Related Post
Umrah is a spiritual journey that souls long for, and combining it with a land trip increases the enjoyment, as it will put the traveler experiencing the diversity of landscapes since his travel from the Qatari capital. Dohauntil he arrives at Mecca To spend Umrah.
But there are requirements that must be met before making the decision to travel by land to Mecca, the most important of which is to be with a company, not travel alone on this long road that reaches more than 3,000 kilometers roundtrip, and to determine the appropriate time to travel, especially if it is far from The summer months are harsh in terms of temperatures, and avoid the long days of the beginning of the holidays as they witness some crowding at the border crossings.
Also, before traveling, you will have booked your hotel in Mecca, taking into account that this hotel provides a valet service, so that you do not need to search for a location where you can park your car far from your location of residence, and there are many hotels that provide this service without adding any fees. On reservation.
The trip begins with many necessary preparations, the most important of which is maintaining the car and ensuring its efficiency during travel, and that its license continues after returning from Umrah, paying any traffic violations on the car, and obtaining an entry visa to Saudi Arabia, with the importance that the car is the traveler’s possession or he has approval from The owner will travel by it.
Start the journey
It is best to start the trip between 8 and 10 am, then depart from Doha towards Salwa Street until reaching the Qatari Abu Samra crossing, which you will reach after an hour of departure, and exit procedures from the crossing will not take more than 5 minutes, after which you head to the Saudi Salwa crossing. 3 kilometers from the national crossing.
You pass through the Saudi crossing through 3 gates, while you are in your car without getting out of it. The first gate is where the papers and the number of individuals are verified, then you go to the passport gate to obtain the entry stamp, and at the last gate you pay the car insurance during its stay in Saudi Arabia, amounting to approximately 120 riyals ( $33) per week.
If you are entering Saudi territory for the first time in your life, the crossing procedures will require additional time, because there is an additional stage with the Saudi border authorities, which is taking face and fingerprints, which is the first stage before the three gate stages mentioned previously.
If you had left your home at nine in the morning, you would have entered Saudi territory at approximately 11 in the morning. There is a service complex 3 kilometers from the crossing from which you can buy a phone line or use the international package for Qatari phone lines, and buy some travel supplies such as cold water. Some pastries, a little rest, refueling the car, and then moving towards Riyadh.
Divide the road
From this point your long journey begins, but you must divide it into stages so as not to become exhausted. In the beginning, the goal is to reach the borders of Riyadh with two rest breaks before reaching that point, which is 450 kilometers away. There are many rest stops at gas stations that have restaurants, cafes, and other things. Services. The advice is to stop every 200 kilometers to refuel and rest, even if only for a quarter of an hour, during which you walk on your feet for 10 minutes until you get rid of the effects of prolonged sitting and driving.
It is necessary to use a GPS satellite positioning system so that you do not lose your way. After exiting the Salwa crossing, make your destination RiyadhBefore arriving in Riyadh, change your destination to the city of Al-Quwayqa’ah, which is 130 kilometers from the Saudi capital. In Al-Quwayqa’ah, you can rent an apartment or a room depending on the number of people traveling and sleep in it until the morning, as it is expected to arrive in Al-Quwayqa’ah at nine in the evening.
When you arrive in Al-Quwayqa’ah, you will have traveled approximately half the distance to Mecca. Al-Quwayqa’ah is a quiet city with many options. The apartment rent per day reaches 250 riyals ($70), and the room rent is approximately half the price of the apartment. There are also restaurants and shops in the city. Commercial and many other necessary services. It is a preferred choice for rest, because staying overnight in Riyadh will make you face severe crowding in the morning to get out of the capital and continue the travel route to Mecca, while Al-Quwaiqa’a is directly on the Mecca road and without traffic.
At six in the morning the next day, you must continue on the road towards Taif, which is approximately 600 kilometers away and all on one road. You do not need a transportation location until you reach the outskirts of the wonderful city of Taif, and the distance takes approximately 6 hours, with easy breaks to refuel or Eat.
Beautiful nature
During the walk from Al-Quwaiqa’a to Taif, you will be enchanted by the picturesque nature of the areas that you will pass through, between the barren desert, green valleys, and mountains extending along the road. Be careful of any sand storm that may occur during the walk, and when any storm occurs, you must get off the road and wait inside the car without Get out until the atmosphere calms down.
Upon arrival in the city of Taif, you must change your travel destination to the “Miqat Al-Sail Al-Kabir Mosque”, which is a main destination in the city that you will not lose your way to. There you can buy the Ihram and all other supplies, then enter the mosque and perform the Ihram rituals, then rest a little before continuing travel. To Mecca.
The distance from Taif to Mecca does not exceed 80 kilometers, but caution must be taken, as this road is steep and you must travel at a reasonable speed not exceeding 90 kilometers per hour until you reach your destination at the hotel and park your car, and you will not use it until you travel to Medina. This is to avoid crowding in Mecca and your lack of knowledge of the roads within the Holy City.
In the second episode, we will review the route from Mecca to… AL Madinah AL Munawwarah Then return again to Doha.
