saptco coaches from makkah -madinah

[zaa]

salam

I had a few questions with reagrds to the spatco coach services from makkah to madinah I was wondering if anyone may be able to help me........

1.where in makka can you purchase the tickets for travelling on the coaches? (do you need to book in advance or can you just get tickets at the station?)

2.what time does the last hourly service leave from makkah?

3. I know that the VIP service is non-stop but what about when it is traveelling during salah times, does it make a stop to ofer salah?

Jazakalah for your help

salam

[Ismail Simjee]

www.saptco.com.sa

Visit the website above and you will get the timings and frequency.

The VIP service is non-stop except when travelling from Madinah to Makkah when it stops at Abyar Ali Meeqat allowing pilgrims to make niyyah etc.

If there are Saudis travelling on the VIP and if they are so disposed, they can make the driver to stop for salah on the way.

Other hourly service do make stops.

Makkah terminal is between Hilton and Dar Tawheed. There are ticketing huts there and you will need to get your tickets before travel. For normal service there is no problem about getting the tickets and boarding straightaway.

You are better off getting the VIP tickets in advance.

The VIP coach will drop you off in front of Elaf Taiyaba Hotel in Madinah. They have an office in Elaf Taiyaba hotel from where you can get your VIP tickets in advance.

The other normal service will drop you at their terminal which is about a kilometer away from the masjid behind the central or al Majdi area.

[muhajir_uk]

Insha'Allah these might help. These are draft versions of some maps we are working on.

1. Hotel Map of Madinah, with the Saptco bus station highlighted
http://www.hajjbuddy.com/downloads/h...ap_madinah.pdf

2. Hotel Map of Makkah, with the Saptco bus station highlighted
http://www.hajjbuddy.com/downloads/h...map_makkah.pdf

[Ismail Simjee]

Insha'Allah these might help. These are draft versions of some maps we are working on.

1. Hotel Map of Madinah, with the Saptco bus station highlighted
http://www.hajjbuddy.com/downloads/h...ap_madinah.pdf

2. Hotel Map of Makkah, with the Saptco bus station highlighted
http://www.hajjbuddy.com/downloads/h...map_makkah.pdf

Sorry your map of Madina is pretty outdated as it shows the coach station where Sheraton al Keram is. This station was smoved long time ago and is located outside of the map you have linked into.

It is located behind Masjid Abi Zar.

[muhajir_uk]

Jazak Allah Khairan for the reply. I did need to clarify something,

The Makkah stop for Saptco, I saw in person a few weeks ago and is still there. The Madinah stop, according to the Saptco website, it is near Dar Al-Iman Intercontinental Hotel in Madinah, which is only a few blocks from where it on the map.

Are you saying that the stop is no longer near Dar Al Iman IC?

Jazak Allah Khair.

[Ismail Simjee]

The Saptco coach station, in Makkah, is located between Dar Tawheed, Makkah Towers and Ibrahim Khalil Road. I was not referring to Makkah location.

Actually, the SAPTCO station is in Taneem area which serves both as their depot and staging point for the local residents.

The one in front of the Haram is for local services as well as pick up and dropping point for long distance travels.

The Madina one that you show is in-correct. There used to be a station in front of Sheraton and facing the Pakistan House. However, that was moved at least 4 years ago and hotels are being built there now.

The other point you state, in-front of Dar Iman intercontinental was, in fact, a pick up and drop off point only for SAPTCO VIP service. This too has ceased and moved to Elaf Taiyaba hotel where SAPTCO also has a small office for VIP Service only.

Hope this helps InshaAllah.

[muhajir_uk]

Jazak Allah Khairan for correcting the error.

[haris66]

hi, could you please update the current location of Saptco station in madina. I am asking this because my mother will be on a wheel chair so I would like to know if it is a walking distance to Anwar-al-Madina Movenpick or should I take a taxi? How much the taxi would cost?

[Ismail Simjee]

hi, could you please update the current location of Saptco station in madina. I am asking this because my mother will be on a wheel chair so I would like to know if it is a walking distance to Anwar-al-Madina Movenpick or should I take a taxi? How much the taxi would cost?

I would not recommend you to travel on the hourly coaches to Makkah from Madinah or vise versa. First of all there is no "non-smoking" on these and, secondly, all type of people travel on it.

Thirdly, and more importantly, the coach station in Madina is far and beyond walking distance.

You are better off using the SAPTCO VIP which terminates in-front of Elaf Taiyaba hotel and starts from there. It is designed for families and is a non-smoking service with meal provided on board free of charge.

If you do use the regular service than that will mean hailing a taxi from your hotel.

[haris66]

If you do use the regular service than that will mean hailing a taxi from your hotel.

thanks for the info. how much taxi should cost from regular service terminal to anwar al madina?

[Ismail Simjee]

There is no concept of fixed fares or fixed prices over there. You have to bargain.

SR30 is the maximum you should be paying especially if you have luggage and a wheelchair to be loaded in the boot.

[Grotbags]

I have made this a sticky, seeing as alot of users are using the Saptco services to get from Makkah-Madina or vis-a-vis.

If any locations of the stops change (especially VIP ones) can users please say here and the new location if possible.

Jazakallah Khair

Grotbags

[Joha]

We've been on the non-VIP service often, it's nothing to worry about (although go for the VIP one by all means if you want to pay more.).

They're always nice and I wish I could remember the place we normally stop at - fresh grilled fish - absolutely delicious.

Although having said that last time we had a coach with an overheating engine so we stopped every hour or so which was actually really fun. We got to see some very strange places by the roadside. We also had a driver who had come from Dhahran, his Arabic was negligible, English was slightly better which didn't help when most of the people on the bus were Saudis. He also didn't know the directions in Madinah so we had to show him the way. A good adventure

[Medievalist]

are there direct services between Amman and Madinah Munawwarah?

[urban rose]

are there direct services between Amman and Madinah Munawwarah?

theres a direct Royal Jordanian flight from Amman to Madinah. Theres usually coach services too which go direct but im not sure if its saptco.

[Medievalist]

I'm thinking the coach travel is gonna be significantly cheaper than air ticket. easyjet have flights to amman now just for people's reference.

[Joha]

I'm thinking the coach travel is gonna be significantly cheaper than air ticket. easyjet have flights to amman now just for people's reference.

Coaches are cheaper from Amman to Jeddah (not sure if they go to Makkah or Madinah - probably), but you'll have a problem with visas.

With your Umrah visa I'm not sure you can cross the Jordan-Saudi border.

Technically the visa restricts you to Jeddah, Makkah and Madinah.

If you don't have a restricted visa then it's possible, I know a non-Muslim couple who went by coach from Oman to Jordan, stopping in Saudi Arabia on the way.