My holiday to Andaman and Nicobar Islands was a once in a
lifetime experience. Andaman and Nicobar Islands are full of amazing natural
beauty. I am sharing my experience and thoughts about this lovely place. This
may help others plan for Andaman Islands.
History:
The Andaman Islands are a group of islands in the Bay of
Bengal and a Union Territory of India. There are total 572 islands, but
Inhabited Islands are 38. The name of the island has always been 'Andaman' and
might represent Handuman, the Malay form of Hanuman. The capital of Andaman
Island is Port Blair.
The history of the British in the Andaman and Nicobar
Islands began in 1788. British Government thought of establishing a penal
settlement here. In March 1858, the first penal settlement was established,
with 200 prisoners, mostly rebels from the Indian Army. Initially, the convicts
were kept in a jail at Viper Island. The foundation of the infamous Cellular
Jail was laid in 1896. The building was completed in 1906. Place soon known as
Kaala Pani because of Cellular Jail. This place becomes a favorite tourist
place after 2000. Veer Savarkar International Airport is the only airport in
Andaman.
How can we go to Andaman?
There are only two ways to reach Port Blair,
capital of Andaman and Nicobar Islands: - either by Air or by
Sea.
Flight: You have direct daily flights to Port Blair from
Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore. And some flights from Visakhapatnam
on certain days.
Best Time to Visit Andaman and Nicobar Islands:
Seasons
|
Months
|
Temperature
|
Summers
|
April to June
|
24°c - 37°c
|
Monsoon
|
July to September
|
22°c - 35°c
|
Winter
|
October to March
|
20°c - 30°c
|
Is visa required for Andaman from India?
Indian passport holders do not require a permit to visit
and stay in the populated areas of Andaman Islands, including
Havelock Island. Non-Indian Passport Holders however require an Indian
visa to visit the Andaman Islands (as the Andaman and
Nicobar Islands are part of the Indian State)
Hey guys, please subscribe to my YouTube channel for more information and videos of Andaman:
https://youtu.be/oHeXUPlJj7A
https://youtu.be/oHeXUPlJj7A
Our journey begins on 19th March 2018.
Sun cream,
mosquito repellent, basic medical kit (there are shops in Port Blair, but
you have to go to the main market)
Day 1: Bangalore – Chennai – Port Blair
We started from Bangalore to Chennai by Indigo Airways at
6:30 AM. After 1 hour journey to Chennai, we stayed at the airport about 1 hour
and then boarded an Indigo flight to Port Blair at 8:30 AM. Flight duration was
2 hrs, we witnessed some beautiful scattered islands with blue waters and white
sand. This view should not to be missed.
On reaching Veer Savarkar International Airport, we were
welcomed by our travel agent (Orient Andaman Holidays) from Andaman. He dropped
us to our hotel, "S R Castle". After having breakfast (Sandwich) and taking
rest for a while, we planned to visit "Corbyn’s Cove Beach". There is nothing
special on this beach, but the calm water and lovely view of the beach made us
spend some time on the beach. You can
see lot of Tender coconuts been sold near the beach. The road to this beach is
very beautiful. You can see Ross Island on the way.
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| Corbyn’s Cove Beach |
After this we reached the Cellular Jail. This was the best
way to see the past of our Indian history. We took 2-3 hours to see the entire
jail, proud movement for us to enter in Veer Savarkar's cell. Light and Sound
show in the evening showcases "History of Jail". That’s when I got to know why
people call this jail as "Kaala-Pani"
Here you can check the timings and ticket Prices:
Outside the cellular jail we had coffee and some chats, and
we returned to our hotel for dinner.
