Significant changes to the Hajj travel trade have altered the role of South African agents, with many now operating as local representatives rather than packaging and managing pilgrim journeys directly.
At the end of last year, the Saudi Ministry for Hajj and Umrah replaced its previous booking system for accredited Hajj and Umrah agents with a consumer-focused OTA, Nusuk Hajj, for the South African market.
The Ministry subsequently announced that 12 Saudi-based travel operators and suppliers would be licensed to offer packages via the platform. South African operators would, therefore, instead act as local representatives marketing and facilitating the sale of these packages.
While this change removed the previous accreditation requirement for agencies to support a minimum of 500 pilgrims to be accredited, it has also meant that local agents are no longer able to structure or customise packages themselves.
Sedick Steenkamp, Director of Al Safir Tourism and Chairman of the South African Muslim Travel Operators Association, explained that local agents had had to approach the 12 Saudi Hajj companies to seek representative agreements.
“We now represent and market whatever packages these operators put forward to the South African market but we cannot take responsibility for the bookings made. Nevertheless, we will continue to act as guides for South African pilgrims in any way we can.”
Prices and personalisation
The prices of Hajj packages, which were now determined by the Saudi-based operators offering them in Saudi Riyals, would be more expensive for South African pilgrims, who were used to a certain price point and level of service, explained Steenkamp.
He added that current itineraries ranged from five to 20 days, whereas some South African pilgrims would opt for stays of up to 40 days in the past.
Steenkamp also raised concerns about product familiarity.
“The hotels being offered are unknown. They are not the four- or five-star hotels that we usually offer and they are far more expensive than what we are used to. The other challenge is that there is no guarantee that our on-the ground operators will get a visa to accompany people,” said Steenkamp.
“So, ultimately, we haven't experienced these itineraries yet. We still have a lot to learn about the companies we are representing, how they are going to fare and how they are going to do things. For now, we can only hope and wish all our pilgrims the very best for this coming Hajj season.”
First pay, first served
Steenkamp said the industry was further impacted when South Africa’s Hajj quota was reduced to only 1 140 people, down from 2 500 pilgrims last year, and introduced a phased Hajj sales system.
On February 1, phase one of Hajj pilgrim sales opened at 13h00 and the 1 140 places were sold in less than two hours, said Steenkamp.
The trade and its pilgrims are currently waiting for the second phase of sales to open, which will offer pilgrims places based on unused excess quotas from other countries, for the first time.
However, he explained that, during phase one, agents and pilgrims experienced system delays on the Nusuk platform, with reported waiting times of between three and eight hours.
“It's important that we train everybody that is assisting and pilgrims who want to go, so that everybody is logged on to the system, registered and their e-wallet is full, so when phase two starts, they must just pay,” said Steenkamp.
“This is a new minefield for agents and pilgrims, because everybody is having to learn about this new technology and travellers are risk-averse. They worry about what will happen to their money, and whether they will get to go.”
