Pilgrimage travel has restarted from Kyrgyzstan's second city. Umrah flights from Osh to Saudi Arabia — routed via Muscat and bound for Jeddah — are operating again after a temporary pause put in place in March, when escalating tensions in the Middle East led the country to suspend pilgrimage travel arrangements until things calmed down. The news came from the Spiritual Directorate of Muslims of Kyrgyzstan, the country's muftiyat.
The restart was marked with more than just a take-off. After the first flight departed, officials convened at Osh's central Sulaiman-Too Mosque — a fitting venue, given the sacred mountain that towers over the city — to get the season organised. The meeting pulled together muftiyat representatives, the Umrah department and imams from mosques across Osh and the surrounding region. On the agenda: preparing pilgrims for the trip, walking them through the rules of performing Umrah (the minor pilgrimage, which unlike Hajj can be undertaken at any time of year) and making sure travellers stay safe en route.
One practical warning stood out: the muftiyat is urging pilgrims to book only through accredited travel agencies, a reminder that matters as much for Kyrgyz diaspora travellers elsewhere as for locals arranging trips through family networks.
For anyone considering the route, the logistics are now fairly clear. Omani carrier SalamAir operates the flights to Saudi Arabia from both of Kyrgyzstan's main cities, always routing through Muscat. From Osh, departures run twice a week, on Mondays and Wednesdays. From the capital Bishkek, it's a denser schedule — four weekly flights on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Passengers can fly into either Jeddah, the classic gateway to Mecca, or Medina, home to the Prophet's Mosque and a major stop on most Umrah itineraries.
The resumption is good news for Central Asia's religious travel market, which has grown quickly in recent years. Kyrgyzstan sits in a region where Saudi pilgrimage trips have become a mainstream holiday choice, and a southern hub like Osh means pilgrims no longer need to transit Bishkek first. The routing via Muscat is a reminder of how Gulf and Omani carriers have stepped in to connect smaller Central Asian cities with Saudi Arabia.
For Muslim travellers in the region — or further afield, with family ties to the Fergana Valley — the takeaway is simple: the southern route is open again, schedules are fixed, and the authorities are pushing hard on the accredited-operator message. Anyone booking should confirm their agency's accreditation and check which of the two Saudi gateways their package uses, since Jeddah and Medina itineraries differ.
Story reported by Kyrgyz news outlet 24.kg.