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| Cellular Jail Cells |
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| Cellular Jail Entrance |
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| Hanging Room |
Day 2: Havelock Island
We woke up early as we had a ferry to board to our next
destination – "Havelock Island". Hotel provided breakfast takeaway (again sandwich!!!)
as the break fast timing in the hotel is after 7:30 AM. Agent took us to the "Phoenix
Bay Jetty". On the entry gate the security checked our Tickets and ID cards (mandatory
to carry for the ferry). We boarded the "Green Ocean - 2" ferry. It was 2 hours
ride from the jetty to the Havelock Island. On reaching the Havelock Island
Jetty another agent took us to the "Havelock Island Beach Resort" which is 1-2
kms from the Jetty. They served us some refreshing mango juice (complimentary),
checked in at 11 AM. The Resort was completely build from wood, got a beach
side cottage, the view from the cottage was mesmerizing. Had our
breakfast/lunch in the resort which was very costly.
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| Havelock Island Beach Resort Cottages |
After some rest we reached "Radhanagar Beach" also known as
Beach number 7 was bestowed with the title of 'Asia's Best Beach' in 2004 by
the TIME magazine. Known for its picturesque sunset, white sand and turquoise
blue waters, the beach is a very popular hub lying on the western coast of
Havelock Island. The beach was very clean with crystal clear water. You can
swim here very good, there are some nice waves too. Just the restaurants in
front of the beach side are not clean and the stuff is very impolite. We had a swimming
session for 2 hours. They have change rooms which will cost you 10 INR per
person.
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| Radhanagar Beach view |
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| Radhanagar Beach during sunset |
After coming back, we were exhausted and took a short nap for 2 hours. Finished
our dinner at the restaurant in the resort and went for a beach side walk near
the cottage and finished the day.
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| During high tides roots of the tree are not visible |
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| Havelock Island Beach Resort |
Day 3: Elephant beach and Neil Island
Checked out from the resort, agent took us to the Havelock
Jetty. He made us to keep our luggage in a small shop nearby and took us by a
speed boat to the "Elephant Beach" for snorkeling, It a 45 min ride from the
jetty to the beach. The Elephant Beach on Havelock island although not as
beautiful and big as Radhanagar Beach is very popular for those interested in
water sports.
They offer you snorkeling, speed boats, jet skiing, banana
boat rides, etc. We did free snorkeling which was just a trailer of marine
life. We liked it so much, that we paid extra INR for the free video capture
and full mask and took a 20-25 min ride. This experience was simply amazing. I
could see the underwater coral, fishes moving around my legs, different types
of fishes. By the way, for snorkeling, swimming is not a pre-requisite. But if
you can swim, snorkeling guide takes you for a long ride. We enjoyed our long
and deep snorkeling rides.
Food stalls are available on this island Tender coconut,
Bhel, Fruit salad, etc. It is plastic free zone. Do not miss this island. You
have change rooms after the snorkeling session. From there we came back to
Havelock jetty in the same speed boat. We waited for 1 hour for our ferry Green
Ocean 2 to Neil Island. It took 1 hour to reach the "Neil Island" Jetty.
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| Directions from Neil Island |
On reaching
jetty agent dropped us to "Pearl Park Beach Resort" which is located near
"Laxmanpur Beach I". We occupied a nice beach side cottage. We checked in the restaurant
for lunch, but the answer was they have only chats. In the evening we went for
beach side by walk as the resort had direct access to the sun set point. We had
Maggi and Pakoras in the small shop near the beach.
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| View from Pearl Park Beach Resort |
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| Relaxing looking at the Beach |
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| Way to the sunset point from the resort |
The sun set was amazing, we
could spot a foreign couple doing yoga. We took some good pictures. Did some
window shopping hand bands, neckless, show pieces (sea shell items).
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| Yoga during sunset |
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| Yoga during sunset |
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| Sunset at Laxmanpur Beach I |
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| Sunset at Laxmanpur Beach I |
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| Sunset at Laxmanpur Beach I |
After
spending a long time here, we went back to the resort and had dinner.
Day 4: Neil Island and Port Blair
Woke up early finished our breakfast. Went to the "Laxmanpur Beach
II" for seeing the "Natural Bridge". Hired a local guide for taking us there he
showed us the bridge, corals, jelly fish, etc.
