Discover the Andaman Islands in one Week

The Andoman and Nicobar islands are tropical type islands located in the Indian Ocean. They have been inhabited by the British, occupied by the Japanese and now operate under the Indian government. Due to their proximity to mainland India, the main tourists are from Chennai, Bengal and Kolkata. Explore the delights of the India tropics in one week and venture across the islands for sunshine and adventure.

Flying into the recently built swanky airport at Port Blair, you realise it is shared by the military. With a British passport, we received a friendly welcome.

The first stop was the Cellular Jail or Port Blair prison. Indians who fought for independence were deported from mainland India and built the huge prison. It had seven separate wings all radiating to a central tower. This allowed a requirement minimal security staff. Any problems were signalled from the tower across to Ross island and reinforcements could attend quickly.There is a well produced light and sound show, emphasising a little more the injustices applied on these freedom fighters and political activists by the British establishment. It was rather uncomfortable being British in this environment.

From the capital of the Andoman Island, there is a long 100 km trip north to go to Baratang. It requires a 3 am start to race out of Port Blair, drive through the chicane of cows asleep in the road and queue up whilst waiting for the traffic police to turn up to work at 6 am. The convoy of tourist cars goes through the jungle and an area that the Indians have classified as a restricted area. This is due to the Jarawa tribe living here.

The Jarawa are one of 6 ethnic tribes found in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Historically Indian government agencies had offered help and support, which the Jarawa have refused. As a result, they live in virtual isolation from the rest of the world. To avoid voyeuristic tourism, the area is restricted and cannot be accessed without permission and it is prohibited to photograph them or to step out of a vehicle in this area. In practice, there were two or three groups by the roadside seemingly asking for food.

The Anthropology museum in Port Blair, although limited in some aspects, has produced an informative audio visual show about the six different tribes living in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Continuing up the road further north are the river ferries, which carry a mix of buses, trucks, tourist cars and people.

From here, the “jet” boats travel 9 Kms along the river and into the mangroves.

There is a short walk through paddy fields and everyone is herded into the rather underwhelming limestone caves. The journey is repeated in reverse and makes for a very long day trip but definitely worth the effort.

There are two ferry companies connecting Port Blair to the other islands. We took the Green Ocean line to Havelock Island. The activities around the island focus mainly on the coral reefs with snorkelling and “submarines” where you can see reefs and fish below.

To see the sunset, take a tuk tuk round to Radhanagar Beach and join hundreds of other people intent on taking the best sunset photos. We discovered that walking further from any given drop off point massively reduces the numbers of people around.

There is no shortage of restaurants, however there is one that really stands out. “Something Different” runs a courtesy bus as it is tucked down a potholed path, out of sight. Treat yourself to excellent food from an outstanding menu. The chef wanders round checking that his customers are happy and will discuss his recipes. The whole experience is fabulous.

We chose Neil island for a couple of rest days as it is quieter and a little more relaxed. There is the same focus on water activities, however we discovered a quiet area with two wooden sunbeds. We had the beach to ourselves until sunset. At this point, the entire tourist population on Neil Island joined us. Some wanted to sit with us on the beds. Sadly there wasn't enough room to share! However, there were so many people on the beach, the sunset was entirely blocked out.

Again, a ferry trip is needed over to Ross Island to see the remains of the British troop base. There are dozens of tame spotted roe deer roaming the island left behind when the island was abandoned. The base was built by the previously mentioned freedom fighters in 1858 as the British administrative centre until 1941. The ruins are overgrown by tropical vegetation, however you can see what is left of the bakery, the swimming pool, church, officers club, children's park and cemetery. 500 people are said to have been stationed here in relative luxury before an earthquake and later WW2 led to its demise

The red and white painted lighthouse can be seen from Andaman Island, Port Blair and it is possible to climb the 35 metres to the top. It was built in 1972 by the french and is still operational.

The Andaman Islands offers a great, sunny beach holiday for Indian families. Lots of snorkelling opportunities in shallow corals, jet ski and jet boat rides and thousands of stalls with mass produced tourist items.

It was certainly interesting and enjoyable and one week is plenty to discover some of the busier islands. Enjoy your travels.