Hajj
2.7 · 3 reviews
US pilgrim survey
Survey deck last updated June 21, 2026
Pilgrim review 1Ithraa Al Khair 30 via Harvey World Travel Lenasia
- Overall experience
- Don't recommend at all
- Communication
- 0 communication directly with Ithraa Alkhair (service provider). No clear overall plan from them. Never reached out to us after booking package with them and never heard from them during the trip. They had ithraa reps in hotels/mina if anyone had questions though. Seeru (agency) was responsive to requests and provided updates but more proactive communication needed. Pre-hajj online sessions set up but no in-person group prep sessions in Mecca and lack of communication throughout Mina.
- Mina & Azizyah
- Camp 72B, non-shifting Camp was comfortable overall. 10000 people in the camp from all over the world including non-Western countries. My room had 56 people in it. AC in the room worked well. Buffet had long lines for the 3 meals and kitchen/staff had hard time keeping up. Water, juice, and ice cream always available though. Bathrooms were ok but can use an upgrade.
- Dedicated scholar
- No There was supposed to be but saw him only once in the lobby coincidentally. No group meetings/lectures set up and no scholar/guide with us in Mina, Arafat, muzdalifah, or jamarat.
- Muzdalifah
- Outdoor with foldable cushion chairs that turn into beds on the ground. No food provided in muzdalifah
- Transportation
- *Airport - Jeddah airport to Mecca- Ithraa reps placed us on a wrong bus initially then were put on another bus. There were only 6 from ithraa packages on the bus so we had to wait an hour until a different group filled the bus. Bus went to other group hotel first. - Madina to Madina airport- we were not on a group flight so taxi was arranged for us *Between Mashaer (Mina, Arafat, muzdalifah, jamarat) -Biggest advantage of 72B is being right next to the mashaer train so transportation between Mina, Arafat, muzdalifah, and jamarat was very easy and you don't have to rely on the group because you can get on at any time. There can be long lines getting on the train at times. - service provider did not allow people to leave Arafa until 10pm even though Maghrib had come in at 7pm and even locked the gates to the Arafa tent until that time so no one could leave. People did not make it to muzdalifah until past midnight. Luckily I left before Maghrib from the Arafa tent to go to Jabal Rahma and was able to get on the train right after Maghrib. *Between Mecca and Mina - bus provided from Mecca to Mina on 8 dhul hijja - no transport arranged for between mina and Mecca for tawaf ifada and back from Mecca to mina afterwards. Had to figure out on our own - bus provided from mina back to Mecca on last day of mina *From Mecca to Madina - no trains arranged for in advance even though booked top tier package - we decided not to rely on the group and paid extra to take a taxi thankfully. The group waited 12 hours for the buses to show up and lost a full day in Madina because of it. Even the Seeru agent responsible for the group tried taking a train and not take the buses but the trains were fully booked.
- Guidance & reflection
- Minimal guidance received overall. Had we not prepared individually in advance and been on Umra several times before, we would have had a much more difficult time navigating. No effort was made to create a group experience. No religious/spiritual guidance or talks. We saw early on how unreliable the service provider and group was so broke off and tried handling as many logistics as we could on our own.
- Would you recommend?
- No, especially for people going to Mecca and Madina for the first time. Overall issues with communication, transportation, and lack of guides detailed above.
- Rating
- ⭐⭐ 2/5
Pilgrim review 2Ithraa alkhair via Seeru
- Overall experience
- Recommend with caution
- Communication
- Yes we had agency involvement. Guides tried hard to address questions but did not always have answers. Communication with videos of what to expect later became better and more helpful. Webinar helped. Guides were very available via WhatsApp. Not easy to communicate with mcdc reps.
- Mina & Azizyah
- Good, they organised transport from Mina to Arafat, Arafat to Muzdalifah, And back to Makkah. We were non shifting. In muaism. Accommodation good, food more than enough. Showers always busy for ladies.
- Dedicated scholar
- Yes
- Muzdalifah
- No problem, we found space
- Transportation
- Buses were available to and from airports. Sometimes timing off. Trains to Medina was a bit of a problem but they came through eventually. We took public busses back from makkah to Mina under guidance of group leaders. No problems.
- Guidance & reflection
- As we were in a female camp the guide was not close but if we asked we were guided. He led us to jamarats and guided where he could.
- Would you recommend?
- Cautious as sometimes organisation was questionable. Seemed communication between mcdc, guides and nusuk were not clear and as result guides did not have all the answers. Rooms in Makkah took a while to be allocated for some.
- Rating
- ⭐⭐⭐ 3/5
Pilgrim reviews are published by Mabroor Essentials as submitted. Kawthar does not rank or endorse any group.