Every year millions of Muslims from around the world make the annual pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims, to perform Hajj. A report in Arab News said more than 1.8 million Hajj pilgrims have arrived in Saudi Arabia amid final preparations for the most sacred week in the Islamic calendar.
Asia has the greatest number of pilgrims in Mecca for the Hajj, based on flight bookings made through global distribution systems (GDS) to airports around Mecca this year, according to a study by Travelport.
The report stated that advanced flight bookings to airports around the holy city of Mecca ahead of this year’s Hajj have increased from Asia, Europe and Oceania. However, bookings from North America are flat on last year and travel from South America and Africa is slightly down on 2018 numbers.
The large number of people from all over the world flying into western Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj makes it one of the largest annual spikes in global air traffic. To manage these numbers Saudi Arabia sets quotas for countries based on their Muslim population. Local governments and licensed private travel companies then begin allocating places for citizens.
(Image credit: Muhur/Getty Images)
As part of its study, Travelport analysed bookings made through all GDS to King Abdulaziz International Airport, Ta’if Regional Airport and Prince Mohammed Bin Abdulaziz International Airport from early July to August. It then ran comparable data for last year’s Hajj, so trends could be identified.
Here are the findings:
Asia
According to Travelport’s analysis, Asia recorded the greatest growth in flight bookings made through GDS to airports around Mecca this year in terms of volume, with bookings up by 11,284 (+5%). Overall, bookings made in the region represented 64% of the total globally.
By country, the greatest growth came from Bangladesh with bookings up by 13,906 (+171%). The South Asian country is one of five countries (Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan, Malaysia and Tunisia) benefiting from the Mecca Route initiative, a new service offering immigration pre-clearance for pilgrims at their points of embarkation.
The United Arab Emirates saw the second highest rise, up 3,981 (+17%); followed by Qatar, up 3,278 (+217%), a country where pilgrims can now register for their Hajj using dedicated ‘electronic gates’.
The largest number of flight bookings through GDS in Asia were in India (44,611).
“In recent years we have seen an increase in efforts to introduce policies and technologies that make the Hajj, which has often been compared to hosting an Olympics Games each year, a more convenient experience for the global Islamic community,” said Damian Hickey, Travelport’s global vice president and global head of Air Travel Partners.
“Our analysis suggests that these initiatives may well be having a tangible impact, which is encouraging from a technological standpoint.”
Europe
Europe has the second greatest growth in flight booking volume through GDS to Mecca, with bookings up by 1,966 (+6%) – representing 10% of total global bookings.
The biggest growth and volume of bookings were registered in the UK, up by 2,237 (+13%) to 19,798, though this represents a slowdown in the 47% growth seen in 2018. The second and third greatest increases in the region were recorded off low bases from Bosnia and Herzegovina, up 562 (+173%) and Sweden, up 310 (+168%).
Unlike Muslim-majority nations, countries with a minority Muslim population in the West are not subject to the same Hajj quota of 1,000 pilgrims per million of population.
The Americas
Advanced flight bookings from North America made through GDS were flat this year (bookings up by 221; +1%) – and this is 6% of total bookings globally.
The greatest surge was from Canada with bookings up by 1,362 (+39%). The largest number of bookings were once again made in the United States (15,854).
South America saw a drop in flight bookings this year with volume down 27%, albeit off a low base. The country with the most bookings was Brazil (52 bookings), with an estimated 200 Brazilians expected to travel to perform Hajj this year.
Africa
Flight bookings from Africa (20% of global bookings) were down by 17% this year, largely due to a decrease in the number of bookings made in Egypt (-17%). However, the North African country did still record the highest number of flight bookings through a GDS out of any country globally (49,477).
Morocco experienced the greatest growth in bookings in Africa, with volume up by 1,078 (+34%) following a letter from monarch King Mohammed VI urging the nation’s pilgrims to positively represent the country at Hajj this year.
Increases were also seen in Niger (bookings up 870; +110%), South Africa (bookings up 674; +33%) and Nigeria (bookings up 520; +21%).
Oceania
Bookings from the region were up 1,705 (+204%) this year – represening 1% of global bookings. The rise can be attributed to a jump in bookings from Australia, up 238% to 2,344, from 1,650 in the previous year, while at least 200 pilgrims have been invited to participate in Hajj from New Zealand.
• Featured image credit: AlexLMX/Getty Images
