India Travel

Flights

Port Blair to: Calcutta (5 weekly; 2hr); Chennai (1-2 daily; 2hr).

Boats

Arial Bay to: Port Blair (2 weekly; 12—14hr); Smith Island (1-2 daily; 30min).

Havetock to: Long Island (2 weekly; 2-3hr); Neill Island (4 weekly: 1hr-1hr 30min; Port Blair (6 weekly; 4-6hr); Rangat Bay (4 weekly; 4—5hr).

Mayabunder to: Kaligtiat (2 daily; 2tir 30min-3hr)

Port Blair to: Anal Bay (2 weekly; 12-14hr); Calcutta (1 every 2 weeks; 60hr); Chennai (1 weekly; 60hr); Havelock Island (6 weekly; 4-6hr); Little Andaman (2 weekly; 9-1 Ohr): Long Island (2 weekly; 7hr 30min-9hr); Neill Island (4 weekly; 3-4hr); Rangat Bay (4 weekly; 8-1 Ohr); Vishakapatnam (1 monthly; 56hr).

Rangat Bay to: Havelock Island (4 weekly; 4-5hr); Long Island (1-2 daily; 1 hr 30min-2hr); Neill Island (2 weekly; 5-6hr); Port Blair (4 weekly; 8-10hr).

Buses

Diglipur to: Arial Bay (every 1-2hr; 20min); Kalighat (4 daily; 45min); Kalipur (5 daily; 40min).

Mayabunder to Karmateng beach (2 daily; 30min): Port Blair (3-5 daily; 9-10hr); Rangat (5 daily; 2hr-2hr 30min).

Port Blair to: Chiriya Tapu (3 daily; 1hr 15min); Mayabunder (3-5 daily; 9-10hr);

Rangat (5 daily; 7-8hr); Wandoor (4 daily; 1 hr 15min). Rangat to: Mayabunder (5 daily; 2hr-2hr 30min); Port Blair (5 daily; 7-8hr).

Boats leave Port Blair for Little Andaman around twice a week; the service to aim for is the one that continues south to Car Nicobar, capital of the Nicobar Islands, as the ferry is larger and marginally more comfortable. Both arrive at the main jetty (specially enlarged for the full-on logging operation still under way here), a 3km plod from the bazaar, where you’ll find the island’s only established accommodation. Before leaving Port Blair, it’s worth making a reservation at head office for the APWD Rest House 1km north of the shops behind the hospital, which has clean and spacious en-suite rooms. Otherwise your only option is the bleak GM Lodge in the bazaar, whose rooms wouldn’t look out of place in Port Blair’s Cellular jail. If you find yourself having to sleep here, take your mattress and mosquito net onto the roof as constant power cuts render the fans useless. At the time of writing, basic huts were being knocked up at Butler Bay.

Little Andaman is the furthest point south in the archipelago you can travel to on a standard one-month tourist permit. Located ten hours by sea from Port Blair, most of the island has been set aside as a tribal reserve for the Onge and is thus off limits. The only areas you’re allowed to visit lie on either side of the main settlement, Hut Bay, which sits halfway down the east coast. The northern part of this stretch has been mercilessly clear-felled, leaving a stark wasteland flanking the main road to the largest beach at Butler Bay, 16km from Hut Bay, while the coast to the south boasts few beaches to compare with those further north in the Andamans. Given the discomfort involved in getting here (the boat journey can be a hideous experience), it’s not hard to see why so few travellers bother.

Those that do rarely venture far out of Hut Bay, a scruffy agglomeration of chai shacks, hardware and provision stores ranged along Little Andaman’.'; single surfaced road. The only remarkable features of this insalubrious, unwelcoming place are an extraordinarily high incidence of cerebral malaria and the most ferocious sand flies in all the islands - more reasons not to come here. Unfortunately, the late-afternoon arrival time of the ferry means that unless you’re kitted out to camp and have enough provisions, you’ll have to spend at least a night in town (see below). As soon as you can, though, head north to Butler Bay or south down the coast, beyond the Christian Nicobari settlements around John Richardson Bay (3km), to the island’s only other accessible beaches; be prepared for sand flies and long walks to water sources, and try not to wander into the Onges reserve, which begins at the lighthouse.

The most intriguing island open to tourists in the Andaman group has to be Barren Island, twenty hours’ sea voyage east of Port Blair. India’s only active volcano, the arid brown mountain blew its top in May 1991 after lying dormant for 188 years, and has done so on two occasions since in 1994 and 1995. The only living creatures on Cinque are a herd of goats, released in 1891 by the British to provide sustenance for any shipwrecked sailors. There are no ferries to the island, but diving expeditions regularly make the trip as the seas around Barren are the richest in the region.

Cinque actually comprises two islets, joined by a spectacular sand isthmus, with shallow water either side that covers it completely at high tide. The main incentive to come here is the superlative diving and snorkelling around the reefs. However, heaps of dead coral on the beach attest to damage recently wreaked by the Indian navy during the construction of the swish air-conditioned “cottages” overlooking the beach. Rumour has it that these were built for the visit of a Thai VIP in 1996, but local government officials now use them as bolt holes from Port Blair.

Although there are no ferries to Cinque, it is possible to arrange dinghies from Chiriya Tapu village on the mainland. The two dive centres in Port Blair also regularly come here with clients. Currently, your permit only allows you to spend the day on the island; overnight stays are prohibited.

