The perceptions of hoteliers and government officers on the needs of halal certification for hotel industry in Aceh

Abstract

The increasing demand for halal products and services among local and foreign citizens have led the tourism stakeholders and other service providers, including the hoteliers in Aceh, to strategize their marketing plans to break through the halal market. In Aceh, the hoteliers responded to the increasing demand on halal products and services by providing the Shariah compliant hotel services to fulfill the Muslim tourists’ needs. This study aims at investigating the perception of halal certification among tourism stakeholders in Aceh towards the implementation of Shariah compliant hotel. The tourism stakeholders had a diverse concept, understanding, non-standardized implementation, and claim of what it is called a halal hotel. These existing understandings and practices were due to the status of Aceh as the only province in Indonesia to enforce Shariah law in various official and non-official affairs, including in daily life. This study applied the diffusion of innovation theory as a guide and used the qualitative approach through an in-depth interview of tourism stakeholders. The outcome of the interviews was analyzed using the thematic analysis technique. The study found that halal tourism is an innovative concept to preserve Islamic teaching in the tourism industry, and halal certification is crucial as a benchmark for Aceh as a Shariah province. Academically, this study adds to the existing literature on service innovation and Shari’ah compliant hotel. Incorporating the diffusion of innovation, this study was able to explain the importance of hotel halal certification from the perspective of supply.