The days before you fly are part of the journey. You do not need a perfect plan. You do need a few things settled, so the airport and the miqat do not catch you off guard.
Check the entry rules yourself
Visa types, permits, and what you may carry change. This site does not list them, because a copied rule goes out of date. Before you travel, read the current pages of the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah, Nusuk, and the official Saudi visa site. If a line is unclear, ask the organizer or the scholar with your group, not a stranger online.
Know where ihram starts for your route
You enter ihram before you pass the miqat on your way to Makkah. If you are flying past that point, you enter ihram on the plane, before you cross it. No airport is a miqat. Do not plan to wait until you land and then look for a place to change.
Find out the miqat for your route before you leave home. Do not guess it from a video.
Pack ihram where you can reach it
Put your ihram clothes in the cabin bag, not in the hold.
Men wear two plain, unstitched cloths: one around the waist, one over the shoulders. A belt to hold the lower cloth is widely used. If you are unsure whether a belt is allowed for you, ask the scholar with your group before you fly, not in the aisle.
Women wear their usual modest clothes. There is no special color and no special uniform. In ihram, a woman does not wear a face veil and does not wear gloves.
A small list for the cabin bag
- Unscented soap, for a wash before ihram if you can make one. The wash is not a condition of the rite.
- Shoes you can slip off and carry.
- Any medicine you already take, in its usual packing.
- A copy of your travel documents, kept separate from the originals.
Leave strong perfume at home. Once you are in ihram, perfume is one of the things you avoid. Where the details differ between schools, ask the scholar with your group.
Agree who you will ask
Crowds, a missed step, and a woman’s monthly cycle all come up on a first Umrah. Decide now, while you are calm, that you will ask the scholar traveling with your group. Do not settle a ruling from a short video on the plane.
Source: Practical arrangements change. Check the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah, Nusuk, and the official Saudi visa site for current entry rules.
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