Andaman Islands
The Emerald Isle of the Andamans is truly a jewel in the middle of the Bay of Bengal and boasts of the best beaches on Indian waters. I doubt one would ever get such clean and pristine water in any of the beaches in mainland India. We were starting a new era of travel in the post Covid era and surely this destination would be great one to take one step towards the new normal and put your travel boots on after nearly two years.
Our itinerary was as follows:
Day 1: Arrival in Port Blair, sightseeing in Port Blair
Day 2: Travel to Havelock Island by ferry. Visit Radhanagar Beach
Day 3: Visit Elephanta Beach in Havelock Islands
Day 4: Visit Kala Patthar Beach followed by travel to Port Blair, overnight stay in Port Blair
Day 5: Travel by Road to Diglipur, North Andamans
Day 6: Visit to Ross and Smith Islands
Day 7: Travel back to Port Blair
Day 8: Departure from Port Blair
We planned our trip through a local travel agent Vishakha Travels, who would book all the hotels, transport and the required permits.
Day 1: Arrival in Port Blair, sightseeing in Port Blair
We flew out of Kolkata at the stroke of dawn and arrived at the Veer Savarkar International airport at 8:30 AM. We were met by a representative of Vishakha Travels who drove us down to Hotel Pride where we were checked in for the night. It was a modest looking hotel, which we would not ideally like to stay but due to the rush we could not be booked anywhere else. I sheepishly endured a few dirty looks from my wife.
The car was available to us for specific sight-seeing activities. Items that would be covered were Cobryn Beach and the Cellular Jail, including the light and sound show.
A beautiful drive along the sea took us the Cobryn Cove beach. The drive along the sea was beautiful and it took us to a spot where the tri-colour was flying proudly. This was where the flag was hoisted for the first time in 1943.
If you have an additional day in Port Blair, a visit to Ross Island is a must. Its a fifteen minute boat ride and you get to see a large number of deer.
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Day 2: Travel to Havelock Island by ferry. Visit Radhanagar Beach
We travelled to Havelock in the early hours of the morning by the Sealink ferry. The air-conditioned ferry service is quite comfortable and much like an AC Chair car train journey. Coffee and food is available for purchase. However we had our breakfast packed from the hotel. We had to be restricted in our seating area and walking on the deck is not allowed. Our car picked us up from the port and took us the Havelock Island Beach Resort (or HIBR as it is called locally). The resort had all the facilities though there was a huge morning rush due to the arrival of multiple ferries. The resort had the necessity of a pool and it opened out to the beach with lovely turquoise waters of the morning.
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Our plan for the day was to visit the famous Radhanagar beach which we did so in the afternoon and stayed on till sunset for which the beach is famous for. Add to that there are some amazing lunch at the shacks. We enjoyed some fried chicken and prawns with rice. Live crabs were on offer as well, however we avoided it.
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Day 3: Visit Elephanta Beach in Havelock Islands
Elephanta Beach is a remote beach in the Havelock Island, accessible only by boat or a trek. This island requires special permission and one can visit only on registered boats in the stipulated time. There is a strict cut-off time for a return back. This beach is ideally used for all watersports – para-sailing, jet-skiing, glass boat, sea-walk and snorkeling. One is supposed to go in a group of ten on a boat in a group and is expected to return by the same boat with the same group in the evening. Lockers are available to keep your stuff, once you get into your clothes was water sports. Food available is modest, mainly chaat and coconut water. So do not expect a full-fledged lunch option.
Was not really a problem as we visited the cafe pub Something Different for our dinner and drinks. The cafe offers a pickup and drop facility to our resort.
Day 4: Visit Kala Patthar Beach followed by travel to Port Blair, overnight stay in Port Blair
Its our last day at the island as we head back to Port Blair by the evening ferry. The day started off with Scuba diving. There was a scuba shop right next to our hotel and it was easy and quick. I did the shore diving and not the deep sea one which is a bit time-consuming as it involved travelling to mid-sea on a boat and would be a half-day affair. Nevertheless, this was still a fulfilling experience.
This was followed by a visit to the magnificent Kala Patthar beach. Popularly known as the sunrise beach this does not get same recognition as Radhanagar beach but I would safely say that these two have been the two best beaches I have viewed in India, especially with respect to the shade of the sea. The best part were the road-side shops where we were treated to some special egg-maggi, an eternal favourite.
We returned by the Green Ocean ferry. It was not as luxurious as Sealink but one had the option of walking on the deck and enjoy the sea breeze. Unfortunately, it was evening time so not possible to enjoy the great views. Luckily we checked into a better hotel this time around Aries Grand.
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Day 5: Travel by Road to Diglipur, North Andamans
This is the second leg of our tour which includes a ten hour journey to Diglipur in the North Andamans to visit the twin islands of Ross and Smith. The Ross and Smith island is claimed to be the most beautiful sight in the Andamans. It consists of two islands bridged by narrow strip of sandy beach. During high tide this gets completely submerged making the islands look separate. The beach appears at low tide. The adventure part of the journey, apart from some terrible patches of the road, was a drive through the highly restricted Jarava forests. This required various permits and a fixed window to cross the forests in a convoy. The Jaravas do not like to disturbed and we had to cross the stretch with utmost caution. We were even instructed strictly to not put down our car windows. This meant a 4 AM start. The journey is long, at times the road is smooth but most of the times it is in poor condition. There is a stretch which includes a ferry ride. A couple of breaks here and there, and we were at our Pristine Beach Resort Diglipur by 6 PM. The journey can get a bit hectic so an option could be to break the journey at Mayabunder and complete the last stretch the next morning.
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Day 6: Visit to Ross and Smith Islands
The time had come to view the cleanest and the most pristine shade of blue. A boat took us and a couple of other tourists to the magnificent islands after a twenty minute ride. The islands were pristine and there is no habitation. We are allowed to stay there for three hours after which the boat would take us back. The journey may have been tough but it was worth every bit. Two shades of blue on either side of the narrow strip of sand was a sight to behold.
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