Did You Know Jeddah International Airport Has A Special Terminal For Hajj Pilgrims?

Named after the founder of Saudi Arabia, King Abdulaziz Al Saud, King Abdulaziz International Airport (JED) opened in 1981. Serving the city of Jeddah, the airport is the third largest and busiest in Saudi Arabia and the central hub for national flag carrier Saudia.

Occupying an area of 41 square miles, Al Saud, King Abdulaziz International Airport (JED) has three passenger terminals. One of which was designed to accommodate millions of international travelers making the sacred pilgrimage to Mecca.

The Hajj Terminal looks like Bedouin tents

The Hajj Terminal looks like a massive bundle of intertwined Bedouin tents; the Hajj Terminal is the most extensive fabric-roofed structure in the world. Culturally symbolic and spiritually welcoming, the terminal serves as an arrival and departure point for more than a million pilgrims visiting Mecca annually.

Able to handle 80,000 people simultaneously, the Hajj Terminal was designed by Fazlur Rahman Khan, a Bangladeshi-American engineer who worked for Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. The naturally vented terminal also contains a separate support complex where pilgrims can prepare food, sleep, and ready themselves for the 60-mile journey to Mecca.

While most of the Hajj Terminal is open air, the passport control customs and baggage handling are located in an air-conditioned building. Two years after the airport opened, the Hajj Terminal won the Aga Khan Award for Architecture for its innovative and striking way of being able to handle so many people at the same time.

What is Hajj?

The Hajj pilgrimage is a mandatory once-in-a-lifetime trip all Muslims must make to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. The only exceptions are disabilities and the lack of financial means to pay for the trip.The Hajj is one of the five pillars of wisdom or the foundation that makes up the Muslim faith, along with Shahada, Salah, Zakat, and Sawm. All Muslims are obliged to fulfill the five pillars of Islam during their lifetime.

Hajj: Mecca, Saudi Arabia, is the holiest city for all Muslims, and it is a mandatory requirement that all Muslim adults must visit to show their submission to Allah and solidarity with fellow Muslims.

Looking to cleanse their souls of all worldly sins and to prepare for an onward journey after death, the rites of the pilgrimage are performed over five or six days. The pilgrimage begins on the 8th day of Dhu al-Hijja and finishes on the 12th or 13th day of Dhu al-Hijja.

The pilgrimage takes place based on the Islamic calendar, and for 2024, the Hajj will take place from Friday, June 14th until Wednesday, June 19th.

The day-by-day rituals

Day one: Pilgrims dressed in plain, loose-fitting garments walk around the Kaaba (house of Allah) seven times in an anti-clockwise direction.

Day two: Called the “Day of Arafat,” pilgrims spend the day praying on Mount Mercy, the place where it is thought the Prophet Muhammad delivered his last sermon. After sunset, pilgrims travel seven miles to Muzdalifah to gather 49 pebbles and sleep outside under the stars.

Day three: After arriving back in Mina before dawn, the pilgrims throw seven pebbles at the largest of three columns, Jamarat al-Aqaba. Muslims believe that this is the place where the devil appeared, and Abraham threw stones at him to scare him away. On Dat three, Muslims are also supposed to sacrifice an animal and distribute the meat to the needy.

Days four and five: Pilgrims continue throwing stones, but this time at all three pillars.

Day six: On day six, men shave their heads or trim their beards while the woman cut their hair shorter by a fingertip.