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Pilgrim review 1İkram Aldayf, SID luxury 401 via dar el salaam
- Overall experience
- Strongly recommend
- Communication
- Communication was great. Initially it was over email with flight and hotel details. Then it was over WhatsApp with our Group Leader and Sheikh during Hajj
- Mina & Azizyah
- Non shifting, Muasim. There was a bus from our hotel in Medina to our camp in Mina. Camp was very clean, bathroom was cleaned regularly. There were bathroom stalls with toilets, a shower, hooks, toilet paper, and a trash can. Bring your own toiletries and towels. Max had to wait five minutes to use the bathroom. We had rolling beds with storage underneath for a small carry on. We were in a smaller tent, had around 160 people in our tent. But there were tents that were larger with more people around us in the same camp. Lots of snacks, juices, water, instant noodles, and ice cream available 24/7. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner served buffet style and good variety. Tents were cold so bring a light sweater or sleeping bag if you get cold easily. No pharmacy so bring all medication with you. There was a clinic but I didn’t use it. Issues with getting to Jamarat since no bus provided by agency. On 10th DH, decided to talk to Jamarat at 6:30am. It was 2.5 km walk but due to heat it was very difficult. On 11th DH opted to take public bus to our hotel in Mecca, then take taxi or bus to Jamarat from there. There are no taxis in Muasim since authorities don’t allow them into camp. Can be dropped off close to Muasim then have to walk to tent. On 12th DH, agency was providing a bus to Azizia for people with shifting package. We took that bus to Azizia, then a taxi to the Jamarat. We then took a bus back to our Mecca hotel. Our agency took our carry ons by bus back to our hotel so we didn’t have to come back and get them after completing the Jamarat in 12th DH. The authorities have made it difficult to schedule busses to Jamarat from Muasim, so recommend staying at Majar Al Kabsh if people have hard time walking in heat or hard time navigating public transportation. Lot of elders in our camp had others stone Jamarat for them. Don’t see section for Arafat but wanted to add my experience: Had nice tent with around 200 people, and sleeping sofa. Pack light since not a lot of room. Tent got really hot, so bring instant ice packs, cooking towel, and misting fan. Heard this wasn’t an issue in Majar Al Kabsh. Bathroom wait time was 30-40 minutes in 110 degree heat. People were getting heat exhaustion waiting in line since bathrooms were outside without a lot of shade. Were not clean. No showers. Heard bathrooms weren’t an issue at Majar Al Kabsh. Breakfast and lunch provided as simple buffet, some snacks, water bottles, juices, and ice cream. People in the same package who had Majar Al Kabsh said there Arafat was a luxury experience with food carts, buffets, piles of fruit like mangos, and no issues at the bathroom.
- Dedicated scholar
- Yes
- Muzdalifah
- Carpets on the ground with sleeping bags in piles. Got there late (around 1am) so found empty spot in between other groups. Provided water bottles and food in plastic bags. Recommend using bathroom in Arafat or waking up early since line got really long at Fajr. Left after Fajr, lots of rush for bus, but bus was right outside the enterance.
- Transportation
- Bring lots of patience to Hajj. Ikram AlDayf representatives were at the airport waiting for us and loaded us up quickly on bus. Due to delays, took around two hours to get to hotel. Recommend taking taxi instead to hotel and letting group leader know you’re taking taxi instead. Bus provided to Mina and back, but not from Mina to Jamarat. Had to either walk or take public transport. Bus provided from Mecca hotel to Medina, but it broke down at the hotel so waiting two hours for replacement. Dar el Salaam was good at communicating and getting back up bus. Lots of checks on the way to the airport, so plan to be there 6 hours before hand to account for this. For Majar Al Kabsh, heard there were two hour wait times for the train in the heat. Recommend bringing a collabsabke stool (can buy at Bin Dawood), misting fan, and instant ice packs if taking the train.
