First Halal cruise to sail from Turkey
A travel company in Turkey has announced details of what it claims to be the first ever fully Halal cruise.
Antalya-based company Fusion Tour revealed details of its four-night ‘On the track of the Ottomans’ cruise on the Aegean Sea, departing next month – free of alcohol, pork and gambling.
The cruise sets sail from Izmir on September 27 to the Greek islands of Rhodes, Crete and the port of Piraeus, near Athens.
"It will not be just a cruise which does not have alcohol or pork-related products, it will be a cultural and historical tour which promises an atmosphere of social networking," said Kemal Gunay, Fusion Tour general manager.
The company said Islamic values will be carefully followed on the ship with segregated swimming separate Turkish baths and prayer rooms.
"We don’t even have a painting on a wall of the ship which is against Islamic values," said tour project manager Gokmen Aydinalp.
"Although it has been just announced, interest is quite high right now because there is a huge demand for this concept," Aydinalp added.
Muslim friendly vacations are among the fastest growing travel segments globally and it is a market worth about $145 billion according to the Global Muslim Travel Index 2015, released by Mastercard and Crescent Rating, a Halal travel accreditation company.
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Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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