Nobody told me this about Hajj.

None of this is in a brochure. It all comes up anyway.

A ten-minute drive can take two hours

Millions of people are moving at once. Road closures, crowd controls and buses waiting for their turn to move turn short distances into long journeys, so bring patience before you bring complaints.

Your bus is not lost

And your group leader is not hiding it from you. Buses line up, wait for permission to move, and leave in groups. When thousands of buses are moving at once, the schedule keeps changing. That is normal.

Your camp is supposed to feel like a camp

Mina is a city of tents, and it is communal, busy and extraordinary whatever your package cost. The people who find it hardest are the ones who arrived expecting something else.

Mina bathrooms

Shared, busy, and not always nearby. Keep tissues and hygiene items with you, wear practical clothing, and go before you are desperate. Several hundred people are using the same facilities, so leave them as you would want to find them.

Why you need a shoe bag

Because shoes left at a Haram entrance are very often never seen again.

A lightweight shoe bag is the cheapest way to save yourself a lot of stress on the whole trip.

The elevator situation

Several hundred pilgrims return from Salah at exactly the same moment.

Sometimes the stairs are faster than the elevator — which is another reason the walking program exists.

Your phone will betray you

Battery, signal and data all fail exactly when needed. Carry a charged power bank, screenshot anything you cannot afford to lose, learn your hotel name, and write one phone number on paper in case the phone is the thing that fails.

Don’t compare camps

Someone’s tent looks nicer. Someone’s bus came first. Someone’s Instagram suggests a different universe entirely.

Do not lose your Hajj watching someone else’s.

Be honest with yourself about what you can handle

Hajj will ask a lot of you physically and emotionally. Be honest with yourself about your health, mobility, stamina, and what you are realistically able to manage.

No one should make you feel guilty for choosing the option that is safer or more manageable for you. A longer walk, a more difficult camp location, fewer comforts, or a more demanding schedule does not automatically make someone’s Hajj better.

You know your body. You know your limits. Plan accordingly, ask for help when you need it, and do not let someone else’s expectations push you into something you know you cannot safely handle.

Hajj is already a test. You do not need to manufacture an additional one.

Ihram doesn’t make everyone patient

You will meet extraordinary people. You will also meet exhausted, hot, hungry people who have not slept. Occasionally someone will test your patience to its limit.

This is also Hajj.

This is not the time to make your own travel plans

If your group gives a movement time, take it seriously. If officials redirect you, follow.

There are reasons for the instructions that you cannot see from where you are standing. And no, your maps app does not know a faster way.

Eat before you’re starving

Drink before you are thirsty, and rest before you are exhausted. Your body is carrying you through the worship, and looking after it is part of the worship rather than a break from it.

Small acts of service

Help the elderly. Offer your seat. Share your charger. Refill the water. Smile at the person whose patience disappeared somewhere between Arafah and Muzdalifah.