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Spain has been considered as this year’s “Top Muslim-Friendly Emerging Destination” at the Halal in Travel Awards 2022.The “Halal in Travel Awards” celebrates the travel industry players’ efforts that profoundly impacted the Muslim lifestyle as well as travel segments, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports. The award acknowledges the authorities’ efforts in Spain in enhancing awareness levels and thus leading to a surge in the halal-friendly services, as reported by International Quran News Agency.
The award was received by the Ambassador of Spain to Singapore, Santiago Miralles, as well as Spain’s Tourism Board’s Director for Southeast Asia, New Zealand, Australia, Monica Sanchez.
During his speech, Ambassador Miralles stressed that the Muslim-friendly services offered in Spain continued to increase due to the close collaboration between the public and private sectors. Miralles said that a large number of hotels, restaurants as well as establishments in Spain adapt in order to meet the needs of Muslim travelers.
Several products and services also have the Halal Certification awarded by the Halal Institute, which ensures that they meet the needed requirements under Islamic law. The list of places with halal options in Spain is extensive; while besides food, the country is also known for its mosques as well as rich Islamic heritage.
According to the report, a large number of Muslim travellers choose cities like Cordoba and Granada in order to spend Ramadan, while stressing that during the Holy Month, some institutions such as Casa Árabe, Cordoba City Council as well as the Halal Institute organize activities such as the Noches de Ramadan in Cordoba, which is a special program that includes several activities such as films, workshops, talks, concerts as well as other exhibitions.
However, despite the fact that it has won the Halal in Travel award, Spain’s economic sector has been highly affected by the spread of the COVID-19 and its new variants.
Authorities in Spain are continuously attempting to help the country’s travel and tourism industry and welcome a large number of internationals after this industry has been among the most affected by the spread of the Coronavirus and its new variants.
Recently, it was reported that Spain recovered 85.4 per cent of international tourists in April, after opening its doors to 6.1 million international visitors who spent a total of 6,901 million euros on their trips, which means that the figures were close to pre-pandemic figures.
The figures were presented through the recent report of Spain’s National Statistics Institute (INE).
According to the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, Maria Reyes Maroto, the Holy Week helped the rapid reactivation of the tourism sector, surpassing all the expectations.
“In addition, we are receiving tourists who stay longer in our country and, as a consequence, spend more on their trip, which indicates that we are moving towards a higher quality and more profitable tourism model,” the Minister pointed out.
Reyes Maroto said that despite the uncertainties of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and its consequences, Spain is among the most preferred international destinations for travel.
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