Rajab or Sha'ban instead of Ramadan: what you gain, what you lose

Wiki Tours International (Bab Makka) is a licensed travel agency in Casablanca (licence no. ODV-25012) that runs Umrah trips from Mohammed V airport. Families set on Ramadan often ask us whether it is worth leaving just before it, in Rajab or Sha'ban. Here is what you gain and what you lose, month by month; prices and dates show up to date in the departure cards further down.

• The order of the months: Rajab comes before Sha'ban, the eighth month of the Hijri calendar, which comes immediately before Ramadan, the ninth month and the month of obligatory fasting.
• The merit: a hadith reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim, in close wordings, teaches that an Umrah performed in Ramadan equals a Hajj in reward.
• The crowds: Ramadan is the most sought-after period of the year in Makkah.
• Tarawih: they are prayed in congregation every night of Ramadan after the Isha prayer, and Laylat al-Qadr is sought in its last ten nights.
• Payment: no online payment; the contract is signed and the deposit paid at the agency, with an official receipt.

Why do families set on Ramadan look at Rajab or Sha'ban?

They usually give us four reasons:

1. The crowds. In Ramadan the crowds at Masjid al-Haram are very large: every night, pilgrims arrive well before Isha to find a place for tarawih, inside the mosque or on its plazas.
2. The cost. Departures in Ramadan, Sha'ban and Rajab are not priced the same; each period's prices appear below.
3. School and work. Ramadan does not always fall in the school holidays, whether the mid-term breaks or the mid-year break, and staying the whole month takes a long leave.
4. An elderly parent. Fasting, nights of prayer and walking through crowds can tire an older person.

On the other side, Ramadan keeps what no other month offers: the reward attached to its Umrah, tarawih at the Haram, the last ten nights and Laylat al-Qadr.

Here are the current prices of the Ramadan stays:

Those of the Sha'ban-Ramadan departures:

And those of the December departures, which fall in Rajab this season:

What changes in Makkah from one month to the next?

In Rajab, Ramadan is still two months away. What our groups find is tawaf and sa'i performed away from the pressure of Ramadan nights, with time left for visits in Makkah and Madinah.

Sha'ban comes immediately before Ramadan: leaving at the end of the month means living the passage from one month to the next in the Holy Cities, before the crowds of the last ten nights. Bab Makka's Sha'ban-Ramadan programmes are built on that passage: they start in Sha'ban and end in the first days of Ramadan. Depending on the order of the cities in the programme and on the sighting of the crescent, the group begins the month in Makkah or in Madinah: check that order on the departure's page. To spend the first night in Makkah, arriving before it is not enough: the group must still be there that evening. How to work out the evening the month can begin is covered in arriving in Makkah before the first night of Ramadan.

Ramadan changes the rhythm of the whole day: suhoor before dawn, the fast, iftar, then tarawih after Isha. Its last ten nights concentrate the search for Laylat al-Qadr, and Masjid al-Haram then sees its largest crowds of the year.

Does the merit of Umrah change with the month?

Ramadan has its authentic hadith, which teaches that an Umrah performed in Ramadan equals a Hajj in reward; what it means, and what it does not, is set out in Ramadan Umrah, question by question.

For Rajab and Sha'ban, this comparison attaches no special merit to an Umrah because of the month: that question belongs to a trusted scholar, not to a travel agency. As simple markers, al-Bukhari and Muslim report from Abu Bakra that Rajab is one of the sacred months, and from Aisha that the Prophet ﷺ fasted a great deal in Sha'ban. These texts are about the sacredness of the month and about fasting, not about Umrah. Between Rajab and Sha'ban, the choice therefore remains a matter of organisation and family; against Ramadan, the table below helps you decide.

Who is Rajab for, who is Sha'ban for, and who should wait for Ramadan?

| Criterion | Rajab | Sha'ban (and Sha'ban-Ramadan departures) | Ramadan |
|---|---|---|---|
| What you live in the Holy Cities | The rites and the visits, outside the month of fasting | The passage into Ramadan, before the crowds of the last ten nights | The fast, tarawih, the last ten nights |
| Elderly parent | No obligatory fasting | No obligatory fasting in Sha'ban; the first days of the fast during the stay, on Sha'ban-Ramadan departures | Fasting and nights of prayer: a hotel close to the Haram |
| Tarawih and the last ten nights | No | The first nights only, on Sha'ban-Ramadan departures | Yes |

Whatever the month, consult an elderly parent's doctor before choosing. With children at school, compare the Rajab and Sha'ban countdowns above, and the departure dates below, with the mid-term and mid-year school breaks; Umrah during the school holidays covers that question in detail. To compare every season of the year, the guide chapter which period to choose for your Umrah takes them one by one; for the length of stay, compare an 8-day or a 15-day Umrah.

Where are the Rajab and Sha'ban departures?

Here are the Sha'ban-Ramadan departures open today, with their dates, hotels and up-to-date prices:

Rajab starts on the date the countdown at the top of the page shows; this season, its departures are the December ones:

To leave earlier still, before Rajab, here are the November departures:

How do you switch from a Ramadan plan to a Sha'ban departure?

1. Compare the programme before the price: each departure's page gives its length and, when the programme specifies them, its hotels and its nights in Makkah and Madinah.
2. Before signing, ask whether the date can be changed, and read the cancellation terms written in the contract you will sign at the agency.
3. Book once the departure is chosen: the booking is confirmed by that contract and by a deposit, under the following rule.

When to book each period is covered in when to book your Umrah, month by month.

Frequently asked questions

Does an Umrah in Rajab carry a special merit?

Not according to the hadith reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim on the reward of an Umrah by month: it concerns Ramadan. Rajab is one of the sacred months, according to another hadith in the same collections, but that text is about the month, not about Umrah. For a ruling, ask a scholar you trust.

Is Sha'ban already as crowded as Ramadan?

Not the crowds of the last ten nights: it is in those nights of Ramadan that Masjid al-Haram sees its largest crowds of the year, and both Sha'ban and the return of the Sha'ban-Ramadan departures come before them. Ramadan as a whole remains the most sought-after period of the year in Makkah.

Can I change the date after signing the contract?

It depends on your contract, which governs once signed: that is why the question belongs before you sign and pay the deposit. If you are still torn between Ramadan, Sha'ban and Rajab, decide before signing.

Which month suits a family's first Umrah?

It depends on everyone's age and on the holidays available. Outside Ramadan, the rites are performed without obligatory fasting, which makes the trip easier for a family with young children or an elderly parent. If tarawih at the Haram is your wish, the stay must include at least the first nights of Ramadan.

Can I pray tarawih if I travel in Sha'ban?

Tarawih are prayed in congregation every night of Ramadan after Isha, so a stay that ends in Sha'ban includes none. The Sha'ban-Ramadan departures, which run into the first days of Ramadan, include its first nights, and how many depends on the announcement of the crescent.

Does the length of stay change with the month?

Each departure sets its own length, and its card shows it in days and nights. Its page gives the split of nights between Makkah and Madinah when the programme specifies it, and that split is what to compare from one departure to the next. The Sha'ban-Ramadan departures, for their part, end at the start of Ramadan.

Write to Bab Makka

Torn between Ramadan, Sha'ban and Rajab? Write to us on WhatsApp with the button on this page: we compare the open departures with you according to everyone's age, your leave and your budget. Before writing, you can also browse the page of the Sha'ban-Ramadan departures and the Ramadan Umrah page.