellers and there’s a profound need to ensure more authentic proof-points are in place to build long-term affinity with these guests.There are numerous measures that need to be taken to reassure travellers that they are staying in a hotel that is not just aware of their religious and cultural beliefs but is also engaged in respectfully delivering on those values. • Public spaces need to be designed to offer socially engaging environments but with a degree of privacy that offer the choice of selective discretion. • Ablution facilities and dedicated prayer rooms also demonstrate higher engagement by a hotel and its management to respect the needs of guests. • Restaurants need to be designed in a manner that allow pork items to be displayed in clearly assigned dedicated areas and even the preparation happening behind the scenes need to respect this halal narrative. • Most of the times hotels don’t communicate the various measures they have taken, so it’s equally important to prepare a communique for Islamic guests to explain what measures have been taken and reassure them. • Open-planned bathrooms that are visible within a guest room are seldom preferred by people who favour modesty and privacy. Many of the new hotels make this common error in their quest to be innovative. • Providing clear directional indication of the Qibla also helps tremendously for guests to pray in their rooms with ease. These are just few of the many gestures and design embellishments that can make a world of difference to Muslim travellers.In other words, the halal hospitality programme should ignite through the guest experience lifecycle – from conveying this at the stage of initial awareness, to the moment of truth when guests check in, to the last stage of potential advocacy. It’s not just the food philosophy, it’s how you talk, present yourself, engage with guests and enchant them with a mature sense of reassurance. After all, hospitality is the frontline of cultural diplomacy and you simply cannot claim to be a great brand or hospitality company if you don’t understand the needs of your guest.• Gaurav Sinha, founder and design director, Circadian, a newly opened, bespoke design studio based in Dubai.