Popular Tourist Places
Port Blair
The capital town of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands is the first port of call for all tourists. The town has grown as a tourist centre with a profusion of hotels and lodges. There are several day trips in and around Port Blair conducted by the Tourism Department and private tour operators, which is the primary itinerary of domestic tourists. The town also has historical importance as it houses the Cellular Jail, a site that is most visited by tourists. It also has the Anthropological Museum (originally built in 1975 and located in Middle-point it shares information on the indigenous and primitive tribes of the A&NI),Samudrika Museum (with 350 species of sea-life and rare varieties of coral, themuseum reflects the marine life and wealth submerged in the waters of these islands), Andaman Water Sports Complex, Corbyn’s Cove – a popular beach with both tourists and local population, and Mount Harriet (the summer headquarters of the Chief Commissioner during British Raj and the highest peak in the South Andamans (365 metres high) which are on the tourist circuit. Chidiyatapu, thesouthern most tip of the South Andaman Island with rich mangrove covers and several bird species is another popular spot. There are several day trips to islands around Port Blair such as Ross Island (once the seat of British power and capital of these islands), Viper Island, Wandoor (which is the entry point to the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park covering an area of 281.5 km made up of open sea, creeks and 15 islands, with coral reefs, a plethora of coral fish and other marine life abounding in this area) and North Bay. Our primary survey with tourists revealed that the popularity of Port Blair to itself differs greatly between domestic and foreign tourists. In terms of average length of stay, it is five days in the case of the average domestic tourist but only oneto one-and-a-half days for the average foreigner. But for the fact that Port Blair isthe only entry point into the islands that forces all travellers to pass through it, it islikely that the time spent by the foreign tourist would be even lesser. Figure 4.4 represents the visitation of popular tourist sites in and around Port Blair by domestic and foreign tourists .As Figure 4.4 depicts, almost all tourist spots in Port Blair see far greater visitation by domestic than by foreign tourists. In fact, our survey revealed that 43.5 percent of foreign tourists did not visit any spot within Port Blair indicating that they used it purely as a transit point into the Islands. Among those foreigners who visited spots, Aberdeen Bazaar (the main shopping area in the town), Cellular Jail and Corbyn’s Cove (the popular beach and swimming spot) register the highest arrivals. The high visitation by domestic tourists of nearly all spots within Port Blair indicates the popularity of the package tour model.
Baratang Island
Around 65 km from Port Blair by road, Baratang is a popular place for day trips among domestic tourists. The chief attractions are the limestone caves and the mud volcanoes. It was thrown open to tourists in 2003. During the peak tourist season, it is estimated that close to 1,000 people visit the limestone caves on a single day. The Forest Department has a mangrove canopy walk (Figure 4.5) that connects to a trail through moist deciduous forests that leads to the limestone caves. Nearby Nilambur jetty is Parrot Island (Totatekri), which is also a popular site where tourists can watch thousands of parakeets nesting
Barren Island
Around 139 km from Port Blair, the island is about 3 km in diameter and has the only active volcano in India that erupted twice recently – in 1991 and 1994–1995.
Chatham Island
Located very close to Port Blair town, Chatham has Asia’s oldest sawmill, still in use, on a tiny island connected by a bridge over a stretch of sea. Thereare buses from Port Blair to Chatham. Guided tours are conducted in the saw mill.
Diglipur
It is at a distance of 265 km from Port Blair and is located in North Andaman Island. There are boats that ply between Port Blair and Diglipur as also regular bus service. The twin islands of Ross and Smith connected by a sand bar isone of Diglipur’s many attractions. To the south of Diglipur are Saddle Peak, KalipurLamiya Bay and Ramnagar beaches. The only hydroelectric project in the A&NI ison river Kalpong in Diglipur and is visited by a few tourists.
Havelock Island
An island around 39 km northeast of Port Blair, it has been popular with tourists since the mid-nineties. There are daily boats to Havelock from PortBlair. It has the famous Radhanagar Beach (Figure 4.6) that was voted by Time magazine as one of Asia’s most beautiful beaches in 2004.
The write-up quotes
Havelock is, by far, the most popular island among foreign tourists and reasonably visited by domestic tourists. Beach No 7 – Radhanagar – is the most popular spot. After Port Blair, Havelock has seen highest investment in tourism-linked accommodation and infrastructure with over 20 accommodation units including shacks, high-end eco-hotels, budget hotels and the government-run Dolphin Guest House. It has three daily ships operating from Port Blair and a few connecting it to other islands such as Neil and Long Islands
Jollybuoy Island
Located inside the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park, the Jollybuoy Island is known for its coral cover. Tourists are ferried to Jollybuoy fromWandoor by boat and taken snorkelling to view the corals.
