Our Village in the Holy Land

March 25, 2026 | 01:52 pm

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Three months have passed since the Daya Anagata Nusantara Investment Agency (Danantara) acquired the Novotel Makkah Thakher City and a 4.4-hectare plot of land from the Thakher Development Company in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on December 14, 2025. Yet, little has changed. Muhammad Firman Syah, owner of the Nasuha Tour Travel umrah (minor pilgrimage) agency, noted that the four-star hotel continues to operate as it did under its previous management. "The new management (perhaps) hasn't cut the ribbon yet," he told Tempo on Wednesday, March 11, 2026.

Firman Syah was initially among those enthusiastic about the Indonesian government's plan to build a Haj Village (Kampung Haji) in Saudi Arabia. The news began circulating around mid-2025. He had hoped it would provide luxury hotel accommodations at discounted prices. "It would be even better if it's not too far from the Al-Haram Mosque," he said.

However, the acquisition of the Novotel Makkah Thakher City, located 2.5 kilometers from the Al-Haram Grand Mosque, dampened those hopes. For umrah pilgrims, that distance is considered far. Firman Syah's travel agency has never booked the 1,461-room hotel, which can accommodate up to 4,383 people. He prefers lodgings within a one-kilometer radius so pilgrims can walk to the Kaaba. Beyond that distance, pilgrims must squeeze onto buses. Because of its location, he estimates the hotel will likely be used for low-cost umrah packages. The distance also makes it less suitable for the special haj segment organized by private operators.

Firman Adi Candra, Head of Legal Affairs, Advocacy, and Intellectual Property Rights at the Association of Muslim Haj and Umrah Organizers, echoed this sentiment. He said that special haj pilgrims demand proximity. "Ideally, you step out of the hotel and immediately set foot in the courtyard of the Kaaba," he told Tempo on Wednesday, March 11, 2026. With a radius of 2.5 kilometers, the Novotel does not meet that expectation.

Read the Complete Story in Tempo English Magazine

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