thinking of going on Umrah at end of this year between thanksgiving and new year holidays, iA with hubby and toddler. want to incorporate a trip to Pakistan in as well. anyone have an idea of the costs from USA (California) to umrah and then Lahore? Any recommendations for airlines/hotels/packages/agency for umrah?
should we go thru an agent and book the umrah and Pakistan trip together (airfare, umrah hotel, etc)? or is it better to book separately (umrah trip and separate airfare to Pakistan)? also, how many days is best for umrah package? i have seen 3,5,7,10 day packages.
also, does anyone know when umrah will open up for this year?
ps2! we plan to go for hajj but will be leaving our son in Pakistan with his grandparents so we are hoping to get the “land only” deal with Dar El Salam and do our own airfare from US to Pakistan to Saudia Arabia and back to pakistan and then US! But I will definitely look for a wonderful land package from a reputable agency in the US to avoid any hassle!
I may be wrong, but I think that of you are in the US, Saudi gov't requires you to book Umrah through an agent and go with a group. I will check up on that for you..I have some relatives who hair recently did umrah, I can ask what the protocol and procedures are
umrah visa remains close for three months after hajj, this is I know, umrah can be done in 1 day, I went for 10 days n did 2. if you go there of course you want to visit all the historic places there, so plan your trip accordingly. one more thing earlier you used to land on jaddah airport and then by road trave to makkah which takes almost 5 hours now new air port got opened in madina you can arrive at jaddah airport but can depart from madina air port just to avoid extra hustle of 5 hours. and yes plz no toddlers, I think bacho k sath be zayadti hai
I went with my 3 yrs daughter with no problem at all for 2 weeks, and i was pregnant which i didnt know:p founf out when we came back to usa. Why should be a problem. My friend took 2 months old :p
i think with kids you cant concentrate on prayers there, i have seen mothers who did umrah and then stayed in the hotel didn't come for namaz in khana kaba. and if you have good bacha who can co operate go ahead i know my bacha ek min ka sakoon nhi i know i cant concentrate on my prayer moreover the rush especially during tawaf bachay gets cranky. but we did in last ashra of Ramadan tu it was very crowdy baut rush tha, may be off season mei it is not tht crowdy
salute to the mothers who did it with the kids.. when I was there, I saw kids being pulled, pushed, and just crying in the summer heat.. I know friends who did it with ther kids while one parent stayed at the hotel, the other went to perform umrah/pray and switched.. I ownt be able to do that.. I am my husbands dum challa..i go where he goes :D
We went in April the Breeze was awesome.
Little one was with his dad - literally sat still while sas prayed.
Older one was with me; he tried to flee a ew times while i prayed and the auties caught him every time.
The Tawaf wasn't bad either; we carried the younger and the older one walked. We made the first few in the inner circle; the last 4 we made using the outer circle which wasn't crowded at all.
Everyone was sensative to the kids.
The only place I saw an issue with having the kids around was in Medina; when you visit the Rosa mubarak.
But then again I didn't have the kids with me as the women went for an alloted time and I was able to leave the kids outside with they're dad.
i think with kids you cant concentrate on prayers there, i have seen mothers who did umrah and then stayed in the hotel didn't come for namaz in khana kaba. and if you have good bacha who can co operate go ahead i know my bacha ek min ka sakoon nhi i know i cant concentrate on my prayer moreover the rush especially during tawaf bachay gets cranky. but we did in last ashra of Ramadan tu it was very crowdy baut rush tha, may be off season mei it is not tht crowdy
I agree..some kids aren't good with crowds. So it would be wise to leave your kids with inlaws or your parents. I have personally seen in haram shareef....kids crying and throwing fit..left right for parents. Therefore cannot properly concentrate in prayer. khair..not all kids might be like that..but i am just saying.
umrah visa remains close for three months after hajj, this is I know, umrah can be done in 1 day, I went for 10 days n did 2. if you go there of course you want to visit all the historic places there, so plan your trip accordingly. one more thing earlier you used to land on jaddah airport and then by road trave to makkah which takes almost 5 hours now new air port got opened in madina you can arrive at jaddah airport but can depart from madina air port just to avoid extra hustle of 5 hours. and yes plz no toddlers, I think bacho k sath be zayadti hai
I think you meant Makkah to medinah takes 5 hours. From Jaddah to Makkah it only takes 1 hour by car.
I think you meant Makkah to medinah takes 5 hours. From Jaddah to Makkah it only takes 1 hour by car.
oh yes it takes 5 hours from makkah to madina and even from jaddah to makkah more than 2 hour