[AltoLXI]

Just excellent .

I will be visiting Andamans from April 18 till April 22nd. 'will be flying from Bangalore. Places I will visiting and hotels as below:

Port Blair : Megapode Nest
Havelock : Aparupa Sands Marina (Deluxe cottage)
Neil : Pearl Park Beach Resort (standard a/c cottage)

I will also be visiting Baratang on the last day.

[ariesonu]

http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/b.../1/886206.html

NIO scientists observe volcanic eruption on Barren Island in Andaman Sea

Regards-Sonu

[aah78]

Thank you for this brilliant narration & extremely detailed Travelogue, vijayols.

Thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
I think it'll be a great resource for any new visitor to the Islands.

[vijayols]

Originally Posted by aah78

Thank you for this brilliant narration & extremely detailed Travelogue, vijayols.

Thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
I think it'll be a great resource for any new visitor to the Islands.

Thank you so much for the feedback. Went little overboard with "our" experience!. Next one, want to strike balance. Let me see

Originally Posted by AltoLXI

Just excellent .

I will be visiting Andamans from April 18 till April 22nd. 'will be flying from Bangalore. Places I will visiting and hotels as below:

Port Blair : Megapode Nest
Havelock : Aparupa Sands Marina (Deluxe cottage)
Neil : Pearl Park Beach Resort (standard a/c cottage)

I will also be visiting Baratang on the last day.

Hope you have couple of days in Neil. (or at least one full day). Try cycling around in Neil. Will be worth a ride.
Port Blair - Dont miss sound and light in ROSS island and corbyn cove walk/stoll. Have a great trip thumbs up and update.

[Rohit_Quad]

Wow !!! I am sold. Decided to go to Andaman after going through your travelogue. Just looked at the flights (Hyd -> Port Blair) for the first week of May and were reasonable. Thanks for such an amazing write up.

[procrj]

Thanks a lot for posting that detailed TLog vijayols. Will reach out to you for more details as I am thinking about visiting Andaman later this year.

[vijayols]

Originally Posted by Rohit_Quad

Wow !!! I am sold. Decided to go to Andaman after going through your travelogue. Just looked at the flights (Hyd -> Port Blair) for the first week of May and were reasonable. Thanks for such an amazing write up.

Thanks Rohit.Andamans would meet and exceed your expectations for sure.

Hope my in progress travelogue to the North east inspires a trip as well.

Vijay

Originally Posted by procrj

Thanks a lot for posting that detailed TLog vijayols. Will reach out to you for more details as I am thinking about visiting Andaman later this year.

You can pm me anytime buddy.

Cheers

Vijay

[Rohit_Quad]

Originally Posted by vijayols

Thanks Rohit.Andamans would meet and exceed your expectations for sure.

Hope my in progress travelogue to the North east inspires a trip as well.

Vijay

Hi Vijay,

I am taking the plunge and finalized the trip. I have few questions about the place. We (2 People) are planning to stay for 9~10 days from landing to take-off. It is more like a trip to loosen, take in the beauty of the place. Can you please guide me on what can be seen/done and where to stay for those 10 days. Being from a busy city, i prefer the less known/ secluded places. Also i am not looking for fancy hotels/ resorts which cost a bomb (the more reasonable and closer to nature, the better). Kindly spare some time and give me an itinerary as i have no idea of what is what in Andaman, except for your travelogue. I thought of sending you a PM, but i thought this info will be useful for any other members looking for information, hence posted here in your thread.

P.S. this is the second trip i am taking inspired by a Team-Bhp travelogue

[venkatt1800]

Vijay, such a complete and inspiring Andaman trip log ! You have provided readers detailed of rarely visited places like Diglipur, Kala pathar beach etc. Superb post !

[vijayols]

Thanks for the kind words Venkat.These places were truly amazing and we were glad we opted to go there.What we missed was Little andaman (Hpoefully we do it the next time we go there).

Cheers
Vijay

Originally Posted by Rohit_Quad

Hi Vijay,

I am taking the plunge and finalized the trip. I have few questions about the place. We (2 People) are planning to stay for 9~10 days from landing to take-off. It is more like a trip to loosen, take in the beauty of the place. Can you please guide me on what can be seen/done and where to stay for those 10 days. Being from a busy city, i prefer the less known/ secluded places. Also i am not looking for fancy hotels/ resorts which cost a bomb (the more reasonable and closer to nature, the better). Kindly spare some time and give me an itinerary as i have no idea of what is what in Andaman, except for your travelogue. I thought of sending you a PM, but i thought this info will be useful for any other members looking for information, hence posted here in your thread.

P.S. this is the second trip i am taking inspired by a Team-Bhp travelogue

Thanks for liking the travelogue Rohit.Glad that it inspired you to take the plunge.The island is truly beautiful(But then co incidentally I find all places we travel to out of the world too!:We had been to Arunachal/Meghalaya/assam recently which was again heavenly but that is another story)

So when are you planning to travel?Would need to spend time over the weekend to revert and suggest a rough itinerary if that is ok with you?

Vijay

[Rohit_Quad]

Originally Posted by vijayols

Thanks for liking the travelogue Rohit.Glad that it inspired you to take the plunge.The island is truly beautiful(But then co incidentally I find all places we travel to out of the world too!:We had been to Arunachal/Meghalaya/assam recently which was again heavenly but that is another story)

So when are you planning to travel?Would need to spend time over the weekend to revert and suggest a rough itinerary if that is ok with you?

Vijay

I am planning to travel there from June 14th to June 25th. Roughly 10 days. I'll be booking the tickets today or tomorrow. Since there is a lot of time for me to make reservations, i can gladly wait for an itinerary from you.

