Religiosity, consumerism and halal tourism: A study of seaside tourism organizations in Turkey

Abstract

This study investigates religious (Muslim) consumers' perception of holiday vacations from the perspective of tourism and theology using qualitative data to evaluate and discuss the perception and transformation of devotees involved in halal tourism practices. The sample for the study consists of one 5-star and three 4-star hotels and one holiday village, based in seaside locations in Turkey. The data gathered from the 50 participants who were interviewed about their halal tourism experience revealed that religious vacationers have a tendency to justify going on holiday, despite the lack of definitive support in the Quran or Sunnah. This finding betrays the influence of capitalist consumer culture on the decision-making of religious consumers and reveals that participants' perception of vacations does not differ from ordinary tourists', which may indicate that religious consumers have embraced a vacation of tourism culture. This finding may indicate that the prevailing popular culture has transformed religious devotees' lifestyles in terms of perceived modern needs whilst another important finding discloses religious vacationer's perception of a holiday as one of the basic needs of our time.