Hey everyone, we are homies back again as we promised to bring you part-2 of our most memorable trip to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Following our visit to Port Blair and enjoying the sound and light show at Cellular Jail, we proceeded to our hotels and had a great night sleep. The next day we got up excited with a nice healthy breakfast and proceeded in our taxis/cars towards Havelock Island via a ferry from Port Blair harbor.
The journey to the Havelock was just amazing, soaked in the beauty of nature with clean blue water all around. It is a beautiful journey with a clear nice Indian ocean surrounding us. The ferry takes around 4 hours to reach Havelock.
The ferry can be booked for both morning and afternoon trips depending on your choice. Sometimes people/tourist do take the ferry to Havelock Island directly from the airport. The harbour is very nearby to the airport around 3-5 km away.
Ferry Route option in Andamans and Most Popular Tourist Circuit are:
1. Port Blair to Havelock and return
2. Port To havelock and transfer to Port Via Neil route from Havelock
Even you have options for luxury ferries that operate daily from Port Blair morning and afternoon trips from Haddo Jetty in Port Blair. All ferry Start and end their day trip from port Blair and end at Port Blair by evening sunset. This depends on your budget and choice.
IMPORTANT TIPS:
- Do book your boat/ferries in advance as Andaman is a major tourist attraction with very limited availability and capacity especially during the season.
- The bookings can be done online
- Reach one hour before the departure time
- Cost is quite reasonable and discounted prices/options are available for group tours
- Carry your ID Proof
ABOUT THE HAVELOCK ISLAND
Known as Swaraj Island is one of the largest islands in the Andaman Islands. Around 41 km from Port Blair. Tourism is usually not much allowed in Andaman but this island is open for tourists. With lots of beautiful beaches, the Havelock is one of the most sought after tourist destination in the Andaman Islands.
The ferry ride was really beautiful and amazing. On arrival at the Havelock, we are taken to our resort which was just a 10-15 mins drive. Most of the hotels/resorts are situated nearby to the harbour. As we reached the port we loved the locally available coconut water. Must try if you haven’t had it yet. It was just yum and must have. The route to the resort was beautiful, breathtaking. With nature all around really refreshing journey. we checked in to our resort and the rest of the day was just relaxing and exploring nature. It just felt too close to nature. The place, where the resort was situated was really quiet, away from everything.
After resting for a while, we got to known about the very famous beach situated nearby to your resort The Radha Nagar Beach.
The Radha Nagar Beach or also known as Number 7 Beach is one of the most popular beaches on Havelock. This beach was rated “The best beach in Asia” by Time in 2004. This is the most visited place in Andaman.
The beach is very clean, quite safe and just amazing. It is just gorgeous with lots of water sport activities available on the beach. It was just a 10-15 minutes walk from the resort. The beach is astounding with turquoise blue sea and white sand making it a perfect place and perfect destination in Havelock.
The entire place is situated amidst the beauty of nature. The lush green trees along the sides of the beach let you soak into the place. Must is enjoying the sunset which makes it unforgettable.
BEST TIME TO VISIT
- OCTOBER TO FEBRUARY with the Temperatures ranging from 15 degrees to 34 degrees.
- OFFSEASON BEING: JUNE – NOVEMBER
MUST EXPERIENCE
- SUNSET AT RADHA NAGAR BEACH
The next day we got up and took a ferry to Elephant Beach. The beach is just 40 minutes away from Havelock dock.
THE ELEPHANT BEACH
Elephant Beach is one of the most distinctive beaches in the Andaman Islands. This stunning beach is situated in Havelock Island and it is the most visited beach in the Andaman Archipelago. The beach offers lots of water sports activities with amazing, beautiful scenery and view. Even you can relax out at the reach and enjoy the day. Though no elephants can be seen at the beach now, once there were elephants on the islands they were spotted roaming around on the shores of the beach that is how the beach got its name. This beach is famous for bright coral reefs which can be seen at a depth of even one metre. This beach has its own charm which makes it a memorable one for the tourists.
