Mina, Makkah: the valley of the tent city

What Mina is

The Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah describes Mina as a small valley and the holy site closest to the Grand Mosque. Pilgrims stay there from the eighth of Dhul-Hijjah, and for the days after the Day of Sacrifice, known as the days of Tashreeq. The Jamarat, the three pillars where the stoning takes place, are in Mina. So is Masjid al-Khayf, where, according to Saudipedia, the Prophet gave a sermon during his final Hajj.

Saudipedia gives the area of Mina as about 16.8 square kilometres, and says the tent camps there were upgraded to 160,000 units that house around 2.6 million pilgrims. Pilgrims move between the Hajj sites on the Mashaer train and on foot. We give these numbers as published by Saudipedia, and they can change from one Hajj to the next.

Islamic history also records Mina as a place where earlier prophets are said to have prayed. We state this as tradition and leave rulings to scholars.

Where it is and how far from the Haram

Saudipedia puts Mina about 8.4 km from the Grand Mosque. It lies between Makkah and Muzdalifah, on the road east. Arafat is about 10 km further on.

What visitors see outside Hajj

For most of the year Mina is quiet. The tent camps stand empty in neat rows, and what stays with visitors is the scale: thousands of tents, wide roads, and the Jamarat complex in the distance. There is not much to do on foot, so a visit is mostly a drive through with a stop or two for photographs.

Visitors usually:

1. Drive through the valley to see the camps.
2. Stop at a safe point to take pictures of the tents and the hills around them.

Because the stop is short, Mina fits easily inside the two hour tour. Your driver tells you where he can park, and which parts are closed to vehicles.

Why a drive through is enough

Some visitors ask whether they should get out and walk through the tents. Outside Hajj the camps are closed, and the valley is large, so walking is not practical. A vehicle lets you see the camps, the roads and the Jamarat area from a safe point, and the driver can stop where it is allowed. If you already know Mina from a past Hajj, the drive is a quiet way to see it again without the crowds.

Practical notes

• Heat and shade. Outside the tents there is little shade. Take water, and go early.
• Distance. Mina is not a walk from central Makkah hotels for most visitors. A vehicle is the practical choice.
• Questions of practice. Anything about rites at Mina is for a scholar or your group leader. This page is not a ruling.

Masjid al-Khayf

Discover Makkah says Masjid al-Khayf stands in Mina at the foot of the south eastern slope of Mount al-Khayf, about 550 m south east of the first Jamarah. “Khayf” means the land between a mountain slope and the floodplain below. The mosque is also called Masjid al-Shajarah, after an acacia tree that once grew there.

The same source says the Prophet prayed there during the days of Mina in his Farewell Pilgrimage, in 10 AH, and gave a sermon. It also records a narration that seventy prophets prayed at the site, including Musa. Over time the mosque was rebuilt several times. In the 9th century AH, Sharif Barakat ibn Abu Numayy rebuilt it with walls, a dome and a minaret, and marked the spot where the Prophet prayed.

Discover Makkah says the mosque opens only on the Day of Tarwiyah, the Day of Eid al-Adha and the three days of Tashreeq. On other days it is not open for visits and is seen from outside, from the car. On our four hour full ziyarat it is a stop to see from outside.

The Jamarat

The Jamarat are the pillars where the stoning takes place during Hajj. Discover Makkah describes the Jamarat Bridge as a multi-level structure built for the rite, accessible to pilgrims during Hajj. Outside Hajj, visitors see it from the road and from the surrounding area. We do not say how the rite is done. For questions about it, ask your group leader or a scholar.

Masjid al-Bay’ah

Discover Makkah says Masjid al-Bay’ah stands in the pass of Thabir Ghina, about 450 m from the stone pillar of al-Aqabah towards Makkah. It is named after the pledge that the Ansar made to the Prophet in the thirteenth year of prophethood, when they promised support and invited him to migrate to Madinah.

The Abbasid caliph Abu Jafar al-Mansur built the mosque in 144 AH (761 CE), and it was restored in 625 AH (1227 CE), as inscriptions on its walls record. It covers about 375 square metres. After the expansion of the stone pillars area in 2007, the mosque became visible after being hidden in the pass for a long time. The Arabic page of Discover Makkah lists it as open at prayer times during the seasons and from 5 pm to 9 pm on other days. The English page says 24 hours, so the driver checks on the day. It is a stop on our four hour full ziyarat.

Which of our tours includes Mina

The Makkah ziyarat has two tiers on one page, the Makkah ziyarat taxi. The two hour ziyarat covers Jabal al-Nour, Jabal Thawr, Mina, Muzdalifah, Arafat and Masjid Namirah, mostly viewed from the road.

Fares are for the whole vehicle, in Saudi Riyal, with the return to your hotel included.

Time beyond the tour is charged at the hourly rate, from SAR 80 an hour, and the driver tells you before that starts. You pay the driver at the end, in cash in SAR or by bank transfer, with no deposit and no booking fee. See every place in the ziyarat hub and every fare on Routes and prices.

The four hour full ziyarat adds Jannat al-Mualla, Masjid al-Jinn, a stop at Masjid Namirah, Masjid al-Khayf (seen from outside except on the Hajj days) and the Jamarat at Mina, Masjid al-Mashar al-Haram, a stop at the Hira Cultural District, and optional Masjid Aisha for a second Umrah, with longer stops. Mina is in both tiers. Masjid al-Khayf, the Jamarat and Masjid al-Bay’ah are stops on the four hour full ziyarat.

Nearby: Jabal al-Nour, Jabal Thawr, Arafat and Muzdalifah.