Meals On the Go
Halal Meal Plan for a Muslim Group Tour in Europe
A Europe meal plan starts on the plane: know which airline's meals are halal and order the rest.
Plan a Muslim group’s meals in Europe slot by slot. Qatar Airways, Emirates and Malaysia Airlines say all their meals are halal; on Lufthansa and British Airways, order a Muslim or Halal meal per passenger. Book city dinners at certified halal restaurants and check each certifier’s list. Fill the slots with no halal option from carried seafood or meat-free pouches, because the EU and UK bar meat and dairy from Malaysia.
This guide is for tour operators and group leaders taking Muslim travellers through London, Paris, Switzerland or Italy. DapoGo cooks ready-to-eat Malaysian dishes in its own kitchen at Melaka Halal Hub, and this page is part of our guide to when ready-to-eat meals earn their place. What a group may pack, how many pouches to take and how to heat them is covered in halal food for Muslim group tours to Europe and Japan. This page is the rest of the plan: the flights, the restaurants, breakfast, and the gaps.
Key points
- Ask every restaurant which body certified it, then check that body’s published list.
- Qatar Airways, Emirates and Malaysia Airlines: all meals halal, per their own pages.
- Lufthansa and British Airways: order the Muslim or Halal meal, except on short Economy hops; British Airways serves no special meals in Euro Traveller, its short-haul economy cabin.
- GMTI 2026 halal dining scores out of 100: UK 80, Switzerland 51, Italy 50.
- The EU and the UK bar meat and dairy brought from Malaysia, so carried food is seafood or meat-free.
On this page8 sections
How do you check a European restaurant is really halal?
Check the certifier, not the sign. Most of the work can be done from your office before the menu is locked, through your ground handler:
- Get the name of the certifying body. HalalCodeCheck notes that France has no single national halal standard, with several regional certifiers in operation. “Halal” on a menu tells you nothing until you know who signed for it.
- Check that body’s own published list. In the UK, the Halal Monitoring Committee (HMC) describes itself as an independent, not-for-profit registered charity that monitors, inspects and certifies halal products, and it publishes a list of the butchers, caterers and takeaways it certifies. A restaurant that claims HMC certification should appear there.
- Ask about alcohol in the cooking, in writing. Malaysian site Siraplimau tells travellers to ask outright whether a dish contains alcohol. For a group, get the restaurant’s answer in writing through your ground handler, so your group leader can show it to a guest who asks.
- Ask what happens where there is no certified restaurant. Tour operator Europe Travel Bureau says that in Switzerland it arranges halal meals at certified restaurants or pre-selected caterers. Ask for the caterer’s name and check its certificate the same way.
Keep every answer in the tour file.
Which flights need a Muslim meal ordered?
Only the ones that do not say every meal is halal. Three carriers state that on their own pages. Lufthansa and British Airways list a Muslim or Halal meal as a special meal instead, so it goes on each passenger’s booking.
| Airline | What the airline’s page says | Special meal deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Qatar Airways | “all meals are halal” | At least 24 hours before departure |
| Emirates | “All our meals are halal certified” | Up to 24 hours before the flight |
| Malaysia Airlines | Every meal prepared in full compliance with halal standards | Pre-book at least 24 hours before departure |
| Lufthansa | Muslim meal: no pork, game or alcohol; meat and poultry certified as slaughtered according to halal guidelines | Up to 24 hours before departure; your agency can order it; Economy: usually only on flights over 185 minutes |
| British Airways | Halal meal offered as a special meal | 24 hours on flights from London, 36 hours on flights to London |
Lufthansa lets a travel agency order special meals at no extra cost, so an operator can add them for the whole group in one pass. Two short-haul traps: British Airways offers no dietary meals in Euro Traveller and serves no complimentary meal on those flights, and Lufthansa usually offers special meals in Economy only on flights of more than 185 minutes. Treat an intra-Europe hop as a meal slot with no food on board. Whether a pouch can go in hand luggage is covered in hand luggage or checked bag.
Where is halal food hardest to find on a European route?
Going by the index below, on the Swiss and Italian legs. The Mastercard-CrescentRating Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI) 2026 gives every country a Halal Dining score, which measures the presence of halal-certified restaurants, Muslim-friendly eateries and dining options that meet dietary needs. Malaysia scores 100. The usual tour countries:
| Country | GMTI 2026 Halal Dining score (out of 100) |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 80 |
| France | 65 |
| Germany | 61 |
| Netherlands | 60 |
| Austria | 60 |
| Switzerland | 51 |
| Italy | 50 |
London is the easy end: in the 2021 Census, 15.0% of Londoners described themselves as Muslim, against 6.5% across England and Wales, according to the Office for National Statistics. Pew Research Center estimated Muslims at 4.9% of people in the EU, Norway and Switzerland in 2016. Europe Travel Bureau itself writes that halal-certified restaurants in Austria and Switzerland may be fewer. Put your carried food against those days first.
