More S'poreans performing Umrah pilgrimage this June

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More Muslim Singaporeans are performing the Umrah minor pilgrimage during the June school holidays this year.

Travel agents said there has been a 50 per cent increase in the number of pilgrims this year as compared to the same period in 2012.

It has become their choice destination for the mid-year school holidays even though the cost of Umrah packages has increased by about 10 to 15 per cent.

This is because there is a limited number of hotels in Saudi Arabia due to some major re-development works there.

More Singaporeans are opting for Umrah because there is no quota on the number of pilgrims unlike the Haj pilgrimage, where there is a quota set by the Saudi government.

Singapore has an official quota of 680 places for Haj every year, but the Saudi government was unable to grant additional places, because of massive construction work currently being carried out around Mecca.