T R AV E L T R E N D S
EXPLORE KSA
HISTORIC KSA
Caravans to Makkah For centuries Hajj pilgrims arrived through one of these three main caravans.
Anatolia
Syria North Africa
Levant
By Mohammed Mirza
Egypt
The pilgrims in the main caravan came from Anatolia, Central Asia and the Levant. They gathered in Damascus from where they’d set off for pilgrimage, a journey that took them roughly 30 to 35 days. Pilgrims coming from North Africa gathered in Egypt for the second caravan that took a coastal route to the Holy Cities; the journey took about 35 to 40 days.
86 DESTINATION RIYADH OCTOBER 2016
Pilgrims coming from Persia and Khorasan would gather in Baghdad and form the third major caravan. They would crisscross the deserts of the peninsula to reach the Holy Cities. Pilgrims coming from East Asian countries would normally choose the sea route. They would arrive at the ports of Jeddah or Yanbu from where they continued their journey towards Makkah.
Khorasan
Iraq Persia