The 65-year-old struggled to pay the bill despite choosing the cheapest-offered package, which included travelling to Saudi Arabia by land and sharing hotel rooms with other pilgrims.
"For the sake of the holy mosque and seeing the Kaaba... everything is worth it, but the economic conditions are really tough," he added.
Abu Rahal was one of more than 2 million haj pilgrims expected to attend the 2023 pilgrimage season this week in Mecca and Medina, defying global inflation and higher prices for haj services.
Authorities in the kingdom said more than 1.6 million pilgrims had already arrived for the pilgrimage as of Sunday.
Many pilgrims said they were happy to take the spiritual journey and buy gifts for their family members despite high prices.
Persons:
Mohamed Abd El Ghany, Anas Abu Rahal, haj, Abu Rahal, Haj, Eid Al, Omar, Abdullah Abbas, Aziz El Yaakoubi, William Maclean
Organizations:
REUTERS, Authorities, haj, Thomson
Locations:
El, Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Mohamed Abd El Ghany MECCA, Medina, Saudi, Mecca's, haj, Egypt