Eastern Province residents are having a tough time getting to Makkah during the holy month of Ramadan due to the high influx of pilgrims.

Some residents have resorted to booking flights via Bahrain, which costs less compared to the prices of domestic Saudi airlines, to perform Umrah.

The cost of traveling by bus to Makkah has also become more expensive after bus owners agreed among themselves to unify prices, forcing Umrah providers to pay more for permits.

“This has consequently forced Haj and Umrah offices to raise prices by 35 percent,” said Muhammad Faifi, the manager of a Haj and Umrah service provider in Dammam.

“Around five buses leave the Eastern Province daily to Makkah and another 20 buses make the journey on weekends. Bus owners are renting their buses to Haj and Umrah service providers for SR5,000 per trip, compared with SR3,000 they charged last year during Ramadan.”

Saeed Al-Muhammadi, marketing director of a Haj and Umrah service office, said, “There are more than 70 licensed offices located in the Eastern Province spanning across Dammam, Alkhobar, Dhahran and Jubail.”

“Most pilgrim who prefer to travel to Makkah by bus are Arab or Asian nationals, while Saudi families choose to travel by plane,” he said.

“More than 30 Haj and Umrah office representative in Dammam and Alkhobar recently met to discuss bus fares to Makkah. They signed an agreement, which stipulated that individuals would pay SR170 to travel to Makkah during weekdays, while pilgrims who want to travel on weekends would pay SR200,” he said.