Saudi Arabia expects 25 percent rise in Umrah pilgrims

The electronic Umrah system, which has been approved as of this season, will organize the sector and get rid of brokers, Saudi authorities have said.

It will also save between 10 and 15 percent of the cost of hotel accommodation for those performing Umrah, according to the chair of the national committee for Hajj and Umrah for Umrah Affairs, Abdullah Omar Qadhi.

The committee met on Wednesday at the Makkah Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the presence of representatives of Umrah service companies and Sajjil, the company responsible for running the electronic system.

The company also explained the method of registration in the system and how those performing Umrah could book hotel rooms.

Qadhi said he expects a 25 percent increase in the number of Umrah performers this year against 6 million last year. He said owners of Umrah companies and hotels in Makkah and Madinah would benefit from the new system. All hotels will come under the new system with the objective of facilitating hotel bookings by Umrah companies.

The relationship between Saudi Umrah companies and hotels will move to electronic formats as bookings that used to take 24 hours can now be carried out in a few seconds.