re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
Go as soon as umrah visas open… This time it will be end dec early jan. Steer clear of may- sep. Mega rush due to long long long vacations in all middle eastern schools, ramadan and eid.
I agree with the above poster that the slowest days are right after eid vacations r over… But umrah visa is not open then.. Usually ppl living in arabia or on visit visa (like me) .. Make the most of it.
re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
I did my Hajj some 8 years back I was single at that time but I can tell you from what I saw from my eyes that it would be very very difficult to do hajj with kids. Managing kids is one issue but the major concern is security/safety. In such humongous crowds it is so common that adults get separated from each other and get lost so with kids it will be very very risky.
go without kids if possible
re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
That’s one of the reasons I want to go now when my baby is still small enough to carry in a sling… When she’s three or four years it’ll be even more difficult don’t you think?
I was the 1st Rabi Ul Awal and it was crowded to the max! There’s massive construction going on in Kabba so the crowd is inevitable for a couple of years atleast!
re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
I think TLK is right that you should complete your fard first… HOWEVER I did Hajj straight away a few years ago, and as I had only done Umrah when I was a small child, I had no idea what I was doing. So yes, like someone said, it is a bit like diving into the deep end. If it’s possible for you, go for Umrah first, as you will get an idea of what you’re supposed to do, AND THEN go for Hajj. Also, if you’re going for Umrah for the experience, DON’T GO IN RAMADAN. I know you get blessings for it, but going in Ramadan is almost equivalent of the rush you’ll experience at Hajj.
If I were you, I’d do the following: if I decide to go for Umrah first, go at any time OTHER than Ramadan so there is less rush, and take the kids with me.
If I decide to go for Hajj first, leave both kids at home and try and go for the shorter Hajj package. You would probably miss out on Medina, which would be a real shame because, after seeing the Ka’aba for the first time, Medina for me was the most calming, enjoyable experience of the entire journey.
re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
If you can afford it, go for hajj immediately. If you can afford it but then go for Umrah instead, and then die in an accident or of a medical problem shortly after returning, you’ll be in a position where you died having committed the sin of not going for hajj though you could afford it (evidence of being able to afford it being the ability to pay for umrah).
I think you should leave your kids behind. My brother and I were of similar and younger age to your eldest when my parents went for hajj - even though my family lived just 2 hours from Mecca at the time and it would have been easy to bring us, they still didn’t want the distraction of having children with them at the time. We were left with a relative.
re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
I thought one had to complete 40 namaz in medina when u go for hajj?
re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
Are you serious 
?
sweetmoi: never heard of that… madina is not a part of hajj. its not part of anything farz.
mad scientist is right… if u can afford it..hajj is farz. though no one is saying u cant do it after an umrah.. granted one can drop dead at any time.. but lets not he pessimistic 
re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
Cool i really thought it was
re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
hajj is just 5 days umrah 3 nights in mina, throwing pebbles at shaitan for 3 days, Arafat day , night in muzdilfah and then tawaf e zayarat and hajj is done
Re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
Thank you everyone for the advice.
After a lot of thinking and going back and forth, my heart has finally settled on the Hajj plans. I don’t think we’ll have such a good chance again. I was a little worried about leaving the baby behind since he’ll just be 8-9 months but honestly think there’s no harm. I’m sure he’ll be just fine and probably won’t even remember it
Re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
Re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
Ethan 
smart na bano
Re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
I was respecting your decision. You’re one of those people who don’t use their kids as an excuse to not do anything. More power to you.
Re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
I know for once you were actually being nice to me - I just felt like pulling your legs 
Thank you bro - But you know everyone’s circumstances are different. If I didn’t have family to take care of the kids, I’m not sure if I’d be able to make a decision. Regardless of that, see me change my mind sau dafa now hehe 
Re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
sau dafa…mein dekhta huN keise so dafa. Meray bhai ke sath eik dafa paki baat kia kareiN
Re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
I went last year for umra on visit visa with my 3 years old and 3 months old…due to construction it was jam packed the baby was in baby carrier n it was winter but still it was really hard to do tawaaf in the daytime. Then few years ago when i did my hajj there were small kids but we were on such package where we traveled here n there by buses so it was quite easy else of course its really difficult.
Re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
Arzi, good luck!!! 
Re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
We’ve signed up for the 20 days package. My husband checked things and that’s what we’ve settled on. I hope everything goes smoothly and nothing ruins our plans now. Final plan will be after Ramadan, I guess. I’m excited but also scared at the same time. Thank you everyone for your comments, We’ve been coming back to this thread
Re: Hajj/Umrah with kids?
For hajj Push chairs are not allowed inside the mosque but everywhere else they are allowed. They r just cumbersome to carry for the places they’re not allowed. They r also not allowed in the area where u stone the pillars. But the security guards hold them for u and then u gto back to get it from them. I think walking from Mina to jamaraat (stoning area) is impossible without a stroller if u have young kids. Also, wheelchairs are allowed in the mosque for tawaf as well as saee. For tawaf they have a seperate ring (donut) shaped floor around the kabah only for ppl with wheelchairs. So u can do tawaf on that floor with the kids. Saee has like 5 floors now, ground floor is always packed, but for umrah atleast, the higher up floors are peaceful, like even spacious. Since they opened up the other floors I have never done it on the ground floor since its much relaxed upstairs. (wheelchairs are available for free within the mosque from a couple of places, and paid only if u hire someone to push it for u, don’t let anyone dupe u into paying for it if ur going to push it urself)
I agree with the other posters advising u to either do hajj without the kids or to do umrah with kids in the off season. Realistically speaking, umrah is still manageable, with the kids also. 1 umrah takes about 3-4.5 hours depending on how busy it is. It is advised islamically to not burden urself and do too many umrahs close together (like one everyday for all the days u r there). Once a week is good enough. Apart from that u can do tawaf multiple times, whenever u want, picking a good time of the day for reduced traffic. Saee is the long walk and takes the most time in an umrah. Btw it only sounds like multiple long steps in those mini guide books otherwise there are hardly any difficult requirements. Just 2 nafl for ihram niyyat, tawaf (no particular duas u have to learn), 2 nafl behind makaam e Ibrahim, saee, trim ur hair and ur good to go. All u have to do is keep track of what round ur in and just continue to ask for whatever ur heart desires. It’s really just a lot of walking.
So bottom line if with kids go off peak, or only for umrah. First priority do hajj, without kids, shorter package.