Although Umrah with Family is a blessing and an act very dear to Allah, Umrah with toddlers is quite tough. If you have no option other than to carry your toddlers with you, you don’t have to worry about that now. When I went to Mecca and Medina for Umrah, I and my husband searched a lot on the tips and suggestions to bring our kid along Umrah journey. Some of them worked and many of the new experiences brought me the new lessons to tell the moms going to perform Umrah with toddlers.
Things to pack
- Baby Carry
Pack the baby carry along with the other essentials, it will help you keep the better care of your kid during the Tawaf and the other prayers. If you are along with two or more kids, prepare for that accordingly. Carrying your baby with your back or chest will free you from the fear of baby loss in rush.
- Baby Pram Strollers Along With Chain
I didn’t know before that the baby prams are not allowed in Haram and Masjid e Nabvi. But that didn’t bother me because I got knowledge of the Baby Pram parking somewhere outside the Haram near ladies toilet and on the entrance of Mecca tower. You will experience that even to that place, the Pram stroller is a blessing because the distance matters. I was living almost a kilometer away from Haram and I know how difficult is to carry a baby in hands, so easy is to pack the Baby Pram as an essential, not to forget a thing in your luggage. Why the chain is important? It is just like a car be locked, you park the baby Pram and lock it with a chain so it can’t be stolen anyway.
- Medicines
Stomach pain, Normal pain, Cold, Fever, cough, and vomit, these all the common seasonal cases you or your kid can be attacked by. To keep all the possibilities in mind, pack a pouch of all the concerned medicines along. If you think that you need to be vaccinated to protect yourself and your kids from the viral diseases, get to consult your physician and take his suggestion.
- Pack The Clothes Your Child is Comfortable With
Pack the separate bag for the things of your kids including the clothes they feel comfortable to wear, the two or three pairs of shoes they don’t feel the pain to walk with. Wearing Ehram is complementary, not very important for kids, so as soon as they get irritated by the dress, you have to change their clothes. You also have to look at the seasonal demand so that you can carry the clothes accordingly. Along with this, you need to pack the pairs of lightweight shoes for the whole family. The toddler’s skin is extra sensitive and you have to be careful about anything which you think is important for your kid.
Other than these, there are a lot of important things you can never forget to pack in your luggage. It may be the powder milk, at least two feeders, diapers if you think important to bring along. These are some children specific things, other things like the arrangement of identity cards case so the kids could have less chance to be lost.
Some other tips
- Try to Settle Close To Haram
Settling far away has nothing to do with your difficulty or trouble, the hotel you will opt for a living will arrange the shuttle for you to Haram and pick you up from the same place. But in case you think that living farther is trouble, you may choose to live near to the Haram but knowing the fact that the hotels nearer to the Haram costs many times of those farther.
- Avoid The Rush Hours In Haram
Don’t go in the rush hours in Haram when you have kids especially the naughty ones. You will be guided by many people there, but if you can’t spot the hours less rushed in Haram, tune in to the Television and get to the channel telecasts live in the Haram. You will get to know that in which hours you can pay a visit to Haram with toddlers.
- Divide Your Umrah
You are with kids, so it is allowed to part your Umrah into two halves, Tawaf and Sayi. You can take turns while your Tawaf rounds so the other partner can take care of children, this way you both can have it so easily. It is a quick and efficient manner too. Then the second half ‘Sayii’ comes , that is so easy to believe me. You can also perform the other half of Umrah in turns, that would be a more enjoyable way to accomplish your prayers along with your kids.
Other than this, you always have to keep in mind while traveling that you are traveling with the kids, so have the idea of the budget planned for their shopping, entertainment. The thing which is important to remember is that the laundries are there always to serve you on time. Your Hotels are responsible to provide you the very basic facility like this. Keep your and your kid’s clothes clean so no trouble can be faced anyway.