Oman's tourist traffic is headed eastward and not even the war clouds hanging over the sub-continent skies have deterred people of the Sultanate from exploring destinations in India and the Far East this summer as most of them seek to avoid baking summer heat that has already crossed the 45 degree Celsius mark.

There's a significant drop in tourist – as well as students – going to the Unites States, the fact, which even the U.S. embassy in Muscat has endorsed.

On the other hand, undeterred by the war threat, the Omanis are going to India. The expats from the strife-torn western Indian state of Gujarat, however, are avoiding a trip home this summer. And, some Indian expatriates from the border towns with Pakistan are also unsure about taking vacation back home.

According to K. Chandra Kohli, a first secretary at the Indian embassy in Muscat, there's a surge in tourists seeking visas to India in the first five months of this year compared with the same period last year. "In fact more Omanis now seek medical treatment in India," he pointed out.

Kohli reckons that the low cost of medicine coupled with high standard of medical treatment available in India was the factor that Omanis preferred to go to India instead of Europe or the U.S.

"There's a no affect on tourism due to tension on India-Pakistan border," he said.

India and Oman have enjoyed healthy relations for centuries and the Sultanate has a very big population of Indian expatriates.

Kohli claimed that by the first week of June, Omanis seeking tourist visas were more than double compared to last year.

In the post September 11, scenario Omanis are avoiding holidays in the U.S. "There's a lower trend in tourist wanting to go to the U.S.," concurred Jeff Lodinsky, the Vice Consular for Visa Section at the American Embassy in Muscat.

He put the figure at over 40 per cent drop in tourist going to the U.S. from Oman. "Of course, Omanis are far more pronounced in that," he agreed.

"People are still apprehensive about going to the U.S.," believes Shankar Bose, General Manager of Oman's leading travel agents, Bahwan Travels Agencies.

"The visa problems and then possible hassles on landing in the U.S. has made people apprehensive and they are now preferring to go the Far East or India," Bose revealed.

He pointed out that the alternative medicine, especially Ayurvedic treatment available in Kerala, was getting popular with the Omanis. Thus, he believes that the tourism as well medical treatment related rush is India-bound from Oman.

Bose said that since they were the General Sales Agents for most of the Far East airlines, they had various packages on offer. "We have had tremendous response as some Omanis and GCC nationals seek other tourist destinations."

British Airways Country Manager in Oman, Sunita Gomes also agreed that there was a definite shift as far as Omanis going on vacation. "Now, they look at Europe and Canada as the new destination," she said but stopped short of saying that people avoid going to the U.S.

Oman Air is spreading its wings with more destinations added but India remains the main destination for them. "Our flights to Indian sector are going packed," revealed Abdulrazzak Al Raisi, the Oman Air Country Manager in Muscat.

The Indian Airlines Country Manager B.K. Biswas, however, deferred saying that not all their flights were going full. "Compared to last year, there's more capacity to carry passenger to India as even Oman Air now fly to India," he said.

He pointed out that there was a rush but the low season price before May 30 saw a lot of passengers taking off early to avoid the high season ticket prices, which are almost double this year.

He pointed out that the war threat had not affected the traffic to the Indian sector.

However, he agreed that the communal riots in Ahmedabad and the other parts of Gujarat state had hit traffic to that sector badly. "It is more than 40 per cent less than usual," he added.