Can I buy duty-free alcohol as a gift?

Alcohol is forbidden beyond drinking

The Quran calls intoxicants a defilement to be avoided:

The Prophet ﷺ explained that the curse on alcohol covers a whole chain of people: the one who drinks it, serves it, sells it, buys it, presses it, carries it and the one it's carried to (Sunan Abi Dawud 3674). Buying a bottle of whisky to hand to someone touches several links in that chain at once.

What about giving it to non-Muslims?

Many converts feel this is the hardest part: dad loves a good bottle of wine, and a duty-free gift used to be the easy choice. But the Prophet ﷺ dealt with almost exactly this. A man brought him a skin of wine as a gift; the Prophet told him Allah had forbidden it. When the man thought of selling it instead, he replied that the One who forbade drinking it also forbade selling it, and the wine was poured out (Sahih Muslim 1579).

If a Muslim can't sell it or give it as a present, then buying it to give away isn't allowed either. Your family is free to buy their own drinks; you just shouldn't be the one supplying them. See Can Muslims drink alcohol?

What about the cheap price?

Duty-free deals don't change the ruling. A lower price makes a halal item a bargain, but it can't make a haram item halal. The same goes for "it's not for me" or "they'll buy it anyway."

Better gift ideas from the airport

• Chocolates and local sweets (check for liqueur fillings).
• Alcohol-free perfume or skincare.
• Specialty coffee, tea, olive oil or honey from your destination.
• A nice pen, scarf, book or small item that reminds them of the place.

Gift-giving is still a great way to keep family ties warm. See Can I still exchange Christmas gifts with my family as a Muslim?