Mecca is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia and the holiest city in Islam. It is 70 km (43 mi) inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley 277 m (909 ft) above sea level. Its last recorded population was 2,385,509 in 2022. Its metropolitan population in 2022 is 2.4 million, making it the third-most populated city in Saudi Arabia after Riyadh and Jeddah. Around 44.5% of the population are Saudi citizens and around 55.5% are foreigners from other Muslim countries. Pilgrims more than triple the population number every year during the Ḥajj pilgrimage, observed in the twelfth Hijri month of Dhūl-Ḥijjah. With over 10.8 million international visitors in 2023, Mecca was one of the 10 most visited cities in the world.
Image: View of the courtyard of the Great Mosque of Mecca, Saudi Arabia (2)
Image: Clock Tower Makkah from Marwa
Image: Pilgrims cover Arafat's roads, plains and mountain Flickr Al Jazeera English
Image: Jabbal An Nour Makkah (2241558560)
This article is about the Province of Mecca. For the city, see Mecca. For other uses, see Mecca (disambiguation)
Image: Masjidul Haram Aerial View (cropped)
Image: Bab makkah
Image: ISS 42 Taif, Mecca and Jeddah at night
