A large number of pilgrims have decided to leave for their home countries soon after concluding their Haj rituals due to the high cost of accommodation in Makkah and Madina. Mujeeb Hazza, an economist living in UAE, said that he will spend a night in Madina before heading to Jeddah to catch his flight next Friday. “Expansion projects in the Central Area surrounding the Grand Mosque in Makkah have made it difficult for pilgrims to stay longer,” Hazza said. Hotel rates near the Grand Mosque ranged from SR1200 to SR1500 per night on weekends with a discount of SR200 on weekdays. A receptionist in one of the hotels in the central area said most of the rooms in his hotel were booked by travel agents. “It's confidential so I cannot tell you about the current rates,” the receptionist, requesting anonymity, said. “For hotels near the Grand Mosque, the Haj season began from Sept. 18 and would last until Dec. 18,” he added. The high cost of accommodation has forced pilgrims and their agents to lodge outside Makkah city limits. “I run a pilgrimage agency and after seeing the unreasonable prices in the city center, I decided to rent a whole building in Al-Adl and Al-Tan'eem districts which are about 5-7 km away from the Grand Mosque,” Talal Khayyat said. Jalal Mahmoud, an Egyptian expatriate who performed Haj with his wife, doesn't have enough money to cover the cost of staying longer in Makkah. “I found it difficult to save money for this Haj season, and I will not be able to spend any more money,” Jalal who came from Al-Qassim region said. For Amer Al-Asmari, a Saudi pilgrim, the hotel charges near Al-Haram in Makkah do not encourage one to spend weekends there. “Hotel prices are high in these areas all the year round, not just during the Haj season,” he complained. “If the situation continues the way it is, owners of hotels will lose the trust of the people. Personally, I prefer to make a one-day trip to Makkah to perform Umrah without spending money on hotels,” Al-Asmari said. Meanwhile, Hazza believes that the outgoing economic crisis has affected pilgrims in some ways. “The crisis has had an impact on everything. Pilgrims coming from abroad must have struggled financially in order to perform Haj,” he added. Kpakpo Othman, a pilgrim who trades in jewelry in Togo, believes the global economic meltdown together with the high tariffs of hotels in Makkah will force him to go back home early. “I will try to visit Makkah with my family once the financial crisis is over,” Kpakpo said.