- Guidance & reflection
- Dar el Salaam did a wonderful job providing spiritual and practical guidance. During Ramadan, they started the spiritual videos. After Ramadan, they started the practical videos on our schedule and packing based on our specific packages. Lots of spiritual videos on Hajj. Once we arrived, had lectures on umrah and hajj. Led us on Umrah Tawaaf and Sa’ee, and Jamarat once. But wouldn’t rely on sheikh or group leader leading us because easy to lose them in the crowds.
- Would you recommend?
- Yes, great communication and very helpful if any issues occurred
- Rating
- ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5
Pilgrim review 2Ikram AlDayf via Dar el Salaam
- Overall experience
- Recommend with certain cautions
- Communication
- Communication was ok, but could have been better. Certain questions on WhatsApp were often ignored but not always.
- Mina & Azizyah
- Non-shifting majr al kabsh. Camp was good. Very comfortable tents and sofa beds. Good food. Distance to jamarat was great. The bathrooms, however, were disappointing. We shared just 4 sinks for wadhu. The toilet stalls, which also included shower, were very small and often did not have toilet paper. There were long lines often, especially before prayer time.
- Dedicated scholar
- There was a designated scholar inside our Mina camp who often gave speeches . There was not any communication for designated scholar for Arafah and muzdalifah, but there were multiple scholars presant.
- Muzdalifah
- It was ok. Sleeping bags were very thin. The boxed food was not good. Bathrooms were bad.
- Transportation
- Train and bus transportation was good, but you had to come early to take the first bus or else you’d have to wait for second or third bus, which sometimes could take some time. The bus drivers, however, were bad. One group was left stranded in the wrong hotel upon arrival and had to uber to the hotel. Some lost their luggage. Some busses dropped people off in wrong terminals at the airport.
- Guidance & reflection
- Our original religious scholar was changed and we received no communication on why that happened. This was one of the biggest disappointments. Our replacement scholar was not very involoved. Most of the logistics guides and details was provided via WhatsApp, which was helpful. On the plus side, we had separate well known scholars that provided guided tours in Medina, this was very well done.
Pilgrim review 3Ekram Aldyf via Dar el Salaam
- Overall experience
- Recommend with certain cautions
- Communication
- Poor, they were present but majority folks didn’t know who is their respective guide
- Mina & Azizyah
- Non-Shifting Majar Al kabsh It was incredible, even though we didn’t know who exactly th guide was but somehow there provided all the logistics and in a timely fashion. The camp was very good
- Dedicated scholar
- Technically yes- Sheikh Ali Matawi (i don’t know who he was)
- Muzdalifah
- Excellent They had a separate walled off site, leveled and carpeted. Provided a meal/snack box. Prior to Mina they had already provided sleeping bags as well. The site was located very close to the train station
- Transportation
- Transportation was excellent. We had train between Mina/arafat/muzdalifa They arranged bus from hotel to Mina camp. From Mina to hotel we walked and to Haram we took public transportation (although they technically did have an arrangement for that)
- Guidance & reflection
- They lacked guidance in general (it appeared that there were some people- who had guide already pre arranged from US and Canada - I guess that’s how those agents do marketing and so were assigned) but considering I directly booked so my guide during actual hajj days was a gentleman from France. He was nice and cooperative but limited communication during language barrier.
- Would you recommend?
- I will recommend this agency for someone doing it second time or has some knowledge of hajj. This is not for someone who wants to completely rely on the agency to walk them through hajj process. Even though we would get disconnected from group but there representative were present in Arafat every 200-300m and I could ask them for navigation.
Pilgrim review 4Saudia Hajj & Umrah via Dar El Salaam
- Overall experience
- Very good Allhumdulilah; Strongly reccomend as long as islamic scholarship is not a big factor
- Communication
- Very communicative, the group leader was very responsive to our inquires
- Mina & Azizyah
- Mina was comfortable. Our tent program was well organized and structured
- Dedicated scholar
- We had a dedicated imam that had good knowledge. I do not know if he was a scholar perse. He was very good at keeping people together and making sure we met out rituals as best as we could. His leadership assured a stress free journey Allhumdulilah. I was very happy with him.
