Domestic Haj to cost 60% more

The costs of performing Haj and Umrah are expected to increase this season according to pilgrim service providers.
The surge in prices has prompted Umrah and Haj service providers to call for the intervention of government bodies to intervene and put a cap on prices.
Delays in receiving the pilgrims’ tents exacerbate the constraints on Umrah and Haj providers. Abdullah Al-Ghamdi, director of Al-Ehsan Haj and Umrah Company, noted that the delay in receiving the tents is an annual problem that leads to breaches in the contracts signed with pilgrims. “The delivery process should start by the beginning of Shawwal, so that each provider can make the necessary arrangements,” he added.
He pointed out that overseas pilgrims make arrangements with Tawafa institutions with fixed and defined prices.
Noting that internal Haj and Umrah service firms face many problems, Al-Ghamdi said: “Transportation costs are our biggest problem in this regard, with prices on the rise every year.”
Although the prices of the last Haj season were high, it is expected that this year prices would be much higher, forecasts Al-Ghamdi, adding, “Reducing the numbers of internal and foreign pilgrims by 50 and 20 percent respectively will not contribute to decreasing the prices.” The problem, he noted, is that a large number of pilgrims continue to enter the holy sites without authorization.
Husain Al-Qahtani, director of Al-Ojour for Haj and Umrah Company, agrees. “I do not expect the prices to drop, unless the government intervenes and puts in place certain procedures,” he said.
Last year Haj costs increased 60 percent. But another investor speculates that prices will witness greater increases this year.
“In view of the shortages in laborers, service charges will be higher as well,” explained the investor.