Travelling Tips for Fasting Travelers

The month of Ramadan remains a special concern for the Muslim community engaged in air travel activities. However, there are aspects for such passengers which need to be considered as an advantage for air travel planning. Dates have been regarded as a traditional element for breaking the fast. Apart from its ritual importance, nutritionists worldwide have lauded its special properties to suffice the average basic requirements of adults and children alike who are fasting during the day. Generally speaking, about two dates are well enough to fulfill their purpose. The supple nature of this particular fruit allows it to be chewed without leaving mouth dry, thus evading any need for it to be consumed with water.

Dates are small in size and thus are easily convenient to be carried in pockets, bags or special packets. They ease in digestion as well, and thus in case of the imbalance of eating cycle which prevails during much of Ramadan, they do come in mighty effective as a cure. Globally, dates of the highest quality are produced within the Arab world. This lies as a definite advantage for passengers, as numerous major air operators are from the Middle East to provide the highest quality of dates for breaking the fast.

Airlines have banked upon the opportunity of Ramadan to facilitate additional services for their distinguished clients. National carriers like Egypt Air, Emirates and Royal Jordanian Airlines have coordinated with their tourism authorities and airport administration to provide specialized Iftar lunchboxes to be collected by passengers before boarding their cheap flights. With the pre-eid festivities gaining momentum, Turkish Airlines has even launched specialized budget deals to promote vacation travel for regional tourism. Meanwhile, Emirates is occupied with the arrangements for its passengers who are to observe annual pilgrimage to the holy cities of Makah and Medina in Saudi Arabia. Higher air travel bookings are on the rise with the eid holidays occurring in the entire Muslim world.

In case passengers are flying with an airline which is not providing specialized facilities on board for fasting travelers, they may inquire of any flexibility of options with the staff. On special request, the staff may attend to such needs by varying the time of delivery of meal in line with the time of breaking the fast. Under general recommendation, Islamic teachings are relaxed on the obligation of fasting when it comes to travelling long haul flights. Muslims are then instructed to compensate for the missed fast in terms of fasting at a normal day from dawn to sunset.

However, given the variation in the time involved when reaching from one destination to another, occurrence of sunset at the destination certifies that the fast needs to be broken. Time calculation with respect to destination of departure can also be done, and then the fast can be broken during flight in sync with the calculation of time of iftar from the place of departure. Each of these instructions are to be followed in line with the time bracket of travel involved for reaching from one destination to another.