Halal meat, prayer room for Muslim tourists at Japan's Kansai International Airport

A large number of foreign tourists enter Japan from Kansai International Airport.The facility is run by Kansai Airports, a new company formed by Orix and French airport operator Vinci Airports.

Yoshiyuki Yamaya, Representative Director and CEO, Kansai Airports, said, "Originally a financial services firm, so far Orix has been the operator for aquariums, baseball stadiums, or hotels. Now this airport would become the largest scaled facility that Orix has ever run. On top of it, there are so many customers looking forward to it. We believe making progress with this project is a very meaningful undertake."

Used by over 10 million visitors, Kansai International Airport is well equipped with convenient facilities for international travelers such as tourist information centers and duty-free shops.

An unnamed American visitor said, "Kansai International Airport is beautiful. It's well organized and safe. I am really happy to be able to get familiar with Japanese culture. It's even more user-friendly than the San Francisco airport. It's wonderful to see that everything is in order."

A Chinese visitor said, "The airport staff is very nice and never makes you feel uncomfortable. Also they are neat, efficient and polite. Most importantly, I was really happy to see the beautiful Sakura."

The airport has separate prayer rooms for male and female passengers and also has facilities to provide Halal food.

Yamaya said, "I am very pleased to see the large number of tourists from countries like Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Singapore. Japan is a great country with a long history. There is much cultural richness hidden in the Kansai area. Although so far industrial innovation has been the main focus for Japan, from now on, how to bring the cultural heritage that has been under-recognized in the shadow of history and let the tourists from overseas feel "This is what Japan is about. I want to come again." is the target we want to strive for."

Kume Island is located around 100 kilometers west of Naha, a city of Okinawa.

The cosmetics maker located on Kume Island has just developed amenity goods that are suitable for Halal use.

Atsushi Omichi of Point Pyuru Co. Ltd. said, "The number of Islamic tourists has been increasing over recent years. Although Halal food is available in hotels, we have learned that it's not the case with amenities and shampoo. That's why we decided to develop Halal cosmetics products."

The ingredients were the focus. The beautiful nature and the high-quality source of water available on Kume Island made the development possible.

Omichi further said, "Our firm produces cosmetics products made by ocean water collected 612 meters below the sea level. Along with producing cosmetics products with natural plants from Okinawa, we decided to explore the idea after we learned the approach was close to the concept of Halal. The quality control of the ingredients was not an easy task. The production process took about six months to complete."

Also, there is Nikkoken, a popular ramen house in Tochigi prefecture.

It serves Halal dumplings. Goka Dainari, the owner of Nikkoken include the item into its menu two years ago.

The difference between Halal dumplings and the ordinary ones lies in the ingredients.

Following the disciplines of Islam, only chicken meat handled with Halal methods of processing is accepted.

There is no pork or alcohol whatsoever being used.

Dainari Goka of Nikkoken Co. Ltd. said, "People often say Halal food is special. I personally think it makes no difference with ordinary food. It seems many people think it as a religious dietary, but I don't think so. They are simply tasty food for me."

The reputation of the restaurant has been a topic on the Internet.

It has become a popular eatery for Southeast Asian tourists.