Cairo: Rises in prices of this year’s curtailed Haj are attributed to precautions adopted to limit the spread of COVID-19, according to a Saudi official.
Earlier this month, Saudi Arabia said that due to the continuation of COVID-19 and its variants, performing this year’s Haj will be confined to 60,000 pilgrims from Saudis and Muslim foreign residents in the kingdom.
The Ministry of Haj and Umrah has designated three Haj packages for this year, with varying costs.
The second and final stage of registration for this year’s pilgrimage, due to take place next month, started on Friday for booking and purchasing the packages and will continue until July 9.
“All the packages feature superb services and precautionary measures for this exceptional Haj season,” said Abdulrahman Al Huqbani, the head of the Coordination Council for Domestic Pilgrims.
He told Saudi TV Al Ekhabriya that the three packages are “Hospitality Towers”; “Distinguished Hospitality Camps”; and “Hospitality”.
The difference in prices of this year’s Haj services compared to those before the COVID-19 outbreak is due to the precautionary measures, he argued.
“For example, in the Mina Towers, the room used to accommodate 14 pilgrims. Now, the number has been cut to eight pilgrims,” he said. Likewise, one bus was previously allocated for every 50 pilgrims, but now the number has been reduced to 20 pilgrims. “This arrangement inevitably results in a price rise,” he added. Prices of the premium “Hospitality Towers” start at SR16,560 per pilgrim exclusive the value-added tax, the online newspaper Sabq reported.
The second package “Distinguished Hospitality Camps”, starts at a cost of SR14,381 per pilgrim exclusive the VAT tax.
“Hospitality Camps” starts at a price of SR12,113 per pilgrim exclusive the VAT tax, according to the paper.
Eligible pilgrims must be vaccinated with at least one dose against COVID-19, free of chronic diseases and aged between 18 to 65 years. The final selection of the pilgrims depends on fulfilling the requirements, according to the Ministry of Haj.
Last year’s Haj was performed by a limited number of Saudis and foreign Muslims residing in Saudi Arabia to contain the spread of COVID-19.
