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Overland Umrah journeys from Türkiye to Saudi Arabia are picking up again as the reopening of transit routes through Syria allows pilgrims to travel through Jordan and reach the holy cities of Medina and Mecca by road.
The Türkiye-Syria-Jordan-Saudi Arabia route had been closed to transit traffic and organized Umrah tours since 2011, following the outbreak of the Syrian civil war. Travel resumed after the fall of the Bashar Assad regime and the reopening of roads under Syria's new administration.
According to Anadolu Agency correspondents, the number of pilgrims making the journey individually or in organized groups has risen significantly in recent months.
Umrah, an Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca that can be performed outside the annual Hajj season, now offers travelers from Türkiye an opportunity to visit historical landmarks along the overland route.
Ozlem Eginkaya, who joined a group traveling from Istanbul, said the pilgrims passed through Damascus and Amman before visiting sites associated with the historic Hejaz Railway in Jordan.
"Our journey began in Istanbul. From Istanbul, we traveled to Damascus, then Amman and the Hejaz Railway in Wadi Rum," Eginkaya said.
She added that the group followed a route traveled by earlier generations, reaching Medina before continuing to Mecca.
Group guide Ahmet Yasir Feten said the travelers visited historical sites in Damascus before crossing into Jordan, where they stopped at a Turkish military cemetery in Salt and explored traces of the Hejaz Railway in Aqaba and Wadi Rum.
After entering Saudi Arabia, the group continued through Mada'in Salih, AlUla, Tabuk and Khaybar before arriving in Medina and eventually Mecca.
"It took us nine days to travel from Istanbul to Mecca," Feten said.
The reopening has brought back a land connection that remained inaccessible to Umrah travelers for years, allowing pilgrims to combine their religious journey with visits to historical sites across Syria, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
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