Few months back, me and a gal-pal of mine decided to explore the untouched paradise of India – Andamans – on our own. 2 girls far away from their homeland, travelling thousands of km in search of some adventure and fun. This is exactly what this trip was all about; so did we manage to achieve this milestone? Off course a big shout out, “YES”!
After a month of research and asking around a zillion travel agencies, who always happened to quote an amount way above our budget, I decided to make my own bookings rather than relying on packages; although arranging ferry tickets to various islands and a whole day (with activities) with an overnight stay in Baratang was managed by Maharaja Travels.
Today when I think about this decision I kinda feel proud making one such, coz, not only did we manage the whole trip in the desired budget, we did manage to achieve a milestone of doing things by yourself which, believe me is a huge accomplishment.
Before I get into the details of my itinerary, let me tell you something about Andaman’s.
- · The safest place in India, and I am not exaggerating here. Even if you leave your valuables in an unlocked car, no one would steal them, they are very well aware that the only source of income for them is tourism. So they treat their tourist with the greatest respect.
- · People in Andamans are very honest and helpful. The last day when we went to Red Skin Island, we hired a bike. On our way back, we were running short on petrol and the bike stopped at one point. The next petrol pump was half a km away. We asked a nearby bike repair shop for directions to petrol pump and he in turn gave us some petrol from his bike. Where I am from, strangers wouldn’t even turn back at you even if they know you are in trouble and need some help.
- · If you are on a budget trip, hire bikes at Havelock and Port Blair for local sightseeing. At Neil Island you can ask your resort to hook you up with a car package where you pay 600 bucks for the entire tour of Neil Island. Hiring bicycles is the next best option, but the availability is scarce. Hiring bikes will cost you the same as hiring a car.
- · Internet is a luxury in Andamans. Mine was often disconnecting in Port Blair. The maximum I could get was a 2G connection on a 4G sim. Airtel and BSNL are the connections that work in Andamans although I prefer BSNL over airtel especially when it comes to Havelock. Do not expect internet service in Havelock, if you are in urgency of using one you can try the internet cafe in Havelock.
- · Food is expensive in Andamans. A normal veg thali will cost you 150 bucks. There are certain places where you can get food at cheaper rates, but they are again very scarce. Also sea food is as expensive as it is in Bangalore, despite being a coastal region.
- · Always do underwater activities in Andamans rather than going on Jet Ski, which can be done anywhere else. Remember, Andamans is all about the corals and underwater creatures. Snorkelling, Scuba, Glass Boat, Sea Walking are some of the top notch picks.
- · Interact with localities. They share a great deal of information regarding the places to go around and the best time to go. For example, a place called Natural Bridge in Neil Island, is to be visited during low tide. This information’s are difficult to be found on Internet, so have a chat around and then decide your itinerary for the day.
- · A minimum of 10-15 days are needed to cover the entire Andamans including south, middle and north Andamans. I was on a crunch of days, so I could just cover South and middle Andamans and even in those had to skip few places.
- · If you plan on visiting Mount Harriet, do enquire if the trek route is open. When we visited the trek was closed due to some construction activities, although the drive route to Mount Harriet was brilliant.
- · Do not miss Red Skin/Jolly Buoy, Chidiya Tapu , Cellular Jail, Ross/North bay island, Havelock, Neil, Baratang. Also keep drinking the humongous Coconuts near the beaches. They provide ample amount of water and malai.
- · Please book AC rooms. This place is always hot and humid. We did the mistake of booking non ac everywhere.
- · Also try to avoid Air India, they always tend to delay their flights. Our To flight was delayed by 5 hrs and Fro flight by 2 hrs.
- · Hindi and English are the 2 languages profoundly used in Andamans. Many localities speak Bengali as well.
Stay:
PB: Aashiaanaa Residency Inn.
- · We paid 1000/- for 2.
- · The stay is good and decent. Clean rooms, clean linen and clean bathroom.
- · TV’s in all rooms.
- · Owner is very helpful. if you request him, he could get you a bike for rent on 24hrs basis. Rent is 500, and advance of 3000 for security purpose which you can negotiate. Petrol is as cheap as 55 bucks per litre. Make sure you got your driving license.
