India Travel
Details of The Andaman Islands
The ANDAMAN ISLANDS, comprising India’s most remote state, are situated 1000km off the east coast in the middle of the Bay of Bengal, connected to the mainland by flights and ferries from Calcutta, Chennai and Vishakapatnam. Thickly covered by deep green tropical forest, the archipelago supports a profusion of wildlife, including some extremely rare species of bird, but the principal attraction for tourists lies offshore, around the pristine reefs ringing most of the islands. Filled with colourful fish and kaleidoscopic corals, the crystal-clear waters of the Andaman Sea feature some of the world’s richest and least spoilt marine reserves — perfect for snorkelling and scuba diving. Potential visitors may, however, consider that the expense and effort required to get there, the lack of infrastructure and certain increased health risks, as well as ethical concerns about ecological and tribal issues, rather outweigh the benefits of a trip.
For administrative purposes, the Andamans are grouped with the Nicobar Islands, 200km further south but, as yet, strictly off limits to foreigners. Approximately 200 islands make up the Andaman group and nineteen the Nicobar. They are islands of varying size, the summits of a submarine mountain range stretching 755km from the Arakan Yoma chain in Burma to the fringes of Sumatra in the south. All but the most remote of these are populated in parts by indigenous tribes whose numbers have been slashed dramatically as a result of nineteenth-century European settlement and, more recently, rampant deforestation. Today felling is supposed to be restricted, and 86 percent of the islands’ forests are officially “protected". Nevertheless, padauk and teak are still extensively used for building materials, furniture and tourist knick-knacks, and those areas of woodland still open to the lumberjacks are being stripped of valuable foreign-currency-earning timber ahead of the all-out ban on extraction expected in the next few years. Foreign tourists are only permitted to visit certain parts of the Andaman group, separated by the deep Ten Degree Channel from the Nicobar Islands.
The point of arrival for boats and planes is South Andaman, where the predominantly Tamil and Bengali community in the small but busy capital. Port glair- accounts for almost half the total population. Permits obtainable on the island or on arrival by air are granted for a stay of one month. The most beautiful beaches and coral reefs are found on outlying islands. A healthy ger-up-and-go spirit is essential if you plan to explore these, as connections and transport can be erratic, frequently uncomfortable and severely limited, especially on the smaller islands. Once away from the settlements, you enter a Coca-Cola-free zone where you’ll need your own camping supplies and equipment. It’s also worth pointing out that a surprising number of travellers fall sick in the Andamans. The dense tree cover, marshy swamps and high rainfall combine to provide the perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes, and malaria is endemic in even the most remote settlements. Sandmes are also ferocious in certain places and tropical ulcer infections from scratching the bites is a frequent hazard.
The climate remains tropical throughout the year, with temperatures ranging from 24° to 35°C and humidity levels never below seventy percent. By far the best time to visit is between January and May. From mid-May to October, heavy rains flush the islands, often bringing violent cyclones that leave west-coast beaches strewn with fallen trees, while in November and December less severe rains arrive with the northeast monsoon. Despite being so far east, the islands run on Indian time, so the sun rises as early as 4.30am in summer and darkness falls soon after 5pm.
Related Properties from Gurgaon
Details of Other islands
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.
Around Port Blair in The Andaman Islands
At some point, you're almost certain to find yourself killing time in Port Blair, waiting for boats to show up or tickets to go on sale. Rather than wasting days in town, it's worth exploring the coast of South Andaman which, although far more densely populated than other islands in the archipelago, holds a handful of easily accessible beauty spots and historic sites. Among the latter, the ruined colonial monuments on Viper and Ross islands can be reached on daily harbour cruises or regular ferries from the capital. For beaches, head southeast to Corbyn's Cove, or cross South Andaman to
State tourist offices in Calcutta
The most useful of the many tourist offices representing other states in Calcutta are those that cover trie northeastern states, and issue whichever permits may be necessary (details of permit requirements can be found on p.1043), and that of the Andaman and Nicobar islands. Andaman and Nicobar, 3A Auckland Place; Arunachal Pradesh, 41B Chowringhee Place; Assam, 8 Russell St; Manipur, 26 Rowland Rd; Meghalaya, 9 Russell St; Mizoram, 24 Old Ballygunge Rd; Nagaland, 11 Shakespeare Sarani; Orissa, 41 Lenin Sarani; Sikkim, 5/2 Russell St;
Inter-island services in The Andaman Islands
Buses connect Port Blair with most major settlements on South and Middle Andaman, mainly via the Andaman Trunk Road. From the crowded, disorganized bus stand at the bottom of town, one daily government service at 5am runs via Rangat (6hr) as far as Mayabunder (9hr), from where you have to catch a boat across the straits to Kalighat on North Andaman in order to press on north to Diglipur and Ariel Bay. There's another daily service to Rangat at 6am. Several private companies including Geetanjali Travels (tickets at Tillie teashop by the bus stand) and the cheaper Ananda run deluxe
Getting to the Andaman Islands
Port Blair, on South Andaman, is served by Indian Airlines flights from Calcutta (daily except Wed & Fri) and Chennai (Mon, Wed, Fri & Sun); Jet I Airways now runs a daily flight from Chennai, which means that availability is a lot easier than it used to be on that sector. Tickets for the two-hour flights remain expensive though, at around 5200 one way, unless you qualify' for a discount. It's also possible to get to Port Blair by ship. Services to and from Chennai have stabilized and can now be reasonably relied upon to leave in each direction every Friday.
