Qibla direction in Port-de-Paix

How to face the Qibla in Port-de-Paix

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards east and move a further 28.5° towards north: the result is the bearing of 61.5°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at east would leave you about 28° off.

Facing the Qibla is a condition of the prayer. Whoever prays inside the Sacred Mosque faces the Kaaba itself; whoever is far away, as in Port-de-Paix, faces its direction and makes a sincere effort to be accurate. A nearby mosque is a handy reference, because its prayer rows were aligned when it was built. Once you know the direction at home, a discreet mark on the wall saves you from checking again.

Why a flat map shows a different direction

This is a place where maps mislead badly: a straight line on a flat map from Port-de-Paix to Mecca points to 89.2° (east), a full 27.7° away from the true Qibla of 61.5° (north-east). The map line keeps one compass heading and is 348 km longer than the great-circle route. Because the Earth is a sphere, the shortest way to Mecca from Port-de-Paix first heads north-east, and that is the direction to face.

How is the figure of 61.5° obtained? From the coordinates of Port-de-Paix (19.9398° N, 72.8304° W) and of the Kaaba (21.4225° N, 39.8262° E), spherical trigonometry gives the starting bearing of the great circle joining them. Mosque architects and astronomical Qibla tables rely on exactly the same calculation.

Distance from Port-de-Paix to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 11,372 km from Port-de-Paix as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 11,196 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 13 h 53 min, although most pilgrims from Port-de-Paix connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

Clocks in Port-de-Paix run 8 hours behind Mecca in winter and 7 hours behind Mecca in summer, because of daylight saving time. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Port-de-Paix rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Port-de-Paix

On 65 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Port-de-Paix while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in June (30 days); for example, on 1 June 2027 it happens at 12:32 local time.

On 300 days the sun stands exactly opposite the Qibla: then the shadow of any vertical object, a pole, a door frame or a plumb line, points straight towards Mecca. This is most frequent in January (31 days), for instance on 1 January 2027 at 16:37.

Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both happen at night in Port-de-Paix (05:18 and 05:27 local time), so they cannot be used here. Instead, on 13 January 2027 at 16:29 and 28 November 2027 at 16:09 the sun is over the point opposite the Kaaba, and every vertical shadow in Port-de-Paix points straight to Mecca.

Port-de-Paix compared with other cities

The Qibla here is practically the same as in Port-au-Prince (62.0°), and Mecca is 28 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Cap-Haïtien (69 km), prays towards 61.9°, a difference of 0.3°.

Across the 10 cities in Haiti on this site, the Qibla ranges from 61.5° in Les Cayes to 62.0° in Port-au-Prince, a spread of 0.5°. The difference is small, yet each city should still use its own bearing.

See all cities on the Qibla page for Haiti.

Qibla in cities near Port-de-Paix

• Cap-Haïtien61.9° · 69 km
• Dessalines61.8° · 82 km
• Saint-Marc61.8° · 93 km
• Arcahaie61.9° · 134 km
• Léogâne61.9° · 160 km
• Port-au-Prince62.0° · 164 km