Voco vs Le Meridien Towers Makkah: A Full Comparison for Umrah Travellers

Choosing a hotel for Umrah usually comes down to a trade-off between luxury, price, and distance from the Haram. Voco Hotel Makkah and Le Meridien Towers Makkah are two five-star options that come up often in that conversation, and both are cheaper than hotels sitting right next to the Haram for the same reason they’re a bit further out. Past that similarity, though, they’re quite different places to stay.

How do the room sizes compare?

Le Meridien wins on space. The rooms are noticeably bigger, and even with bags down in the corner, there’s still room to move around. Voco’s rooms are tighter, with no dedicated spot for luggage, so most guests end up leaving suitcases on the floor, which in a small room usually means tripping over your own bag at some point.

What’s the difference in room amenities?

Both hotels stock the basics: TV, kettle, tea, and bottled water. Le Meridien also has a microwave, which Voco’s rooms don’t. It’s a small detail, but if you’re warming up dates and milk before fajr, it’s the kind of thing you notice on night one.

Which hotel has the better lobby and ambiance?

Walk into Voco, and it feels like a conventional five-star hotel; each tower has its own proper lobby. Le Meridien skips that entirely. Instead of a lobby, you get a “split” entrance spread across its eight towers, more grocery store than lounge. It works fine, it’s just not trying to impress anyone.

Do you need a room card for the elevators?

At Voco, yes, you tap your room card to use the lift, and the card only works in your own tower. That’s fine until you’re staying in Tower 5 and need the reception desk in Tower 2; now you’re walking back outside and in through a different entrance. Le Meridien doesn’t require a card for its lifts at all.

How long is the shuttle ride to the Haram?

Le Meridien’s shuttle is quick: 2 to 3 minutes to the drop-off point, then a short walk to the Haram. Voco’s shuttle takes longer, around 10 to 12 minutes, winding through traffic signals on the way.

Can you walk to the Haram from either hotel?

From Voco, yes. Out the door, onto Ibrahim Khalil Road, and you’re at the Haram in 15 to 20 minutes, passing shops and restaurants the whole way. Le Meridien has no walking option at all, so if the shuttle’s running slow, you wait.

Are these hotels suitable for families during Ramadan?

Not really, if you’re travelling with elderly relatives or young children, the shuttles get overwhelmed, especially on the return trip from the Haram, when everyone staying nearby converges on the same pickup point at the same time. A fit adult can push through that crowd. Someone who can’t stand around for half an hour in a crush of people can’t.

What are the food options like near each hotel?

Voco sits on a road full of restaurants, and delivery apps work fine there. A meal for two runs roughly 20 to 25 riyals. Le Meridien has nothing nearby. No restaurants, and delivery apps often won’t even cover the area, which leaves the hotel kitchen as the only real option, where a single pizza or burger costs around 40 riyals. There are grocery stores inside Le Meridien’s towers, so it’s not a completely dead zone, but for a stay longer than a couple of nights, the cost adds up.

How do the prices compare?

Voco is cheaper outright, usually 150 to 250 riyals a night outside Ramadan, against Le Meridien’s 300 to 350. At Le Meridien, the price also depends on which tower you’re booked into. Towers 1 through 3 are run by a third party and cost less. Travel agents market the rest as “VIP,” though sources differ on exactly which towers that covers, with towers 4 through 8 mentioned in some places and just 4, 5, and 6 in others, and charge more for them. Whether the service is genuinely better in those towers isn’t something we can confirm; it might just be how they’re sold.

So which hotel should you book?

It depends on what you are optimizing for. If price and the option to walk matter to you, Voco is the better fit. If you’d rather have a bigger room and don’t mind relying entirely on the shuttle, Le Meridien makes more sense. Both work well for couples or groups of friends who don’t mind a bit of walking or waiting. Travelling with children or elderly family members during Ramadan changes the calculation for both hotels; in that case, it may be worth paying more for something closer to the Haram instead.