Neil Island: Pearl Park Beach resort.
- · Paid roughly 1900 for 2. Little expensive but not much options available in Neil.
- · These guys arranged a car for us, for 600 bucks that cover the entire Neil Island in a span of 2 days.
- · No TV’s for non ac rooms.
- · Food is expensive here and generally in Neil Island.
- · Beer is available in almost all resorts. If you need anything else, there is a Hotel Kingfisher that could serve your purpose.
Havelock: Emerald Gecko.
- · Paid 1500/- for 2. This room has its own bathroom but communal toilet which is very neat. Insist on room 1, the only room with a brilliant view.
- · Again food is expensive, min of 150 for veg thali.
- · No TV’s available.
Baratang: Government Guest House.
- · Not a great place to stay. Rooms were dusty and stinky. But its either 500/- bucks guest house or high end resorts costing 3500/-.
- · TV’s are available.
- · Not much place to dine in. One will have to order food in advance.
Itinerary:
Day 1: Chennai -> PB -> Aashiaana Residency Inn -> Mount Harriet -> Cellular Jail
After a much frustrating delay of our Air India flight we landed at PB around 2’ish in the noon. Maharaja Travels was kind enough to pick us up from airport and drop us at our stay place. After settling in comfortably at Aashiaana, we made our way to Aberdeen Bazaar to rent a bike. After much of an effort we managed to find a rental service and hired an Activa for 500 bucks. Our plan for that day was to go to Mount Harriet and local sightseeing in PB, thanks to Air India for messing our plans, we only managed to cover Mount Harriet and Cellular jail.
To reach Mount Harriet one has to travel all the way to Chatham Jetty, get into the ferry along with your vehicle and go to the other side, drive around 7km to Mount Harriet and then begin the trek. Unfortunately Mount Harriet was closed for trek due to some construction work, so we drove all the way to Mount Harriet gate and came back. Although it was a wasted journey we did enjoy the ride en-route.
Even though Andamans follow IST, it gets usually dark by 5 in the evening unlike any other place. So most of the sightseeing places are closed by 6 in the evening, due to which our final stop for the day was Cellular Jail which we visited for the light and sound show, which is usually a story telling session of how the jail use to function during British days. Try to attend the first session of this show as they usually cancel the next shows depending on the customers available.
Day 2: PB -> Baratang
3 ways to travel to baratang:
· 1. Car 2.Bike 3.Public Transport although I would recommend hiring a car. Look for packages for one day that cover Baratang and the activities in Baratang. There are 2 major things one can amuse at Baratang, Limestone cave exploration and Parrot Island. The former is done during the day time which includes a small trek about a km to limestone caves. This also includes a speed boat ride which can be hired at Baratang Jetty. It will cost around 450/- per head and the route includes traversing through mangrove trees. It kinda reminds me of Anaconda movie where one rides in a boat via very narrow path with both sides covered with mangroves. This limestone caves are naturally formed and that’s the specialty of this place. The later is done in the evening around 4pm just before the sunset. Again the travel to Parrot Island is via speed boat. Start by around 4pm in the evening. Remember, sunset at Andamans are as early as 5pm. By 6pm, Andamans is usually pitch dark and most of the shops wind up by 7. Out of all the tiny islands present around Baratang, the parrot migrate back to just this one particular island which the locals call as Parrot Island. One can see huge flocks of birds migrating back after an ordeal day, back to their nest for the night sleep, and then fly back out the next day morning in search of food, repeating the same cycle every single day.
If you are planning to stay back at Baratang, you could leave PB by 6.30 and catch the 9 o’clock convoy, whereas if you plan on coming back to PB in the evening, you should be up by 3 in the morning and catch the 6 o’clock convoy.
Day 3: PB -> Neil Island
We started by 5 in the morning, took the 6.30 convoy towards PB, visited cellular jail around 9and the made our way to Pheonix Jetty, to catch our 11 o’clock ferry to Neil Island. We reached Neil around 1 in the noon.
