Hajj Advice

confusedquark

Salaam to all,

I had the privilege of going on Hajj this year Alhumdolillah, and thought I'd share my experience, might be of use to someone considering going. This is by no means a complete guide - I'd strongly recommend googling other people's experiences as well and compiling your own list of things you'll need.

1) Book early - We left it until Ramadan before trying to book, and the only two Irish Hajj operators (Manasik tours, who Clonskeagh mosque recommend, and Muslaf, based at South Circular Road) were both fully booked. Manasik said they'd put us (me and my wife) on a waiting list, along with 10-odd other people, incase people cancelled last minute. We looked into going with a UK group, but after speaking with both the Irish and UK Saudi embassies, we were told that the only way you could get a visa to travel from the UK with an Irish passport was if you can prove you're currently residing in the UK (e.g. with a utility bill). Long story short, we ended up chancing going with a UK group after speaking with our local Imam in Galway who knew the group, without providing any proof of residence there, and the UK embassy approved our visas - my wife has a UK passport, so I don't know if that was a factor, but either way, I wouldn't recommend you try the same! You don't apply to the embassy directly - you fill out the application form and give the deposit/fees to the group you intend to go with and they then apply to the embassy on your behalf.

2) Vaccinations - You need a cert from your GP/Travel clinic of having received the Meningitis ACWY vaccine prior to your application. The vaccine lasts 3 years, and you must get it at least 10 days prior to travel. This is the only compulsory vaccine, but you'd be well advised to also get the Influenza vaccine, and be up to date with other routine ones, like Tetanus, Hepatitis A & B, and Typhoid.

3) Hajj Packages - This is more so applicable when travelling from the UK, as lots of different companies offer lots of different packages, but is useful to know all the same. The main types of packages are Economy, Deluxe, 5-star etc (each company has it's own terminology) - with the differences between the packages being quality of accommodation, distance from the Holy Ka'ba/Haram, and the number of people you share a room with. The Economy packages also tend to be "Shifting", i.e. you get put in a nice hotel close to the Haram for the first few days of your stay, but then for the remainder, you are transferred to a hotel in the suburbs of the city, often 3-5 miles away. For a basic shifting economy package, sharing with around 4-5 people (which I believe both the Irish packages are), the cheapest UK package we found from any company that looked respectable (there are a lot of dodgy ones out there apparently) was £3200 sterling each (flights, 2 meals, accommodation, travel, all-inclusive). Both the Irish companies charge around 3800 Euro each, and Manasik do give you the option of paying more for a double/triple sharing room. I forget how much extra they quoted for a room for just the two of us, but I think it was around 5000 Euro each (once again, all inclusive, including the stay at Medinah). The 4-5 people per room are always male or female only, and some hotels even have entire male and female floors.

4) Get fit! - There's a fair bit of walking involved at Hajj, and a decent bit of it is barefoot on the hard marble floors around the Holy Ka'ba. It's only a matter of time before your feet start aching - the better prepared you are, you better you'll cope with it. So get used to walking long distances, and if possible, trying walking in only your socks to get your feet hardened.

5) What you'll need before going -
- A good Hajj guide book, we used Hajj & Umrah made easy, found it brilliant http://www.darussalam.com/p2028/Hajj-&-Umrah-made-easy/product_info.html
- Ihraam - two big pieces of non-stitched white cloth to cover your body (for men)
- Slippers - When used during Ihraam, should not cover your ankle malleoli (google it!), crocs are good
- 500 Saudi Riyal, you'll prob have to pre-order it from your bank, you can exchange more when out there
- A thin bum-bag, or maybe even two (which I used), one out of sight. Unfortunately not everybody at Hajj goes there for worship, so you have to be very careful where you put you're valuables.
- Scent-free soap, for use during Ihraam, Turkish Airlines provided us with this, was very handy - http://www.hajjsafe.com/liquid-soap/
- Travel wash, launderettes can be pricey, so you may want to DIY
- Face masks, I initially thought they'd be a bit OTT, but when everyone around you is coughing and spluttering, you can't get one quickly enough. Enough people use them so that you don't look silly wearing one. If you do get one, make sure it forms a tight seal around your mouth and nose, otherwise it's pointless.
- First aid stuff, plasters, antiseptic stuff, blister patches
- Google maps, if you have a smartphone, you can download Makkah and Medina maps before travelling and then using GPS, you can note where your hotel/Mina tent is (without an internet data connection), and navigate your way back if you get lost.
- Saudi SIM card, most groups will give one before travel, also do confirm with them beforehand what else they'll be giving you, to avoid having things in double, e.g. prayer mats, bum-bags, hand luggage bags etc. Turkish Airlines also gave us a bunch of stuff.

6) Random stuff of note
- If donating money to the poor/Haram cleaners, do it very discreetly and move on quickly, otherwise you'll be swamped by other people asking for money.
- Be wary of actors/beggars trying to get money out of you because "they lost everything and now their children have nothing to eat". Use your discretion, but instead of giving them money, offer to take them to a restaurant to feed them, and if they're lying, they'll probably leave you.
- Head-shaving (for men), try and go to a barber after your initial Umrah, and then after Hajj, it'll probably be by a guy on the street or by the Mina tents, ensure they're using a new blade for every person.

- Don't get too fussy before booking. I know we wasted a lot of time before Ramadan casually looking around at different packages, and dismissed certain packages because we'd heard the food was only ok or I didn't really fancy sharing a room with 3 other people I didn't know for the price I was paying, but Hajj isn't a luxury holiday - no matter how well organised your group is or how much money you pay, there will lots of things that go wrong and test your patience. You just have to be so grateful that Allah (swt) loves you and has chosen you from the millions and millions of Muslims in the world to come to his Holy place, and confirm your booking as soon as you can.

If anyone has any questions, I'd be glad to help

farooq77

hi,
me & my wife going to hajj 2014 his sept, can you please let me
how can i get saudi mobile sims.
thanks.

confusedquark

farooq77 wrote: »

hi,
me & my wife going to hajj 2014 his sept, can you please let me
how can i get saudi mobile sims.
thanks.

Salaam,

Congratulations that you're going, hope you get the most out of it Insha'allah.

The group that you're travelling with probably will provide you with mobile sims. Even if they don't, there are shops in the arrivals hall in Jeddah airport that sell them (and there will be plenty of time to buy them because you'll probably be waiting a few hours for your bus!). I wouldn't bother looking to get one in advance - the ones provided by our group had actually expired and didn't work because they hadn't been activated within a certain time of them being bought. The one thing I will advise again is to make sure you organise around 500 Saudi Riyal before travelling - there are lots of money exchange places in both Makkah and Madinah, but I don't recall if I saw one at the airport.