Hajj
5G, air taxis and treadmills: How Saudi Arabia is turning pilgrimage into modern mass tourism
The Kaaba in Mecca is part of the Hajj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia
© Citizen59/ / Picture Alliance
The pilgrimage to Mecca, the Hajj, is one of the most important pillars of Islam. And it attracts millions of visitors to Saudi Arabia. The sheikhs are developing the sacred duty of mass tourism. And they are relying on the latest technology to do so.
Scorching heat, an ultra-conservative society and strict laws: Saudi Arabia is not exactly a tourist magnet. But because of the location of the holy sites of Islam, it still attracts millions of visitors every year who want to cleanse themselves of their sins as part of the holy pilgrimage, the Hajj. The number is expected to increase further.
The conditions are actually anything but good. The so-called Great Hajj is an extreme situation for the country. In just a few weeks of the year, millions of people make a pilgrimage to the country at once. To all visit the same places. If the pilgrimage month falls in the summer – because of the Islamic calendar, it shifts every year – the challenge posed by the heat is particularly great. The worst is currently happening: with temperatures of over 50 degrees Celsius, more than 500 people have died in the last few weeks as a result of the heat.
Pilgrimage with modern technology
The biggest challenge is the sheer volume of people. According to the Saudi government, 1.8 million people made the pilgrimage to Mecca this year, 1.6 million of them came from abroad. The visitors need accommodation, water, food, access to information – but only for a few days. A logistical nightmare.
The country has therefore been focusing on modernization for years in order to be able to cope with the onslaught of believers and to ensure that everything runs as smoothly as possible. Registration for the holy sites now takes place via an app, and to ensure that there is always reception, the 5G network has been specially expanded at over 300 locations. Artificial intelligence analyzes the movements of the masses and provides suggestions for improvements. In mosques, robots help with orientation and distribute copies of the Koran, reports “Arabian Gulf Business Inside”.
In order to mitigate the effects of the heat and the strain on older pilgrims on the ordeal of the last prophet Mohammad, the footpaths are made easier. Instead of walking through the heat of the desert, pilgrims walk through a long tunnel system, and conveyor belts like those at the airport ensure a comfortable flow of the crowds, but also more reliable for planning purposes. The outdoor areas are also partially covered. This year, air taxis were used for the first time to bring paying pilgrims to the holy cities.
Luxury worlds
Trillion-dollar Neom project: Saudi Arabia wants to usher in a “new future” with these buildings
Crowds as the greatest danger
The modernization also ensures better planning. The often four-figure fees are collected digitally, and everything is automated upon entry. The AI findings are primarily intended to control the movement of the crowds in order to prevent too large a rush to pilgrimage destinations at the same time, together with a registration system.
In the past, these situations were the deadliest. In 1990, a panic in a pedestrian tunnel left almost 1,500 people dead. In September 2015, a panic situation also occurred near Mina, resulting in the deaths of 769 pilgrims, according to official figures. Other estimates put the number of deaths at as many as 4,500. In between, there were several other incidents with several hundred deaths.
Tourism instead of oil
One of the challenges is that the number of pilgrims has skyrocketed in recent decades. In 1950, just 100,000 believers made the journey from abroad, and in 1995, the number exceeded a million for the first time. The previous peak was reached in 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic: 1.85 million people traveled to the country for the Hajj, plus more than 600,000 local pilgrims.
If the Saudis have their way, the number will increase significantly. In its future plan for 2030, the government under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman expects up to six million pilgrims a year – more than double the previous record.
One of the reasons is likely to be the good business associated with the pilgrimage. In 2019 alone, Saudi Arabia reported that it earned more than $12 billion from the great hajj. The fees have risen significantly since then. “The kingdom is relying quite heavily on tourism to promote growth from areas other than the oil sector,” explains economist James Swanston. “Religious tourism plays a key role in this.”
Sources:Hajj Statistics, Hajj Ministry, Study by the University of Avignon, Jordan Times, Arabian Gulf Business Inside,