Below are the list of items one should do at Neil Island.
1. Visit, sunrise at Sitapur Beach, Sunset at Lakshmanpur beach, walk along the Natural Bridge and enjoy snorkelling and Glass Boat ride at Bharatpur Beach.
2. Most of the resorts in Neil Island fall in the same range of 1.5k or above.
3. Hire a car in Neil Island to go cover all the places. Eating option are less and most of them fall in the same range. Minimum 150 bucks.
4. A day in Neil will be enough to cover all the places. You can take the 1pm ferry to Havelock, which is the last ferry from Neil Island.
5. Beware of dogs and cats around especially in Pearl Park, they tend to be over friendly and jump on you.
6. If you are planning on going on a night walk in Neil carry a torch, its pitch dark after 6pm.
7. Ferry ticket cost is roughly 400 bucks per head, both from PB to Neil and Neil to Havelock.
Day 4: Neil Island -> Havelock
Our trip at Neil ended with a snorkelling session which was rejuvenating. We took the 1 pm ferry to Havelock and touched down Havelock at 3pm. Havelock is way huge than Neil Island and much more happening place. If you are one of those who like solitude then Neil is the place for you, but if like meeting new people and one who enjoys night life, then Havelock is the place for you.
1. Havelock is comparatively bigger than Neil Island. One has to hire a bike or a car or an auto to go around. I personally recommend bikes.
2. No petrol pumps are available in Havelock, one has to buy them from shops at an exorbitant price of 80-100 bucks. There is no other alternative.
3. Radhanagar beach is a must visit. Do not miss it at any cost. Even Kalapathar beach is a beautiful place to go. Visit Radhanagar beach during the day time and Kalapathar in the afternoon.
4. If you dont mind spending little bit more money, then please do scuba here. We did ours from barefoot and the experience was mind blowing.
5. Visit Elephant Beach if you have time, snorkelling and other water activities are some of the specialties here. I would recommend trekking to this beach rather than taking the ferry, but then it depends on whether you like trekking. It’s a 1.3km trek or one has to go back to Havelock jetty to catch the ferry to Elephant Beach which will cost you 750 bucks per head and this includes one round of snorkelling.
6. Havelock is the most happening place in Andamans in terms of crowds and night life. If you are lucky enough there would be a resort hosting a party with huge discounts on cocktails and there will be a DJ playing your favourite music.
7. Spend a minimum of 3 days in Havelock to cover all the places and to get the feel of it and catch the last ferry at 4 to PB.
Day 7: PB -> Red Skin Island -> Chidiya Tapus
This day was dedicated to Wandoor which is roughly 35km from PB. Red Skin/ Jolly Buoy, Wandoor Beach, Sippighat, Chidiya Tapu is some of the recommended places to visit.
1. We hired a bike for 24 hrs to go to Red Skin Island/ Jolly Buoy and Chidiya Tapu.
2. The ride especially to Chidiya Tapu is mesmerizing. Report at Wandoor Jetty around 9’ish. The cost per ticket is 750/-
3. There are roughly 4 ferries that take you either Red Skin or Jolly Buoy depending on whichever is open for that year. Govt close each of the island for a span of 6 months, allowing corals at each island to grow in this time frame at peace without any human intervention.
4. Red Skin Island and Jolly Buoy are part of Mahatma Gandhi national park, a project undertaken by government to save and preserve the water life. Out of the 51 islands that fall under their jurisdiction, tourists are allowed only on these 2 islands.
5. Snorkelling and Glass Boat are the 2 activities done here. Please do snorkelling here, Glass boat ride is up-to you.
6. Sunset at Chidiya Tapu is a must. Walk around the wild and explore few view points. Sunset and the ride to and from Chidiya Tapu is the best.
7. If you are planning to go by bike, the ride is around 70km back and forth. So make sure you have enough of petrol to cover it.
Day 8:
PB -> Chennai -> Bangalore
Time to go home!
This was ones in a life time experience to go on an exploration spree with a gal-pal. Hoping for more such adventures it’s me Manju signing out for now.
I & My Flipflops 