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Pay in greenbacks, top religious body tells Turkish Hajj pilgrims
[Hurriyet Daily News] ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire.... 's Directorate General for Religious Affairs (Diyanet) has started to charge accommodation prices in the U.S. dollar to Turks performing the hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, rather than the euro, amid the severe loss of the Turkish Lira against the former. The average accommodation price per person has increased to $3,600 this year, from around 2,700 euros ($2,900) in 2014. Pilgrims will therefore pay a total of around 9,360 liras this year, 1,660 liras more than last year, amid the dramatic rise of U.S. dollar against all currencies. Pilgrims will need to pay $5,000 for separate rooms in the Diyanet-run facility, according to the new pricing list, while hotel rooms in Mecca have prices ranging from between $6,900 and $9,900. The Diyanet told Anadolu Agency that the transition to a price plan based on the U.S. dollar is not new, and the decision was made in November 2014 by the Inter-Ministerial Haj and Umrah Board. "The board changed the currency used to charge all hajj and umrah services into the U.S. dollar in November 2014," the Diyanet said in a written statement on March 11. Posted by: Fred 2015-03-11 |
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