To reach Elephant Beach you can either take a boat/Ferry (most preferable) which takes around 40 minutes or some people prefer a trek. Trek is down through the mangrove forest. The journey to this beach is just about embracing the beautiful tiny coral islands. Only a few boats available at certain time slots better to book in advance.
TICKETS:
- The ticket was quite reasonable around 1400 -1500 Rs which is inclusive of personal guide, life jacket and a boat ride ticket.
BEST TIME TO VISIT:
- DUE TO THE TROPICAL CLIMATE, VISITING DURING SUMMERS (April to June) is quite ideal.
TIMINGS :
- Beach opens early in the mornings around 7 AM and the last ferry leaves at around 3:30 PM.
- The entire beach shuts down by 4 PM.
On reaching the beach, we were stunned by its beauty though it was a little more crowded than expected. The boats arrive right up to the beach and its so easy to slip on your gears and just start your water activities. Better to reach as early as possible so that you can enjoy it at peace. You don’t have to worry about the food as quite of variety of food snacks is available which the local people sell at a little higher price. But the snacks were really nice and one can try them without any fear. As far as I remember we were not allowed to take our own food at the beach. Don’t expect to get connectivity at the beach as it was not available.
THINGS TO DO AT THE ELEPHANT BEACH
- SNORKELLING
- SEA WALKING
- SWIMMING
- SCUBA DIVING
- BOATING
- JET SKIING
- BANANA BOATING
Though it was a little scary we did try Snorkelling at the beach. It was really so much fun and we loved enjoying it in the calm blue shallow water a lot. Even parents can go for it as it’s just done in shallow water and they teach you the ways to do snorkelling and how to breathe with the oxygen mask. It was just thrilling, we loved seeing the marine life and such beautiful colourful fishes in the crystal clear water. Due to the shallow water, it makes it the best for beginner snorkelers.
For snorkelling and other sports activities, the bathing suits and the specialised suites are available at the beach available in all sizes and beautiful colours at a reasonable price. Even changing rooms are available at the beach. It takes around 30 minutes to conclude this activity.
SNORKELLING
- Is very famous and one of the most popular activities that we can do at Andaman.
- What makes this a popular snorkelling location that attracts a number of visitors every year is the coral reefs that can be seen at a depth of just one meter from the surface, which is not a very common phenomenon.
- Apart from the coral reefs, one can also find many other exotic marine life species such as colourful fish, sea turtles, sea snakes. (very very rarely)
SEA WALKING
Is just the opposite and it involves diving to the bottom of the ocean and walking around and exploring the different sea plants and fish that surround you as you walk around the water.
THINGS TO CARRY
- HAT
- SUNGLASSES
- SUNSCREEN
- CAMERA
- COMFY SHOES/ SLIPPERS
- COMFY CLOTHES which can be worn at the beach
- EXTRA PAIR OF CLOTHES (if planning for sports activities)
- TOWELS
ACCOMMODATION
Quite a lot of options are available for you to stay depending on your budget. But it is advisable to pre-book in case you are planning to travel during the peak season.
CURRENCY 💴:
Indian Rupee
Plenty of ATMs and banks available for money exchange and withdrawals
LANGUAGES SPOKEN
- Hindi
- Tamil
- Bengali
- English
THINGS TO BUY
- HATS
- STONES
- PEARL JEWELLERY
- STONE JEWELLERY
- BEAUTIFUL WOODEN HANDICRAFTS
BASIC TIPS:
Tip 1: Network/ Connectivity is very bad out there better to keep your pads/tabs, and laptops with shows and movies on them. Only BSNL works.
Tip 2: Must-try Coconut 🥥 water. It is very healthy and helps in avoiding dehydration. It can be quite sunny ☀️ and hot sometimes.
Thank you guys for reading and spending your precious time. We will be back with the last and final part of our trip to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands very soon.
Andaman Trip is for sure a memory to cherish. I liked the info and details shred in the above article that would be of real help and guidance for first-time goers and pictures really add on like flavours to the article. My favourite was havelock island and I really wanted to spare some time there. Also, It’s my recommendation to spare minimum a week for Andaman Trip to get yourself the maximum experience and feel.