For more than three decades, Indonesia has sent the largest number of pilgrims to the Holy Land without owning a single hotel there. This year, that story changed.
For the first time in history, Saudi Arabia has allowed a foreign country to own assets in Makkah, and that country is Indonesia. Through Danantara Indonesia, the state now owns Novotel Makkah Thakher City, a 1,461-room hotel handed over on August 11, 2026. On October 18, 2026, the acquisition of 14 land parcels covering 4.4 hectares in the same area was also completed, bringing the total acquisition value to around US$500 million.
Three days earlier, on October 15, 2026, the PT APM Group team came to see it with their own eyes. The PT APM Group team toured the Thakher City complex, about 2.5 kilometers from Masjidil Haram. What we found is the beginning of something much bigger.
From 4,383 to 23,000 Pilgrims
The most important figure in this deal is not the transaction value, but the capacity.
Today, the three operating Novotel towers can accommodate about 4,383 pilgrims, since one room can hold up to four beds. On the 4.4 hectares of surrounding land, Danantara will build 13 new towers and a shopping center. Once completed, the area will have 6,025 rooms with a capacity of more than 23,000 pilgrims.
| Stage | Rooms | Pilgrim capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Today: Novotel Thakher, 3 towers | 1.461 | ±4.383 |
| Target: plus 13 new towers | 6.025 | >23.000 |
That is roughly 10 percent of Indonesia's annual hajj quota, in a single area it owns. Construction is targeted to begin as early as late 2026 and to be completed in 2029, with further investment of US$700 million to US$800 million required.
Why This Is a Golden Moment
The logic is simple: Indonesia is one of the largest markets for Saudi Arabia's hajj and umrah industry. Every year, 220,000 to 240,000 hajj pilgrims and nearly two million umrah pilgrims depart from the homeland. This is a captive market in the truest sense: pilgrims who will certainly come, year after year, no matter the circumstances.
Until now, the value of such a large market has flowed to other hotel owners. Every riyal Indonesian pilgrims pay for accommodation becomes foreign income. With its own asset, part of that value now returns to Indonesia.
Pilgrims benefit directly as well. According to Danantara, Indonesian hajj pilgrims stay an average of 4.5 to 6 kilometers from Masjidil Haram. Thakher cuts that distance to about 2.5 kilometers, with the management standards of the Accor network.
The timing is right, too. Saudi Vision 2030 opens the door to foreign investment and targets a surge in pilgrim numbers. Indonesia Emas 2045 demands that the state be present to serve its citizens, including in the Holy Land. These two visions now meet in a single area of Makkah, and Indonesia is the first country to step in.
What We Saw on the Ground
Thakher is not a project on paper. When the APM team visited, the hotel was already operating and receiving guests, and Danantara says guest ratings so far have been very positive. The Thakher Development project board on site also displays the Novotel and Radisson logos, a sign that the area is designed for more than one international hotel brand.
| Type | Room concept | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Novotel Residences | Apartment-style units, fully equipped for longer stays | Families, small groups, pilgrims with long stays |
| Novotel (kamar standar) | International hotel rooms to Accor standards | Regular hajj pilgrims and standard umrah packages |
Residences offer home-like comfort during the long hajj season. Standard rooms form the backbone of capacity for large groups.
The Road Ahead Is Still Long
This optimism must be balanced with honesty. Kampung Haji as a complete new settlement will materialize in stages, following Makkah's urban planning and the approval of Saudi regulators. Today, those 13 towers are still just land and architectural plans.
Distance is not fully resolved either. Although the hotel and the Kampung Haji land sit in the same complex, neither is within walking distance of Masjidil Haram. The distance is about 2.5 kilometers, and in our survey, a shuttle ride at peak hours can take up to 40 minutes. For now, pilgrims still depend on shuttle buses.
Danantara is planning a dedicated tunnel linking the area to Masjidil Haram, and on site there appears to be space set aside for a rail-based shuttle line. But when will that train actually run? Who will build it, and on whose budget? Until those questions are answered, 2.5 kilometers will feel farther than the number suggests.
Danantara seems aware of this. Its next step is to pursue land just 600 meters to 1.2 kilometers from Masjidil Haram, through an auction by the Royal Commission for Makkah City and Holy Sites.
APM's Take
History rarely arrives in finished form. Today, Thakher is 1,461 rooms that are already alive, land waiting to be built on, and a promise for 23,000 pilgrims.
For us, what matters most is the direction. For the first time, Indonesian pilgrims can stay in an asset owned by their own nation in Makkah, and that opportunity can already be felt today. The APM team will keep following every stage and report back from the field.
The road is indeed still long. But for the first time, that road begins on land that belongs to us.