Hajj Series: What to Pack for Hajj

Now there are a ton of lists and YouTube videos out there on what to pack for your trip and what to take with you so I won’t go into too much detail but certainly leave a comment or DM me on Instagram to ask me if you need any help or further suggestions.  

I will share a few things that I found really, really useful:

• Command Hooks
  • These are really handy for Mina since there isn’t anywhere to put your things. They are also great if you will be moving into an apartment building as they may not have enough hooks. I used this right above my bed to hang my bag as well as my clothing/PJs.

• • Carabiners
    • These were so useful for so many things. We kept them on our water bottles if we didn’t feel like carrying them. If a bag strap broke, it was an easy thing to use to hold it together, etc.

• • Swimming shoes
    • We used these only IN the haram while doing tawaaf. Once we got to the gates, we would pop on our other shoes into our bags and switch into these. Now when in ihram, men cannot use them but once out of ihram, they made it much easier as the floor can get pretty hard to walk on and it also keeps your feet clean!
    • A small note on shoes – I found that waterproof Birkenstock was the best during this trip.

• • Spray water bottle
    • You will find many spray fans and/or bottles with a spray and fan but these are bulky and require a battery for the fan. This is a 2-in-1 and trust me, you want to carry less! I got mine from mountain warehouse and it was a lifesaver!

• • Phone fan
    • I cannot tell you how ideal this little fan was! The fact that it could fit into my pocket and didn’t need any batteries was such a blessing. It is plugged into your phone and doesn’t use much of your battery.

• • Rubber gloves
    • I will go into this a bit further on my next post where I explain what to know for the days of Hajj but this is something I am so happy I took. With millions of people performing their hajj and a few thousand people sharing a few bathrooms in Mina, this made the bathroom experience just a TAD easier. It may seem like a lot but it’s better to have more than less – take my word for it.

• • Unscented laundry detergent and a carousel drying rack
    • Our group also offered a laundry service so we had our clothing washed at least every 2-3 days and this made it easy to pack less for regular clothing but they did not take anything that wasn’t actual clothing. This meant that all underwear had to be hand-washed on our own. This wasn’t difficult but it’s good to know to pack a cheap carousel drying rack like the one linked so it can be hung anywhere along with a small travel-size package of detergent – you don’t need more than a sandwich bag full. I also used some rubber gloves to wash in order to protect my skin.

• • Instant cup-noodles + a versatile hot sauce (this one is my favourite and it’s local too!)
    • One thing to know is that you get a lot of food – way more than you can eat. The food is delivered throughout the day by the staff during the days of Hajj to wherever you are – Mina or Arafat. Firstly, this is scheduled and there is a chance you will be hungry at another time. Second, in all honesty, there may be a chance you don’t like something they serve and both these items were saviors. There is boiling water available in the Mina tent area and if you take a small bottle of a hot sauce you really like then if you don’t like the taste of something, you can easily add this and make the food a bit more flavourful or at a spice-level to your liking! A small added thing to this would be a travel cutlery set for things like noodles or cereal or when there may not be enough given out with food – which can happen.

• Unscented products
  • This will be on many lists but I found it really handy to get unscented deodorant, along with a few wet wipes kept in a Ziploc in my bag. I also really love the Umrah and Hajj travel kit by Olive Tree Soap company!

• Travel and cooling towel
  • Lastly, take a fast-drying travel towel for the days in Mina in case you decide to shower there. Some people do and some people don’t. I had a good opportunity to do so and took it (yes, it sounds gross but you will learn why on my days of Hajj post!). It dries easily and it is small enough to pack away and short enough to not touch the ground by accident. It was also handy to have in the apartment as they did not provide a towel there.

• A cooling towel is the best thing to have there. We had long walks from our tent to the Jamarat and having this made a big difference, esp. for men who have their necks and heads exposed. Someone in our group filled it with ice and this way it stayed cold for the entire time!

• Umbrella hat
  • Now, this is one of those things you would never be seen in public wearing but when you’re walking in that hot desert sun amongst a few million people, being hands-free is golden. We picked ours up from street vendors for about $5 (the best $5 we spent!). You will come across vendors selling lots of things in both Madina and Makkah both in markets and on the street.

For a full list of things you may need, do a quick search on YouTube or check out this list.