Pakistan winter school vacations 2026-27Your Umrah windows

Last year's notified dates, province by province

These are the 2025-26 dates, taken from the notifications or from news reports of them. Use them to see the likely pattern, and don't treat them as this year's dates.

A few things stand out.

• Islamabad and Sindh had the shortest breaks, about nine or ten days. That is enough for a 7-night Umrah at a fast pace, and little more.
• Punjab's break ran to about four weeks once it was extended, but the extension came on 10/01/2026, two days before schools were due to reopen. Nobody could have booked flights around it.
• KP's plains and summer-zone schools broke later, in the first half of January.
• Schools in the cold zones of KP and Azad Kashmir closed for about two months, so those families have the widest choice of dates.

Private school chains often follow their province's notice but set their own term dates. Ask your children's school for its calendar before you book.

How the break lines up with the 1448 calendar

Winter 2026-27 falls in the middle of the 1448 Umrah season. These are the expected dates on the Umm al-Qura calendar, and the real start of each month depends on the moon.

A late-December trip is therefore an Umrah in Rajab, and some families want to be in Makkah around 27 Rajab. Our guide to 27 Rajab and 15 Sha'ban in Makkah sets out what the sources say about those nights, and Umrah in Rajab and Sha'ban covers the months more widely. For the whole season, see the Umrah calendar 1448.

Likely Umrah windows for 2026-27

If this year follows last year's pattern, these are the windows to plan around. Treat them as planning ranges until the notices come out.

Families with children in two provinces, or with one child in a federal school and one in a private chain, should plan around the shorter break.

Booking before the notice comes out

Most families need to book before the dates are official. These steps cut the risk.

1. Plan around the core days. Quaid-e-Azam Day falls on Friday 25/12/2026 and is on the 2026 public holiday list. In 2025-26 the days from 26/12 to 31/12 sat inside the breaks in Islamabad, Punjab and Sindh, so a trip built around them was the safest bet last year.
2. Ask your school for its own calendar. Many private schools publish term dates early.
3. Keep the return flexible. Ask about the change rules on the return ticket before you pay.
4. Mind the visa timing. Since the ministry's announcement of 31/10/2025, an Umrah visa has to be used within 30 days of issue, according to press reports. Apply once the dates are firm enough, so the visa doesn't lapse.
5. Do the vaccines early. The Saudi Ministry of Health's Umrah health document (the 1447H edition, the latest we found) requires the meningitis ACYW vaccine at least 10 days before arrival and at least one polio dose for travellers from Pakistan. Pakistan has its own airport check too: from Karachi, NADRA-linked vaccination records have been checked since 10/10/2026, and we found no confirmed start date for Islamabad or Lahore. Our NIMS NADRA vaccination certificate guide has the current position.
6. Check the news before you fly. Government travel advice for Saudi Arabia changed several times in October 2026. Read your own government's latest advice and check what your travel insurance covers.

Winter Umrah with children

Winter is the coolest part of the year in Makkah and Madinah, which makes the walking easier for children and older parents than in summer. Long-term climate averages (1991 to 2020) put Makkah's January average high at 31°C and low at 19°C. Madinah's January average high is 24°C and its low is 12°C, so pack a warm layer for Madinah evenings. What men may wear over ihram to keep warm is covered in our guide to ihram in winter.

Other things that help in the holiday weeks:

• Perform Umrah at a quieter hour. The General Authority for the Care of the Two Holy Mosques lists 10pm to 4am and 9am to 4pm as lighter hours at Masjid al-Haram, and 5pm to 9pm as the busiest.
• Keep the first day light. Children tire quickly after a night flight.
• Give every child a card with your hotel name and your phone number.

Our Umrah with kids guide covers prams, lost-child plans and how to pace the rites. For weather by month, see best time for Umrah.

How Maqam e Haram helps

We plan family Umrah trips from our office in Islamabad. We can hold your dates around the likely break, keep the plan flexible until your province notifies, and book hotels close to the Haram and the Prophet's Mosque that suit children and grandparents. We arrange the transfers, the journey between Makkah and Madinah, and ziyarat at an easy pace, with on-ground help in Makkah and Madinah and WhatsApp contact during the trip.

We don't issue visas and can't promise one. The Saudi authorities decide. We make the hotel and transport bookings the application needs and help you through it.

Tell us which schools your children attend and how many of you are travelling. Message us on WhatsApp or call +92 309 9022120 and ask for today's price. Our family Umrah packages and Umrah packages from Pakistan pages show the kinds of trips we build.

Questions and answers

Related pages

• December Umrah packagesTrips for the winter break.
• Umrah with kidsPlanning for children.
• Umrah in Rajab and Sha'banWhat the months are like.
• Umrah calendar 1448The whole season.
• Family Umrah packagesTrips for parents and children.