The remaining islands open to foreign tourists in the Andaman group are ail hard to get to and, with the exception of Little Andaman - where a vestigial population of Onge tribespeople have survived a massive influx of Indian Tamils and native Nicobars - uninhabited. Two hours’ boat ride south of Chiriya Tapu on South Andaman, Cinque Island offers superlative diving, outshone only by distant Barren Island, whose volcanic sand beds teem with marine life.

Over recent years Smith Island has become one the most popular escapes for travellers wishing to live out their Robinson Crusoe fantasies. Although it has not yet been included on the list printed on foreign tourist permits, it has achieved semi-official status and RslO permits are issued at the port authority in Arial Bay because of its proximity to the protected wildlife reserve at Ross Island (not to be confused with the one near Port Blair).The typically densely forested island has a small settlement at the ferry jetty, about thirty minutes’ journey from Arial Bay.

There are no roads, but a walking trail (2hr) leads across to the main beach, where up to thirty Westerners may be camping at any one time. There’s a tresh-water spring behind the beach but no food and only basic rice, vegetables and fruit are available at the village so all camping gear and other provisions must be taken along from the mainland. It is likely, however, that permanent rentable tents and even huts may appear soon. Fishing boats will ferry people direct to the beach for around Rs50 per head, as long as they’ve got a few takers. At low tide Smith is connected to Ross by a sandbar which people walk across, though they are not strictly allowed onto the protected island.

Known in the British era as Port Cormvallis, DIGLIPUR. North Andaman’s largest settlement, is another disappointing market where you’re only likely to pause long enough to pick up a local bus further north to the coast. On the hill above the bus stand, the APWD Rest House offers the village’s only accommodation, but the chowkidar is less than welcoming and you’re better oft pressing on 9km to ARIAL BAY. where a smaller but much more congenial APWD Rest House (no phone; O) stands on a hillock overlooking the setdement’s small bazaar. Better still, continue another 9km to Kalipur, served by several daily buses, where ANIIDCO recendy opened what must rank among the region’s biggest white elephants. Occupying a perfect spot on a hilltop, with superb views inland and to sea, the Turtle Resort; a unieasibly large concrete hotel for such a remote location, has spacious, clean rooms with fans and a restaurant (residents only). Only five minutes’ walk from the hotel down the path by the sharp bend in the road there’s an excellent deserted beach, backed by lush forest and covered in photogenic driftwood. Swimming is best at high tide because the water recedes across rocky mudpools.

The staff at the hotel claim it’s possible to walk from here to Saddle Peak, at 737m the highest mountain in the Andamans, which rises dramatically to the south, swathed in lush jungle. Permission to make the three- to four-hour climb must be obtained from the Range Officer at Anal Bay, but don’t attempt the hike without a guide and plenty of drinking water. The majority of tourists who find their way up here, however, do so in order to explore the various islands dotted around the gulf north of Arial Bay, particularly Smith.

The best place to eat in this area is the Mohan Restaurant, at the far end of the bazaar in Anal Bay, which serves cold drinks and huge portions of fresh local seafood against a surreal backdrop of lurid cherubs and a poster of the racehorse Red Rum. From Arial Bay, the boat that has made its way up from the capital returns direct (Wed & Sat 4pm; 13—14hr) to Port Blair overnight.

Until the new road is finished, KALIGHAT. Where the river becomes un-navigable and the ferryboat from Mayabunder turns around, serves as the main entry point to North Andaman. A cluttered little bazaar unfolds from the top of the slipway, hemmed in by dense mangrove swamps, and when you arrive you should hope a bus is standing here to take you to Diglipur. If there isn’t, head for one of the village’s dismal little chai stalls and dig in for a wait, or turn right to see if there’s space in the three-roomed Government Rest House on the hill overlooking the end of the street. The chowkidar in this quaint wooden house is friendly, but refuses to cook for tourists so you’ll have to chance the chai stalls for a meal.

The one worthwhile place to visit in this area is Radhnagar, 10km out of town and served by hourly buses, where there’s a beautiful sandy beach backed by unspoilt forest where camping is feasible. Try to rent a cycle from one of the stalls in Kalighat though, as the beach is 2km outside Radhnagar bazaar, providing the nearest source of fresh water.

In principle, four buses per day run north from Kalighat to Diglipur (12.30pm, 1pm, 3pm & 5.30pm); they’re crammed full, but the trip only takes 45 minutes. Look out for logging elephants beside the road shortly after leaving Kalighat. Heading south, the boat leaves at Sam for Mayabunder. If you’re continuing on to Port Blair, buy a through bus ticket for Geetanjali Travels’ express video coach at PVL Sharma’s grocery store, in the bazaar; this service is timed to leave just after the boat arrives from Kalighat. If you take the second boat at 12.30pm, you can get no further than Mayabunder or Rangat the same day.

Shrouded in dense jungle, North Andaman is the least populated of the region’s large islands, crossed by a single road linking its scattered Bengali settlements. Timber extraction is proceeding apace here, despite a promise by the Island Development Authority to phase out logging by the year 2000, but the total absence of motorable roads into northern and western areas has ensured blanket protection for a vast stretch of convoluted coastline, running from Austin Strait in the southeast to the northern tip. Cape Price. Even if it were physically possible to reach this region, you wouldn’t be allowed to, but it’s reassuring to know at least one extensive wilderness survives in the Andamans. That said, the imminent completion of the ATR’s final section, which will connect the far north to Mayabunder, may herald the start of a new settlement influx, with the same disastrous consequences for the environment as have been seen elsewhere.