What is the ruling on a woman traveling without a mahram?

Question:
May Allah reward you. The questioner says: My mother is eighty years old, and with her is my wife, who is forty-three years old. Is it permissible for them to travel with a group, even though they have no mahram with them other than this group? I am informing you that I will meet them in the city of Jeddah, as I reside there.

Answer:
It is not permissible for a woman to travel without a mahram, no matter how old she is. It is not permissible for her to travel without a mahram, because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “It is not permissible for a woman to travel—this is a general ruling for all women, old and young—unless she has a mahram with her.” Your wife, your relative, or your female slave should not travel unless she has a mahram with her. Your meeting her in Jeddah is not sufficient for this. Yes, if she arrives in Jeddah, the journey is over. This discussion is about the journey on the road. Yes.