Established 2001
A legacy of faith and service.
Since 2001, Karwan-e-Zainabi has organised guided Ziyarat and Umrah journeys from the UK, with religious knowledge, careful organisation and personal care at the centre of every journey.
Our story
Founded in Edinburgh in 2001.
Karwan-e-Zainabi exists to make the journey to the holy sites a meaningful, well-supported experience, not a rushed tour.
The organisation grew from the work of Maulana Akhtar Abbas Zainabi, who studied Islamic studies in Damascus, Syria, and organised Ziyarat journeys before establishing Karwan-e-Zainabi in Edinburgh in 2001.
Today the journeys cover Iraq, Iran, Syria, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia, with group travel, guided Ziyarat and personal support from arrival to departure.
Our founder
Maulana Akhtar Abbas Zainabi
Founder · Religious Guide · Pilgrimage Organiser
Maulana Akhtar Abbas Zainabi studied Islamic studies in Damascus, Syria. It was there that he developed his religious knowledge and began organising Ziyarat journeys, learning the practical work of guiding pilgrims as well as the scholarship behind it.
On returning to the UK, he established Karwan-e-Zainabi in Edinburgh in 2001. Since then he has continued to travel personally with groups, speaking with pilgrims, guiding Ziyarat at each site, and remaining involved in the arrangements that make a journey calm.
He speaks English, Urdu, Punjabi, Arabic and Farsi, which allows him to host pilgrims from many backgrounds within the same journey. His aim is a welcoming environment in which pilgrims feel supported from the moment they join the group.
What we arrange
The journey, handled.
From the flight to the final Ziyarah, the practical work is organised so pilgrims can focus on the purpose of the journey.
- Group Ziyarat journeys
- Umrah packages
- Guided visits to historical and religious sites
- Return international flights
- Hotel accommodation
- Airport and local transfers
- Group transport
- Planned daily itineraries
- Religious guidance and Ziyarat
- Religious guidebooks
- Group communication
- Personal assistance throughout
Meal arrangements and luxury transport are features of some journeys, not every package. We confirm exactly what is included for your departure before you book.
Religious guidance
Ziyarat is explained at each site: the history, the significance and the adab of the visit, rather than simply visited.
Careful organisation
Flights, hotels, transfers and group transport are planned together, with the itinerary confirmed in writing.
Personal support
Families, elderly pilgrims and first-time travellers are supported throughout, by people who know the journey.
One group, together
Pilgrims travel as a group, pray together and are looked after together, with personal assistance when it is needed.
Next step
Your next spiritual journey starts with a conversation.
Tell us which journey interests you, who is travelling and what you would like to know. We will answer personally, with no automated sequences and no pressure.