The natural bridge e is a walk over protruding rocks through dead Coral
beach and shallow pools of crystal clear water in which we could view corals
and fishes. We spotted sea cucumber, brain corals, jack fruit corals and abundance
of colorful fishes. Star of the fishes I did hold on to.
The place gives a great view at the sunrise time. The approach to the natural bridge is through a small hamlet, lined by tall mahua trees. The best time to visit the place is at the low tides otherwise one may get stuck if the time is not noted on. Gets slippery in the rains. There after one has to walk for about 100 meters on sand/rocks on the beach to reach the bridge. Hence it is advisable to wear comfortable footwear, preferably flat. It is difficult to access for the elderly. We paid 250 INR for the guide for this 1.5 hours detour.
The place gives a great view at the sunrise time. The approach to the natural bridge is through a small hamlet, lined by tall mahua trees. The best time to visit the place is at the low tides otherwise one may get stuck if the time is not noted on. Gets slippery in the rains. There after one has to walk for about 100 meters on sand/rocks on the beach to reach the bridge. Hence it is advisable to wear comfortable footwear, preferably flat. It is difficult to access for the elderly. We paid 250 INR for the guide for this 1.5 hours detour.
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| Way to Natural Bridge |
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| Laxmanpur Beach II |
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| Natural Bridge |
On
reaching the starting point we went to "Bharatpur Beach", we paid for the glass
bottom boat ride (INR 500 per person) to see the live corals, marine life etc.
for 30 minutes. The waves here are also not as high as in Radhanagar Beach and
hence quite safe for children. There are also small eateries on the beach
catering for snacks and refreshments. Had our lunch in a small
restaurant beach side. We spent more than 3 hours in water only. Swimming and
splashing all the way. Water Activities closes after 2 PM make sure you
reach here before and do all the water activities. We were back to Port Blair by
Makruzz. After 1.5 hours of ferry ride by evening we reached Port Blair and we
were dropped to "S R Castle Hotel" for the last day stay in Andaman. Had our
dinner in a small Bengali restaurant near the hotel. Our last night at Andaman
came to an end.
Day 5 (Port Blair and Bangalore):
This was our final day in Andaman. Had a heavy breakfast.
Even though our trip was literally over. Our agent gave option to visit some
places before our flight (Flight was at 2:30 PM). We choose "Chatham Saw Mill"
and "Samudrika Marine Museum".
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| Chatham Saw Mill |
The Chatham Saw Mill was set up by the British to exploit
the abundant tree wood in the islands. Now the mill has been taken over by the
Govt and limited work still goes on. There is a small museum in the premises
which is worth visiting. The overall duration to see this place should not take
more than an hour. this place has witness bombing during world war 2 and has a
bomb crater. Many of tourist don't know where it is and miss to see it. the
museum in this mill is ordinary and nothing special. The Samudrika Marine Museum
is a small well-maintained museum being run by the Indian Navy. I recommend
everyone to visit this museum with your family before starting to explore the
Andamans and it sea life. You get to know its history and how their names came
into being. You can see different kinds of shells that were found on their
beaches also, about the Jarawa tribes of Andaman. The
museum also hosts the skeleton of a blue whale. One of the highlights of this
place is "stone fish" - A fish that resembles a stone. There
is also a TV running non-stop that informs you about the other places that are
there to see in the islands. There are also a couple of big machine guns which
you can see and take selfies with. They have also kept a couple of slabs to
stand on to take the selfies and direction boards mentioning "Selfie
Point"!!
We did shopping of some pearls, purse, some show pieces,
etc. Boarded our flight to Bangalore @ 2:30 PM
Things to carry to Andaman:
Sunglass and Cap.
Camera and Tripod (If you want some good pictures)
Please carry cash as in most of the places debit/credit card will not work
Only BSNL/Airtel works in most of the places
ID card (required when you are traveling in a ferry)
Small bag in which you can carry 1-2 pair of clothes
