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Keralite pushing Oman tourism

Deepak Nair from Kochi is promoting Oman through his tourist friendly portal, Destination Oman. He tells PREMA MANMADHAN that Oman, like Kerala, is a traveller's delight

SUCCESS ABROAD: Green Salalah

Oman was in the news recently for having deported several Indians, including Keralites for not having proper documents.

So, isn't it ironical that someone from `God's Own Country' is pushing Oman tourism in a big way with his portal, `Destination Oman'? Deepak Nair, the founder of `Destination Oman' is a Kochiite.

"Ours is the most popular tourism portal (www.destinationoman.com ) on Oman and it won the Silver Award recently in December," says the ne'er-say-die guy who weathered all kinds of health problems and came up trumps, through sheer perseverance and an optimistic outlook on life.

A green turtle on a beach in Oman

His site, started in 2001 has ten employees.

Tourist friendly

Not stopping with a site, the 38-year-old with a Master's degree in Communication and Journalism has now published a tourism and business guide also called Destination Oman, where a tourist gets any info he needs, from getting a visa right down to where he will get the food he wants. Two editions are already out and Deepak is planning to make it an annual affair. With high production qualities it is a friend and guide for a tourist. For instance, it tells you what kind of food you will get at restaurants and where to stay. It saves a tourist time and money.

Even if you are alone, there's no need to worry. There is a list of the English equivalents of the local language, essential words you need to communicate, like `thank you, bathroom, toilet, taxi, hotel'. "We have even incorporated custom made postcards in it to send to near and dear ones," Deepak Nair says. High quality paper and a celebrity photographer's pictures that complement good, informative writing, makes the ready reckoner appealing. According to Deepak, the people in Oman are friendly towards foreigners, unlike some other countries.

Riyan Park

"Salalah is very much like Kerala, pristine country, friendly people. And it is safe. You can walk alone in the night at 2 am and yet not feel insecure," Deepak Nair says. That is, if your papers are intact!

European tourists frequent Oman, but there are very few Americans, although Oman is `no longer a sleepy country'. "Its advantage is that a tourist gets to see every kind of landscape, desert, mountains, beaches and a lot of lush greenery too," Deepak says. The best season is from November to January.

Deepak Nair

How he got into the business of promoting tourism in a foreign country is interesting. Almost as soon as he had completed his education, an illness took away much of his hearing ability. But that did not deter Deepak from following his dreams. With residual hearing powers and a high ability to lip read, he was determined to scale new heights.

"The internet changed my life," says Deepak, narrating how he got into setting up the site. But music is one thing that he misses. "I used to sing and I love all the old songs, Jim Reeves and Kishore Kumar were my favourites," he tells you, also with a smile, sans regrets, and full of optimism.

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