Halal hub is a joint effort among Islamic countries to provide products and services such as halal food, halal manufacturers, halal pharmaceuticals, halal cosmetics, halal packaging, halal logistics products and halal services to be executed globally. Moreover, the Malaysian government has aimed to inaugurate Malaysia as a global halal hub for halal products and services to Muslim countries worldwide. Due to the demand for Shariah-compliant hotels (SCH), it is vital to illustrate several features and the characteristics of hospitality services within the Islamic context. Therefore, this study aims to examine the factors that influence hotel guests' loyalty towards SCH practices, particularly in Five-star rated hotels in Malaysia. Data for this study were gathered through self-administered questionnaires on 420 hotel guests' who had experienced staying in 45 Five-star rated hotels in Malaysia. PLS-SEM was performed to analyse the proposed hypotheses. Findings showed that SCH practices have a positive effect towards hotel guests' acceptance and hotel guests' loyalty. Hotel guests' acceptance is a significant mediator of the relationship between SCH practices and hotel guests' loyalty. This implies a need for a key player in the hotel industry, especially the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture Malaysia (MOTAC), hotel managers and operators to focus on these factors in the pursuit of more competitive advantage and long-term profits.

Guest loyalty is a major consideration for hotel competitive advantage. To be sustaining in this competitive market, hotel organization need to differentiate their business with their competitors. The new concept and new experience of SCH will capture guest attention that really concerns on halal, food safety and hygiene. SCH practices have discovered significant influence towards customer awareness, guests’ perception, perceived values, attributes and challenges. Thus, the purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between SCH practices, hotel guests’ acceptance and hotel guests’ loyalty. Data for this study were gathered through self-administered questionnaires on 420 hotel guests’ who have had experienced staying in 45 Five-star rated hotels in Malaysia. PLS-SEM was performed to analyse the proposed hypotheses. Findings showed that SCH practices have significant positive effect relationship on hotel guests’ acceptance and hotel guests’ loyalty. Hotel guests’ acceptance has also been found to be significant mediator of the relationship between SCH practices and hotel guests’ loyalty. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings were discussed. Limitations and future research approaches were forwarded.