Universal Halal Design: Developing an Accessibility Framework for Muslim Travelers with Disabilities in Islamic Heritage Destinations

Abstract

Muslim travelers with disabilities represent one of the most structurally marginalized and systematically underresearched populations in global tourism. With approximately 1.3 billion people — 16 percent of the global population — living with disabilities (WHO, 2023), and with the global Muslim population exceeding 1.9 billion, the intersection of disability and Muslim religious identity produces a traveler segment whose access needs are neither addressed by general accessible tourism frameworks nor by halal tourism certification standards. This systematic literature review (SLR) applies PRISMA 2020 protocols to examine 35 peer-reviewed publications from 2023 to 2026, mapping the scholarly landscape across four convergent domains: accessible tourism theory, Islamic disability ethics, mosque and heritage site design, and halal tourism governance. Five thematic clusters structure the analysis: (1) the global disability-Muslim traveler paradox — scale, invisibility, and institutional neglect; (2) Islamic theological and jurisprudential foundations for disability inclusion — karamah insaniyyah, Maqasid al-Shariah, and the prophetic model of Ibn Umm Maktum; (3) mosque and Islamic heritage accessibility — documented barriers and evidence-based design interventions; (4) accessible tourism theory — the capability approach, tourism value chain accessibility, and neurodivergent/senior traveler dimensions; and (5) governance and certification gaps in current halal tourism standards. A critical synthesis reveals that existing halal tourism certification frameworks systematically exclude disability accessibility as a core assessment dimension, and that Islamic heritage sites — mosques, madrasas, pilgrimage routes — exhibit documented barriers that contradict the Quranic imperative of equal dignity. The review proposes the Universal Halal Design (UHD) Framework — a five-pillar operational model integrating universal design principles with Islamic ethics — as the first comprehensive governance framework for disability-inclusive Islamic heritage tourism.

Keywords: universal halal design; accessible tourism; disability; Islamic heritage; mosque accessibility; Maqasid al-Shariah; karamah insaniyyah; universal design; CRPD; neurodivergent; inclusive tourism; halal tourism governance