- Muzdalifah
- Great
- Transportation
- No issues. Bus transportation from hotel to mina, bus from mina to Arafat, bus from Arafat to muzdalifa, walking from muzadalifa to jamarat
- Guidance & reflection
- ALLHUMDULILAH I had the opportunity to study Hajj and its rituals before my journey and that helped me be comfortable in performing my rituals. As such, I did not have to rely heavily on the scholarship component of the journey. Hisar led a very well organized program and our group leader had immense sabr and strength in carrying for the group and making sure our rituals were performed. I had a very comfortable journey ALLHUMDULILAH and Hisar did a good job on the logistical side of everything.
- Would you recommend?
- This would depend on what someone is looking for in performing Hajj. If someone is looking for a well organized and coordinated hajj ( versus the islamic scholarship aspect of it) Absolutely. I would reccomend Hisar to anyone multiple times.
- Rating
Pilgrim review 5Seera Mawasim via Dar el Salaam
- Overall experience
- Strongly recommend, it's never perfect but I think they did a great job. Minor things can be corrected
- Communication
- Good to great communication, our guide was very responsive. Again, not perfect, but some things were out of their control.
- Mina & Azizyah
- Mina was very good. Some minor improvements could be made. I had non shifting Majar al kabsh.
- Dedicated scholar
- Yes
- Muzdalifah
- Bathrooms were not being cleaned like Mina and Arafat. Our camp was jam packed which made it hotter than it already was. Floor was hot so sleeping bag provided minimal help. I was concerned about my poessions being on the hot floor all night. The lights were very bright and never turned off which made it even harder to sleep.
- Transportation
- Buses. Good but was sometimes free for all which was very stressful with 4 people and bags. Wasn't always clear which bus was ours. Also wasn't clear how many seats were open or if bus was already full. Seems like easy things to correct. Buses were often late because of various issues.
- Guidance & reflection
- They were very helpful. However, I did a lot of self research and usually used the support to check and supplement my own research.
- Would you recommend?
- Yes
- Rating
- ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5
Pilgrim review 6Seera SID Executive B via Dar El Salaam
- Overall experience
- Strongly Recommend
- Communication
- Communication was very responsive, webinar series from Ramadan and Q&A sessions were held post webinar. 2 weeks prior to departure Imam/guide for the group selected personally reached out and if we had any questions we could directly contact them through text/call.
- Mina & Azizyah
- Majar Al Kabsh Mina camps were excellent, can't complain. Logistic support from Seera was excellent, the group always had communication on when to head out, when to line up for trains. All transportation to Mashair sites were through train. Aziziyah stays were a little downgrade compared to hotels near Haram and it was expected.
- Dedicated scholar
- Yes the scholars were in the same tents and all the prayers were done by Imam leading for particular tent, we had programs arranged for 8th DH as there were lectures, Qirat and sessions relating Dua. During Arafah day 9th DH the group duas were excellent. We could reach out to Imam any time during those days for questions relating Fiqh/Spirituality.
- Muzdalifah
- Muzdalifah was how it should be under open sky, Seera had their own area setup, where we were guided to for setting up sleeping bags and there was segregation for men and women which was quite good. Snack boxes and drink available for Hujjaj.
- Transportation
- All the transportation arrangements were excellent for Kabsh camp for Mashair sites rail passes were distributed and there were little to no wait times. For Mina to hotels a 30 minute walk or taxi after walking 5-10 minutes as Aziziyah doesn't have a lot of buses during 8th -13th DH days
- Guidance & reflection
- Logistics was a breeze but initiatives had to be taken to make sure men/women were leaving together for Muzdalifa/Jamaraat. Religious scholars were pretty available during Hajj days, there were lectures organized prior to departing for Arafah and Khutba/guidance on day of Arafah. Post prayers there were small reminders regarding significance of staying in Mina with respect to Seerah of prophet. Audio headset devices for days of Umrah, Jamaraat, Tawaf Ifada and other Ziyarah for group to stay together and learn from Imams.
Pilgrim reviews are published by Mabroor Essentials as submitted. Kawthar does not rank or endorse any group.