MADINAH, 22 July 2005 — With the onset of summer, the number of Umrah visitors, both from inside the Kingdom and abroad, continues to swell. The increase in the number of pilgrims has triggered a flurry of activities around the Two Holy Mosques.
Most of the Umrah pilgrims who have arrived so far are from Turkey and Iran. The pilgrims have started visiting Madinah to pray at the mosque of the Prophet (pbuh).
Ahmad Yaseen, working in an Umrah company, told Arab News the number of pilgrims is on the increase. He said this would be the trend for the next two months. Yaseen said his company received pilgrims in large numbers from Iran, Pakistan and Egypt. “Some pilgrims have come from European countries like France and the UK in addition to some from the Gulf countries,” he added.
Muhammad Abdul Sattar, supervisor in a hotel near the Prophet’s Mosque, said that most Madinah hotels are doing good business after a short slack period.
He said: “Our hotel is doing good business because pilgrims from Asian countries prefer to stay here, the prices in the central area being very expensive. Most of the pilgrims who book hotels in the central area are rich people.
“Right now our hotel has 70 percent occupancy and the percentage is expected to increase with the approach of the month of Ramadan. We have already begun hiring more employees because the workload is increasing.”
Abdullah Eshfaqa, manager of Al-Mahmoudeya supermarket in the central area, said there’s a large presence of Iranian pilgrims. He said, “The business is picking up. We have recalled seasonal employees to work in the supermarket. It will remain a busy period for us till Haj and the business will reach its peak during Ramadan. There are pilgrims here from outside the Kingdom and there are pilgrims who visit Madinah from Riyadh, Tabuk and other parts of the Kingdom.”
