Azernews.Az

Turkey has been named as the host of the largest international showcase of Halal travel- a sector that is currently worth $150 billion.

The Halal Tourism Conference 2015 will bring together delegates from across the globe to discuss and shape the agenda of one of the fastest growing sectors in the world.

Over 1,000 delegates from over 50 countries, including industry experts, international speakers, specialists and tourism suppliers are expected to attend the event which will take place in Istanbul this December.

It is the second international conference on halal tourism that has taken place in Europe. Last year’s inaugural event saw over 400 delegates visit Andalucia, Spain which brought together the global travel industry to discuss ways of tapping into this niche market.

Organiser Tasneem Mahmood, from CM Media, said the theme of the 2015 conference will be Developing The Global Future of Halal Tourism with a strong focus on Europe’s role in the future of the industry.

“Since the Halal Tourism Conference was founded in 2014, enhancing the industry across its various sectors has been at the very heart of our efforts. This year’s event we want to move the debate to the next level and focus on developing the industry. This is a crucial to the future of this sector especially as Halal tourism is maturing and growing so fast. Countries in the Asia Pacific are crucial to the Halal Tourism industry,” she said.

“We will have a range of keynote speeches, panel sessions and roundtable discussions from experts around this theme including how to improve the travel experience which includes integrating new technologies and the growth of subsectors such as luxury travel and medical tourism.”

Europe is now a key player in the future of Halal Tourism from an inbound and outbound perspective contributing billions to the industry. Turkey is the biggest destination for Islamic travel after Saudi Arabia so it is fitting to host the event in Istanbul for 2015.

This conference is vital for anyone who is actively engaged in halal tourism or is looking to operate in this market and will be an excellent knowledge forum.”

CM Media will partner with Tura Turizm to deliver the event which will host over 1,000 delegates and will include an exhibition, which will also be open to the public, for over 200 businesses and organisations to showcase their services.

It will attract tourism boards, tour agencies, tour operators, restaurants, media, hotels, airlines and suppliers to the travel sector. The event will feature seminars from industry experts, workshops, networking sessions and an exhibition.

A series of workshops will provide with information on developing the industry including the launch of new products, luxury travel, standardization, finance and investment, Hajj and Umrah providers, diversifying the halal tourism offer and the growing medical tourism sector.

A number of the world’s leading experts have already confirmed their attendance to the event including Simon Coombs, President & CEO – Shaza Hotels, Fazal Bahardeen, CEO, CrescentRating & HalalTrip, Dr. Jonathan A.J. Wilson, Programme Director, University of Greenwich, London and Faisal Masood, Founder and President of the American Muslim Consumer Consortium Inc.

According to the latest figures in the “MasterCard-CrescentRating Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI) 2015, the halal tourism sector was worth $145 billion in 2014. This figure is predicted to grow to $200 billion by 2020.

The Halal Tourism Conference 2015 will take place at the Istanbul Convention & Exhibition Centre.

It will be followed by a two day tour of Istanbul to provide businesses with a live case study of a region that is becoming more Muslim friendly and is actively working to meet the needs of Muslim travellers.

For more information on the event including how to attend as a delegate please contact:

[email protected]
www.htc2015.com