Makkah hotel shuttle buses: how they work and when a taxi is better

How do Makkah hotel shuttles work?

A Makkah hotel shuttle is a bus or van that a hotel runs between its door and a drop-off point near Al-Masjid al-Haram. Many hotels in Kudai, about 2 km south of the Haram, and in Aziziyah, several kilometres east toward Mina, offer one, because their guests are too far out to walk easily. Some are free for guests; others charge.

The shuttle does not stop at a Haram gate. Like every vehicle, it uses a designated drop-off point, and you walk the rest. Each hotel sets its own schedule, which changes around prayer times and in peak season, so your hotel is the only reliable source. Our Makkah hotel areas guide explains where each area sits.

Questions to ask your hotel

Ask before you book the room if the shuttle matters to your plans, and ask again at check-in, since schedules change.

• Is there a shuttle to the Haram, and is it free or paid?
• Where exactly does it drop off and pick up near the Haram?
• How often does it run, and does it run through the night?
• How does the schedule change around prayer times, on Fridays and in Ramadan?
• Is there room for a folded wheelchair or a pushchair?
• Does the hotel offer airport transfers, and at what price?
• What changes in the Hajj season?

Shuttle or taxi: how do they compare?

Our hotel shuttle and taxi comparison covers the same ground in short form.

When does the shuttle work well?

• You are fit, travel light and are happy to fit around a schedule.
• You go to the Haram at quieter times, outside the main prayers.
• You are on a longer stay, when daily taxi fares add up.
• The hotel's drop-off point is close to the gate you use.

When is a taxi better?

• Elderly or less mobile family members, who find queues and the walk from the shuttle stop hard.
• The busiest prayers, Fridays and Ramadan nights, when shuttles fill early.
• Tahajjud and Fajr, if your hotel's shuttle does not run at night.
• A family or group who want to travel together at a set time.
• Check-in and check-out with luggage, and moves between hotels.
• Trips the shuttle does not make, such as Masjid Aisha, about 7 km from the Haram, from SAR 60 per car.

Prayer times, Fridays and peak season

Shuttles are at their busiest just before the main prayers, and queues build at the pickup point afterwards as everyone heads back at once. On Fridays the crowds for Jumu'ah are much larger, and roads near the Haram can close well before the prayer, so shuttles may stop further out or change times.

In Ramadan, and especially the last ten nights, demand peaks after Iftar and for Taraweeh. In the Hajj season, Aziziyah is busy with Hajj groups and different rules apply to vehicles in Makkah. Ask your hotel how the shuttle runs in each period, and read our Friday prayer guide for Jumu'ah timing.

Finding your way back to the shuttle

• Note the pickup point and a landmark next to it, and take a photo.
• Note the gate number you leave by; the Haram's gates are numbered.
• Save your hotel's name in Arabic and its location pin on your phone.
• Agree a meeting point with your group in case you are separated.
• If the queue is long, a short taxi back from an open road is an option.

Short taxi fares from Kudai and Aziziyah

Fares are per car, fixed before the ride. Each hotel also has its own transfer page with fares by vehicle, for example Le Méridien Towers Makkah in Kudai.