Umrah for elderly pilgrims: planning and support

The short answer. Umrah suits an older pilgrim far better than Hajj: it is shorter, there is no Mina and no Jamarat, and you set the pace. One decision carries nearly all of it, the walking distance from the hotel to the Haram, and the second is when you go. Avoid Ramadan unless the crowds are the point.

Most of our Umrah groups include somebody older, and families worry far more than they need to. The general version covering both journeys is Hajj and Umrah with elderly parents; this is the Umrah one.

Why Umrah is the kinder journey

• It is short, usually a week to a fortnight.
• There is no Mina, no Arafat, no Muzdalifah and no Jamarat.
• The rites themselves take a few hours rather than days.
• You choose the hours. Nothing is scheduled by a group at three in the morning

unless you want it to be.

• You can rest for a whole day without missing anything obligatory.

That is why we often tell a family that a parent who could not manage Hajj can manage Umrah comfortably.

The one number that decides it

The walking distance from the hotel to the Haram, at the hour they will actually walk it, at their pace, in a crowd.

Not the number on a map, and certainly not the phrase "walking distance". Ask for the hotel by name, then look at it yourself and picture your mother making that walk twice a day.

If a parent cannot manage the distance, nothing else about the trip works. It is worth more than a better room, more than a longer stay, and more than almost anything else you could spend the money on.

When to go

The second decision, and it is almost as large.

• Ramadan, and especially the last ten nights, is extraordinary and extremely

crowded. For a frail pilgrim the crowds are the difficulty, not the fasting.

• School holidays are busy.
• A quiet month is the same place with room to move, cheaper, and the hotel

you could not otherwise afford will be within reach.

For an older parent we would take a quiet month and a close hotel over Ramadan and a far one, almost every time.

What to arrange before travelling

See the doctor early. Medicine for the whole trip plus a margin, the generic names written down, and a short written summary of conditions in English, carried in their bag and in yours.

The vaccination with the waiting period belongs at the start of planning. One of the two mandatory vaccinations cannot be done at the last minute, and leaving it late forces you into whatever dates are left.

Passport validity, checked today.

A wheelchair decision, if there is any doubt. Who pushes it, and is it yours or arranged there. Decide at home.

Airline assistance, requested at booking and confirmed before departure, at both ends.

What to pack for them

• A folding walking stick if they use one at home.
• A pill organiser filled before leaving, prescription photographed.
• Their own small mat.
• Spare glasses.
• Slip-on shoes, already worn in, with a cloth bag.
• A card in each pocket: hotel name and address in Arabic, your number, the

group leader's number.

On the trip

Sleep before the Haram. Most flights from Pakistan land in the small hours. For an older pilgrim, going straight there and performing Umrah after twenty hours awake costs the next two days.

Go at the cooler hours.

Fewer things, with rest between them. The families who do less come home saying it was the best trip they have taken.

Take the taxi rather than walking a tired parent back, and budget for it at home.

Agree what happens if you are separated, before it happens.

What to tell the agency

In the first conversation, before the package is chosen:

• Their age, and honestly how far they can walk.
• Heart condition, diabetes, a knee or hip that will not take stairs.
• Whether they use a chair or a stick at home.
• Who is with them at all times.

A good agency will start talking about hotel distance and dates, and may tell you the package you asked about is wrong. That is what you want to hear.

Ask before you book

Send us your parent's age, what they can manage, and your dates. We will tell you which hotel distance to insist on, whether your dates are the kind ones, and what we would change. Our departures are on the Umrah packages page, and the preparation in order is in the Umrah preparation checklist.