What can a group carry into the EU and UK to fill the gaps?
Seafood and meat-free food only. The EU’s Your Europe page says travellers from a non-EU country “are not allowed to bring any meat or dairy products”. GOV.UK sets the same line for Great Britain on food from outside the EU. Both allow fish products up to 20 kg per person. For a Swiss leg, check Switzerland’s own entry rules with your ground handler.
From DapoGo’s range, these four list no meat or dairy:
- Sotong Kicap Berempah, squid in spiced soy sauce (180gm net, one pouch for 2–3 people).
- Sambal Jering Atok, chilli sambal with jering and anchovies (180gm).
- Chili Oil with dried shrimp (150gm).
- Nasi Putih Basmathi, basmati rice and filtered water only (220gm, serves 1–2).
Some of our other seafood sambals, such as Sambal Petai Udang, list “perasa yang dibenarkan” (permitted flavouring); message us to confirm what is in it before packing one for the EU or UK. Our retort pouches heat in boiling water, 2 minutes for the squid, and our product pages state a 2-year shelf life at room temperature. How they keep is covered in how retort food keeps.
Which meal slots need a plan B?
Mostly the coach or mountain lunch, a hotel breakfast with no halal option, a late arrival and any short hop inside Europe. Give every meal on the itinerary a plan A and a plan B:
| Meal slot | Plan A | Plan B |
|---|---|---|
| Long-haul flight | Airline meal: halal on every tray, or pre-ordered | Dry snacks from home, with no meat or dairy |
| Short hop inside Europe | Eat before the airport | Dry snacks with no meat or dairy (no special meal in BA Euro Traveller, and usually none in Lufthansa Economy under 185 minutes) |
| Hotel breakfast | A hotel that offers halal breakfast on request | Meat-free buffet items plus carried rice and sambal |
| Lunch on a coach or mountain day | Halal caterer arranged by the ground handler | Dry snacks from home, with no meat or dairy |
| City dinner | Certified halal restaurant, pre-booked | Second certified restaurant on the handler’s list |
| Late arrival at the hotel | Carried pouches, if the room has a kettle | A halal restaurant still open |
Halal breakfast is a hotel-by-hotel question; Trip.com’s Muslim-friendly guide, for example, lists one London hotel that offers it on request. Ask at booking, not at check-in.
FAQ
More questions about our products are answered in the DapoGo FAQ.
Do I need to order halal meals on Qatar Airways or Emirates?
No. Both state that all their meals are halal. Other special meals are ordered at least 24 hours before departure on Qatar Airways, or up to 24 hours before the flight on Emirates.
Can a group bring beef rendang into the EU or UK?
Not from Malaysia. The EU’s Your Europe page says travellers from a non-EU country are not allowed to bring any meat or dairy products, and GOV.UK sets the same line for Great Britain on food from outside the EU. Pack seafood or meat-free pouches instead.
Is there a halal meal on short flights inside Europe?
Not always. British Airways serves no special meals and no complimentary meal in Euro Traveller, its short-haul economy cabin, and Lufthansa usually offers special meals in Economy only on flights of more than 185 minutes. Plan to eat before the flight.
Plan the gaps with us
If you are building a Muslim group tour to Europe, send us the route, dates and group size, and we will match seafood and meat-free pouches to the meals with no halal option: WhatsApp DapoGo on 011-5501 3391.
Sources
- Halal Monitoring Committee (HMC) (accessed 30 October 2026)
- Qatar Airways: Special meals (accessed 30 October 2026)
- Emirates: Dietary requirements (accessed 30 October 2026)
- Malaysia Airlines: In-Flight Dining Experience (accessed 30 October 2026)
- Lufthansa: Special meals (accessed 30 October 2026)
- British Airways: Special meals (accessed 30 October 2026)
- Mastercard-CrescentRating: Global Muslim Travel Index 2026 (per-country results tables)
- Office for National Statistics: Religion, England and Wales, Census 2021
- Pew Research Center: Europe’s Growing Muslim Population
- European Union, Your Europe: Carrying animal products, food or plants (last checked 21 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Bringing food into Great Britain (accessed 30 October 2026)
Want to try DapoGo?
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