The Manila Marriott has become the first premium
hotel chain to be rated for its Halal friendly services to help accelerate the
vision of Philippines to become one of the world’s preferred destinations for
Muslim tourists. The five star Manila Marriott Hotel has been recognised by
CrescentRating, the leading authority in Halal travel, with a rating of five
for its halal friendly services and facilities. Among other Muslim friendly
services, the Hotel has a Halal food section in the Marriott Café.
Crescent Rating of the Hotels and Resorts in the
Philippines is part of a series of initiatives recently unveiled by The
Philippine Department of Tourism (PDOT) to create a long-term infrastructure
across the country to diversify its visitor arrivals by attracting Muslim
visitors- especially from the neighbouring ASEAN region and the Middle East. Travel
experts predict these initiatives could be worth millions of dollars to the
tourism industry in the country. The
Muslim travel market is now widely recognised as a key growth tourism sector
projected to be worth more than $200 billion by 2020, according to the
MasterCard-CrescentRating Global Muslim Travel Index 2016 report.
“Marriott
Hotel Manila is excited to be a leader in promoting Halal Friendly services and
offerings to the region and beyond. We look forward to extending not only our
world class Filipino Hospitality to our local, regional and global customers,
but also an environment of awareness, sensitivity and exemplary service
expected from a multitude of discerning customers. We are thrilled to partner
with The Philippine Department of Tourism (PDOT) in this important initiative”.
Bruce Winton, General Manager for Marriott Manila said.
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Marriott Café
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New halal station
| Cooked in a designated halal kitchen at the Marriott Grand Ballroom by a certified chef, all of the items at the Halal Station maintain its halal nature from preparation to service |
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| Biryani Rice is spiced rice featured in Marriott Café’s Halal Station |
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An aromatic
dish originating from Persia, the Lamb Rojan Josh topped with cashew nuts is
evident in the Halal Station.
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| All for spinach, this vegetarian dish called Palak Paneer, is an Indian cuisine that’s full in flavor |
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Diverse gelato and ice cream flavors
Desserts are aplenty with 14 gelato and ice cream
flavors, from classic tiramisu and black forest, favorites of gianduja amara
and hazelnut Nutella, to unique local twists of Palawan walnut, all halal
friendly!
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Fazal Bahardeen, CEO of CrescentRating, said “We
are delighted to welcome a prestigious brand such as Marriott as a member of
Crescent Rated Hotels. “Marriott are leading the drive from the front and more
Hotels will be granted a Crescent Rating in the Philippines soon.” “We predict
that this commitment by Marriott will be worth millions of dollars to the local
economy over the next few years and will drive visitor arrivals to the
country.”
The Philippine Department of Tourism (PDOT)
recently partnered with CrescentRating on a series of activities to increase
awareness of the availability of Halal food, mosques and other Muslim-friendly
holiday experiences and facilities in the Philippines.
Philippines close proximity to the large Muslim
populations of Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore coupled with its rich diverse
culture make the country an attractive destination for family tourists keen to
explore one of the most unique places in Asia. The Philippines receives
approximately 566,000 visitors from the Middle East, parts of ASEAN, as well as
India and Israel annually.
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| Marriott Hotel Manila General Manager, Mr. Bruce Winton |
Tourism Philippines said this new drive to
attract inbound Muslim touristsformed a key strand on its long-term strategy to
maximizeits economic growth in the halal tourism industry. Secretary Ramon R. Jimenez, Jr. of the
Philippine Department of Tourism (PDoT), said: “Our Philippine Halal Tourism
project has been successful in generating awareness and creating a Halal
consciousness among the Filipino people. We have finally broken real ground and
set very realistic targets to begin the important work of making Halal a real
industry in the Philippines.
“It is important because it is a given in the
Filipino culture that our best and most important welcome to any visitor is
with food. And if we are not Halal, there is a very important segment of
society in the world that we are not extending a proper welcome to.
“We commend Manila Marriott Hotel for being the
first premium hotel chain to be rated for its Halal friendly services and for
joining us in making our brand of welcome special, through food that is proper
and acceptable to our countrymen and friends around the world.”
The Philippines is a Southeast Asian country
comprising more than 7,000 islands and offering a unique travel experience from
its beautiful coastlines, lush mountain ranges and bustling city centers.
The MasterCard-CrescentRating Global Muslim
Travel Index (GMTI) 2016, the most comprehensive research that has been
released on the sector, revealed that in 2015, there were 117 million Muslim
travellers representing 10% of the entire travel economy. Philippines was
ranked 46th on the list with a GMTI 2016.
For further information including interviews and
images, please contact:
AnasKasak
Chief Marketing Officer
HalalTrip
Tel: +44 116 319 0990
Mob: +44 7971 735090
Email: anas@crescentrating.com
Editor’s Notes
MANILA MARRIOTT:
Marriott Hotel Manila stands as a centerpiece of
the dynamic and exciting mixed-use development of Resorts World Manila, located
directly opposite Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3. A destination
in itself, this 5 star property is poised to become the Philippines’ most
unique and comprehensive destination for Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and
Exhibitions. The hotel currently offers 342 spacious guestrooms and suites and
will open the West Wing in 2016 adding an additional 228 luxuriously appointed
rooms. Thoughtfully designed around the needs of today’s modern traveler, each
guestroom incorporates the latest technology and design. Premium Wi-Fi
capability, I-Pod docks and over-sized bathrooms appeal to most discerning
guests. Mobile check-in and check -out, the finest linens and Thann Amenities
add to the experience. Stunning views of Villamor Golf Course, the skylines of
Makati, Fort Bonifacio and sweeping views of the airport showcase our prime
location.
PHILIPPINES TOURISM
Under the Aquino Administration, the Philippines
achieved a compounded annual growth rate in arrivals of 7.94% in 2015 from
-3.89% in 2009. Foreign arrivals increased from 3.14M in 2008 to 5.36M in
2015.
From $2.43B tourism earnings in 2008, the
country’s tourism receipts grew to $5B in 2015. This makes the tourism industry
the third largest dollar-earning sector in the economy next to the
semi-conductor and BPO sectors.
With more economic activities arising from
tourism, people directly employed in the industry rose to 4.99M in 2015.
Tourism accounts for one in every ten jobs in the economy or 12.7% share to
total employment according to the Philippines Statistical Authority.
In 2014, the Philippine tourism industry gained
eight notches in the travel and tourism competitiveness ranking among 141
countries of the World Economic Forum. In a span of four years, the Philippine
tourism index went up by 20 points from 94 in 2011 to 74 in 2014.
The medium-term development blueprint, National
Tourism Development Plan 2011-2016 is entering a second phase covering
2017-2022 to ensure the continued robust growth of the tourism industry in the
Philippines.
CRESCENTRATING PTE LTD
CrescentRating is the world’s leading authority
on halal-friendly travel. The company’s vision is to lead, innovate and drive
this segment through practical and deliverable solutions in what is regarded
today as one of the fastest growing segment in the tourism sector. The company
uses insight, industry intelligence. lifestyle, behaviour and research on the
needs of the Muslim traveller to deliver guidance on all aspects of
halal-friendly travel to organisations across the globe.
CrescentRating’s services now include rating
& accreditation, research & consultancy, workshops & training,
ranking & indices, event support/partnerships and content provisioning.
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