By Aaliya Fatima

Umrah is a voluntary pilgrimage that promises a soul-lifting spiritual retreat. As Muslims, we all dream of being asked by the Almighty to experience the spirituality of Makkah and Madinah. There is no denying that Umrah can be both an exciting and overwhelming experience. Hence, we present some tips and advice for first-time Umrah pilgrimsin this articleto ensure they have a memorable pilgrimage.

Before getting into the specifics of Umrah, it is important to make all logistical arrangements for the journey. Therefore, you should explore different Umrah 2025 packages and choose the one that best suits your budget, schedule, and personal preferences for the trip.

Preparations Before Umrah 

Let’s start with the preparations you must make before the pilgrimage. We will try to talk about the essential things that will enable you to have a smoother Umrah journey. It will also ensure that you meet your goals of getting closer to the Creator during this sacred tour. 

1) Purify Your Intentions

Start with purifying your heart and intentions. This is the core of your pilgrimage. Any good deed or act of worship done with pure intentions is beloved to Allah and has immense rewards. So, before you embark on the spiritual retreat, make sure you have pure intentions and your only goal must be to get closer to the Almighty and gain His blessings and forgiveness during this journey. 

2) Get Ready Spiritually

Once you have purified your intentions, you can focus on spiritually preparing yourself for this faith-reviving journey. You can start by seeking the forgiveness of Allah, increasing your daily dhikr, increasing your prayers, and reciting and understanding as much Quran as possible. These steps will prepare you for an exceptional spiritual experience that can change your life for good and bring you closer to Him. 

3) Focus on Your Health and Fitness

As you might already know, Umrah is an act of worship that requires plenty of physical exertion. You will not want poor health to affect your pilgrimage. Can you imagine being sick while at the Kaabah when you should instead indulge in acts of Ibadah? No one would want this. Therefore, you must start eating healthier and exercising to ensure your health is in its prime before you embark on the pilgrimage. You must also be regular with your prescribed medications and get the required ones before traveling to Saudi Arabia. 

4) Learn the Specific Acts of Umrah

Another crucial step of your pre-pilgrimage journey is learning about the rituals of Umrah. As this will be your first time performing an Umrah, you must understand and know all the steps and their details properly. Learning about Umrah’s significance, history, and rewards motivates you to perform it perfectly and put in all your efforts to make it the most rewarding journey for yourself. The Prophet ﷺ described the reward for Umrah as follows:

“(The performance of) Umrah is an expiation for the sins committed (between it and the previous one). And the reward for an accepted Hajj is nothing except Paradise.” (Bukhari 1,773)

He further declared: 

“Perform Hajj and Umrah consecutively, for they remove poverty and sins as the bellows removes impurity from iron.” (Nasai 2,630 – Hasan)

How to Perform Umrah

Let us now move to the actual steps involved in the performance of Umrah to help you during your pilgrimage.

1) Observe Ihram

Before you arrive at the Kaabah to perform the Umrah, you must observe Ihram. It is a state that requires you to make your intention pure and get clean physically. After you have thoroughly showered and cleaned yourself, men must be clad in two pieces of white unstitched clothes while women can wear regular clothes that cover them properly. Ihram has many rules and restrictions, so make sure you completely understand them and do not violate them during your pilgrimage. 

2) Perform Tawaf around the Kaabah

After you have entered the state of Ihram, the next step is to perform tawaf around the Kaabah. Whenever we think about Hajj or Umrah, this is the first ritual that comes to our mind. This is the reason that mostly Muslims know about it already. While performing tawaf, you must encircle the Kaabah seven times, reciting whatever supplications you want during this time. 

3) Perform Sa’i

The next ritual of Umrah is performing Sa’i, which involves walking seven times between the sacred hills of Safa and Marwa. Allah has declared these hills as His symbols in the Quran (Al-Baqarah 2:158), which adds to their spirituality and significance. This ritual is a beautiful tribute to the motherly love of Hajar (AS) who wandered between these two hills while searching for water for her infant son, Ismail (AS). It also symbolizes the daily struggles of believers and teaches us to put our faith in the Almighty in all our matters.

4) Halq/Taqsir

This is the last ritual of Umrah that will enable you to complete your pilgrimage and relieve you from the restrictions of Ihram. Halq/Taqsir is shaving or trimming of hair. Men can shave their head or cut their hair to equal lengths. Women should also shorten their hair though they may do so by the length of a fingertip. 

Practical Tips and Advice for Umrah

Let us now discuss some practical tips and advice for first-time Umrah pilgrims to make your journey more memorable. 

  1. There are extensive crowds at the pilgrimage sites, which can sometimes be overwhelming. So, make sure that you remain patient and be kind to your brothers and sisters who have gathered at the sacred sites with the same goal to please the Almighty. 
  2. If you want a quieter time at the pilgrimage sites, avoid the peak times to perform Umrah. You can perform your pilgrimage early in the morning or late at night to prevent pilgrim peak hours. 
  3. Stay hydrated at all times, especially when travelling during the summer months. You can drink as much Zamzam as you want, so carry a reusable bottle to fill it with the blessed water. 
  4. Stay connected to your travel group or family to avoid any inconvenience. 
  5. Make a prior list of all the supplications that you want to make during this faith-reviving journey. 

Lastly, make sure to utilize this golden opportunity to visit the holiest sites in Islam, contemplate the best ways to make this journey fruitful, and return as a changed person closer to the Almighty, InshaAllah.