Long Island
Located to the east of Middle Andaman Island and 85 km from Port Blair is the Long Island. The remote Lalaji Bay is gaining popularity among foreign tourists. There is one resort that has opened recently.
Mayabunder
It is 159 km from Port Blair, situated in the northern part of middle Andaman. Mayabunder has some beautiful beaches; the best-known of these, the Karmatang beach, is also a turtle nesting ground. Avis Island, also with beautiful beaches, is just a short boat ride from Mayabunder. Mangrove-lined creeks are also an attraction. In terms of tourist infrastructure, there are 2 government guest houses (the APWD guest house has spectacular views and is very popular on that count) and 3 privately run lodges in Mayabunder.
Neil Island
Around 37 km from Port Blair, this remains the other most popular island with foreign tourists, after Havelock. Its three beaches – Bharatpur, Lawmanpur and Sitapur (Figure 4.7) are much quieter than Havelock’s popular spots and therefore increasing more in popularity. There are relatively recent accommodation facilities here – 3 privately run resorts and 1 government guesthouse. There is one ship that plies from Port Blair to Neil every day of the week
Rangat
Around 93 km from Port Blair, Rangat can be reached by both sea and road via the Andaman Trunk Road (ATR) that goes through the Jarawa Reserve. Cuthbert Bay beach is a turtle nesting ground, whereas Amkunj and Panchavati are well-known beaches.
Red Skin
This is another island in the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park, Port Blair, with good coral and marine life. No overnight stay is permitted. Tourists are ferried to Red Skin by boat from Wandoor and taken snorkelling to view the corals.
Viper Island
The Britishers constructed a prison here that was abandoned with the construction of the Cellular Jail in Port Blair. It has gallows atop a hillock where condemned prisoners were hanged. Tourists are ferried by boat to Viper Island from Port Blair.
Major Activities
Sightseeing – Most domestic tourists visiting the Andamans go on sightseeing tours conducted by tour operators in Port Blair. Their standard itinerary involves two days to sightsee in and around Port Blair, including places such as the Cellular Jail, Corbyn’s cove , Anthropological Museum, Samudrika Museum, the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park and the Mini zoo. It also includes a day trip to Baratang (by road from Port Blair) and sometimes a day trip to Havelock.
Snorkelling – This is a very popular activity in the Andamans, mostly for foreign tourists. Tourists are taken snorkelling to Red Skin, North Bay and Jollybuoy where there are good corals. Almost all tourists visiting these islands are taken snorkelling by locals. Those who do not go snorkelling are taken to view the corals on glass-bottomed boats (Figure 4.20). In Havelock and Neil Islands, foreign tourists go snorkelling on their own. There is also snorkelling at the Andaman Water Sports Complex and Corbyn’s Cove Tourism Complex.
Scuba diving – Scuba diving, which involves swimming underwater while using self-contained underwater breathing apparatus is another activity that has many takers. The Andamans, with its rich marine and underwater life is said to be one of the world’s best and safest places for scuba diving. Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) certified divers visit the Andamans for diving. Villagers take the tourist into the sea to spots from where they can dive. From Havelock, tourists are taken diving to Hara Tikri or John Lawrence on a donghie. The Andaman and Nicobar Scuba Diving Society situated at Wandoor provides scuba diving opportunities.
Fishing – This is an activity offered by few hotels. High-end tourists hire a boat and go fishing. Villagers also take tourists fishing in their donghies. Game fishing, it is widely believed, has immense potential in the Andamans.
Trekking – Given its tropical forest cover, trekking also has many takers in the islands. There is a nature trail from Mount Harriet to Madhuban close to Port Blair. Havelock and Neil Islands have many trekking trails that largely see foreigners with very few domestic takers.
How to reach
By air
Port Blair the capital of Andaman and Nicobar Island is well connected by Air from Kolkata and Chennai. The A&NI Administration and Directorate of Civil Aviation have also begun renting out helicopters for use by tourists to get to popular islands such as Havelock. While the heli-copters are meant for priority use by important persons like the LG, senior bureaucrats and the Member of Parliament, when available, they are rented out to tourists at the rate of Rs 850 per person one way to Havelock. The Directorate of Civil Aviation is planning to increase capacity and get two more helicopters (15-seaters with air conditioning) to cater to the increasing tourist demand and possibly start plying even to Diglipur – which has an air strip.22 The Directorate also holds that private parties have so far only expressed interest to lease out their helicopters to the Directorate and not enter operations in the sector as it is economically non-viable. Therefore, it is unlikely that the privatisation of air services will take place as private operators will not be able to absorb the loss.