[AltoLXI]

Originally Posted by Rohit_Quad

I am planning to travel there from June 14th to June 25th. Roughly 10 days. I'll be booking the tickets today or tomorrow. Since there is a lot of time for me to make reservations, i can gladly wait for an itinerary from you.

I visited A&N islands from 15th April to 22nd April. It was an awesome outing for me and my family members.

Please note that weather plays very important role when you are there. Any rains and the entire plan goes awry. It happened to me (despite visiting during summer and it can rain any time there) and the ferries / boats stopped for three days.

It seems that monsoon is likely to hit now.

http://www.livemint.com/Politics/2Py...in-next-2.html

I think June is not the right time to visit A&N islands - except if you plan to stay in only one place and enjoy rains - which I think most people will not do.

[Rohit_Quad]

Originally Posted by AltoLXI

I visited A&N islands from 15th April to 22nd April. It was an awesome outing for me and my family members.

Please note that weather plays very important role when you are there. Any rains and the entire plan goes awry. It happened to me (despite visiting during summer and it can rain any time there) and the ferries / boats stopped for three days.

It seems that monsoon is likely to hit now.

http://www.livemint.com/Politics/2Py...in-next-2.html

I think June is not the right time to visit A&N islands - except if you plan to stay in only one place and enjoy rains - which I think most people will not do.

Well, we welcome the rains actually I have bought the tickets for a duration of 9 dys, 14th June to 24th June. Thanks for the valuable information. I'll be prepared and take the necessary stuff to enjoy the rains even better.

[vijayols]

Rohit would draw up a rough list of places to visit and what you can expect.However you need to check the weather and accordingly draw up your itinerary.Can help to fine tune the same after you come up with the initial plan.

However would definitely suggest you to pack the following

1) Nice rain coats.
2) If possible an SJ cam underwater camera(appx 6k on amazon)with nano 32gb sd cards.Can be doubled up for all road trips to shoot HD videos while driving.
3) If you guys know swimming than some snorkeling kits as virtually snorkeling can be done on all beaches(If not then don't bother).

Plan for early starts as daybreak is around 5 am and night falls around 5 pm.

Port Blair:Though not much to see here this would serve as points where you would land and take off.Places to visit in order of preference
Corbyns cove.Though the beach is not spectacular the drive till there would be fun.Would suggest a walk from the science museum till town along the sea.
Ross island sound and light show which we missed is supposed to be among the best in India.
Cellular jail.(Check closing time is around 4.15.)

Havelock/Neil Island/Long Island: This would be your go to for snorkeling/sea walk and general beach fun.Our favorite beaches in havelock were kalapather(amazing views if you walk away from the normal tourist spot)It was near the Flying elephant resort in havelock where we stayed.
Hire bikes for local transport.Don't miss the food outlets we have penned in neil(awe some icecreams) and Havelock.Long island is largely un explored though we missed it due to lack of time.Lots of stay options and if you are the adventures types the shacks are extremely cheap.

All ferries could be booked on line.Makruzz or govt.

Snorkeling there are plenty of padi certified guys.We went with the expensive but good team Barefoot scuba.

Diglipur or North and south cinque islands: If you are planning for the north andaman trip then Ross and smith islands near diglipur is probably the best beach you would find in Andaman.Enroute places to visit would be dhani nallah walk/aamkunj and moricedera beaches.By taxi would have to factor 2 days for up and down travel.Overnight buses available.
We gave a miss to the baratang caves which normal tourists flock to.The drive through the forest is fun.If in diglipur the trek is a must to saddle peak.

Cinque beach would be an alternative if you cannot make it there.

Little andaman is an option depending on the weather.Un explored.However erratic boat timings so would suggest that is done first so that all un predictability can be covered first.

Best of Luck.Please check what you are looking for and plan accordingly.Can help to fine tune.

[AltoLXI]

Originally Posted by vijayols

We gave a miss to the baratang caves which normal tourists flock to.The drive through the forest is fun.

I visited Bartang. We need to start as early as 3-4 am (yes, you read it right). It is a bumpy ride for around 60kms to reach the check post. The convoys start at 6am. When we reached at 6am there were already 50-60 cars / minivans in queue for the permit. For around 40 kms the vehicles move through the Jarawa reserve forest. The rules are very strict. No stopping in the forest at all.

Then a huge ferry transports tourists to the other side - takes around 10 minutes. At Bartang we need to get permit for visiting the caves and mud volcanoes. ID proof is necessary. A short boat ride took us to the caves. The mangroves are beautiful. Caves are small but nice. Can spend around 30 minutes there. Once back a jeep took us to the mud volcanoes. Nothing spectacular about them but are interesting. Again around 30 minutes can be spent.

There are quite a few food stalls in Bartang - so food should not be a worry. We returned back to Port Blair in the evening at 5pm.

One thing about the Jarawa tribes - Indian Govt. is trying to bring them to main stream but they are reluctant. Saw a few boys sitting by the road side on our way up. We were told Govt. is trying to provide them rations, clothes and have started communicating with them.

The most memorable thing on the way back - A pickup van (local one) was ahead of us. In the middle of the forest, a Jarawa man suddenly emerged from the forest and waved at the van. The van stopped to pick him up (which is not to be done, I suppose) . He jumped in the back of the van and our car was behind the van for quite a few kilometers. A typical tribal carrying colourful bow and arrows and also a wild pig, which he had hunted, on the back. Later he asked the van driver to stop, got down and WAVED the driver to THANK him for providing him lift and disappeared in the forest.

A tribal showing the gratitude which we, the "civilised" people, sometimes forget

Another thing about scuba diving. It is a water activity which needs to be done by people who are physically fit.

The attached file lists down the medical conditions about which the divers need to be careful about. Scuba diving is certainly not an activity which can be taken lightly by people with certain medical conditions.