Port Blair in The Andaman Islands
PORT BLAIR, a characterless cluster of tin-roofed buildings tumbling towards the sea in the north, east and west and petering into fields and forests in the south, merits only a short stay. There's little to see here - just the Cellular Jail and a few small museums - but as the point of arrival for the islands, and the only place with a bank, tourist offices and hotels, it can't be avoided. If you plan to head off to more remote islands, this is also the best place to stock up on supplies and buy necessary equipment.
South Andaman: Port Blair and around
South Andaman is today the most heavily populated of the Andaman Islands - particularly around the capital, Port Blair - thanks in part to the drastic thinning of tree cover to make way for settlement. Foreign tourists can only visit its southern and east central reaches - including the beaches at Corbyn's Cove and Chiriya Tapu, the fine reefs on the western shores at Wandoor, 35km southwest of Port Blair and the environs of Madhuban and Mount Harriet on the east coast across the bay from the capital. With your own transport it's easy to find your way along the narrow
Moving on from Mayabunder in The andaman Islands
Until the last strelch of the Andaman Trunk Road and a bridge across the narrow strait to North Andaman Island just west of Mayabunder are completed in 2002, the shortest crossing is the ferry ride to Kalighat (2 daily; 3hr). The first departure of the day leaves at 9.30am, on a boat that's hopelessly small and cramped, so come prepared for hours of relentless sun (or torrential rain in the monsoons). That said, the journey is very memorable, especially towards its latter stages when the mangrove-lined sides of the creek close in as you approach Kalighat. The other boat leaves
North Andaman
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
Islands north of Port Blair in The Andaman Islands
Printed on the permit card you receive on arrival in the Andamans is a list of all the other islands you're allowed to visit in the archipelago. The majority of them are north of Port Blair. Given the great distances involved, not to mention the often erratic connections between them (and the time limit imposed by the one-month permit), it definitely pays to know where to head for as soon as you arrive rather than drift off on the first promising ferry out of Phoenix Jetty. The best way of doing this is to talk to fellow travellers arriving back
Travel details of the Andaman Islands
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
Practicalities of Boats leave Port Blair for Little Andaman
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
Moving on from Port Blair in The Andaman Islands
Port Blair is the departure point for all flights and ferry crossings to the Indian mainland; it is also the hub of the Andamans' inter-island bus and ferry network, Unfortunately, booking tickets (especially back to Chennai, Calcutta or Vishakapatnam) can E>e time-consuming, and many travellers are obliged to come back here well before their permit expires to make reservations, before heading off to more pleasant parts to kill their remaining days.
Local transport and tours in The Andaman Islands
Walking is tiring and time-consuming in hilly Fort Blair - even taking into account the minimal amount of sightseeing the place offers - making transport essential .Yellow-top taxis gather opposite the bus stand. They all have meters, but negotiating the price before leaving is usual practice. Expect to pay Rs50 for a trip from the centre of town to Corbyn's Cove. In 1999 the islands received their first fleet of auto-rickshaws, but they tend to charge almost as much as taxis. Local buses run infrequently from the bus stand in central Port Blair to Wandoor and Chiriya Tapu, and can be
Little Andaman is the furthest point south in the archipelago
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
Genarl Information of Middle Andaman
For most travellers. Middle Andaman is a charmless rite of passage to be endured en route to or from the north. The sinuous Andaman Trunk Road, hemmed in by walls of towering forest, winds through miles of jungle, crossing the strait that separates the island from its neighbour, Baratang Island, by means of rusting flat-bottomed ferry. The island's frontier feeling is heightened by the presence on 'the buses of armed guards, and the knowledge that the impenetrable forests west of the ATR are the Jarawa Tribal Reserve. Of its two main settlements, the more northerly Mayabunder is slightly more appealing
Mayabunder of Middle Andaman
About two hours further north by road, perched on a long promontory right at the top of the island and surrounded by mangrove swamps, is MAYABUN-DER; springboard for the remote northern Andaman Islands. The village, which is home to a large minority of former Burmese Karen tribal people who were originally brought here as cheap logging labour by the British, is more spread out and more appealing than Rangat, but again there is little to hold your interest for long. At the brow of the hill, before it descends to the jetty, a small hexagonal wooden structure houses the Forest
Corbyn’s Cove and Chiriya Tapu in The Andaman Islands
The best beach within easy reach of the capital lies 10km southeast at Corbyn's Cove, a small arc of smooth white sand backed by a swaying curtain of palms. There's a large hotel here, but the water isn't particularly clear, and bear in mind that lying around scantily clothed will bring you considerable attention from crowds of local workers. For more isolation, rent a moped or take a taxi 30km south to Chiriya Tapu ("Bird Island"), at the tip of South Andaman. The motorable track running beyond this small fishing village leads through thick jungle overhung with twisting creepers to a
Special permits
In addition to a visa, special permits may be required for travel to certain areas of the country - notably Sikkim, parts of Ladakh,the Andaman Islands, Lakshadweep, the far west of the Thar desert beyond Jaisalmer, and some northeastern hill states. There are two types of permits: those for restricted areas such as Sikkim, and the Inner Line Permit required by both foreigners and Indians intending to visit politically sensitive border areas of Ladakh, parts of the northeast, and north and east Sikkim. Inner Line Permits are usually issued by the District Magistrate (see chapters for more detail). Some areas (parts
Cinque Island in North Andaman Islands
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