Two Umrah quotes can look a lakh apart and still describe the same trip. Almost always the difference is walking distance, room occupancy and who is with you on the ground.
What a complete package should list separately
Before you compare anything, ask for the quote broken into parts. A serious agency in Islamabad will write out each line rather than give you one number.
- Return airfare with the carrier and routing named
- Umrah visa and processing
- Hotel in Makkah and hotel in Madinah, with the actual walking distance
- Room occupancy, whether quad, triple, double or private
- Airport and intercity transfers, including Jeddah to Makkah
- Ziyarat in both cities
- Whether a group leader travels with you
Distance is the real price driver
A room two hundred metres from the Haram and a room two kilometres away can differ by more than a lakh per person over ten nights. For elderly parents that walk is the whole trip, so it is worth the money. For a fit family in a mild month, a short shuttle ride is a sensible saving.
Ask for the hotel name, not the star rating. We give the name and the measured walk on every tier we sell.
Ramadan and school holidays
The last ten nights of Ramadan are the most expensive weeks of the year, and they sell out early from Islamabad. Rabi ul Awwal and the weeks after Ramadan are far calmer and considerably cheaper for the same hotel.
If your dates are fixed by school holidays, book the hotel first and the ticket second. Rooms near the Haram run out before seats do.
Questions worth asking any agency
Who meets us at Jeddah. What happens if the flight is delayed by a day. Is the hotel confirmed or on request. Is the visa fee inside the quote. Which part is refundable and until when. An honest desk answers all five without hesitating.