True bucketlisters will have found this post because the Andaman Islands are high on your list, but you’re slightly confused about the best way to see them.
I definitely was. Which is why I ended up booking a last minute Andaman Islands tour through TourRadar. It was the best move I could have made not knowing exactly where to go, or the tiny fact that I wouldn’t have service or working wifi the entire time.
With the affordable tour (only about $580 for 6 days), we had someone who coordinated all of our hotels, ferries, and ground transportation. Which was massively helpful. Especially since again, I opted to go to the Andaman Islands last minute!
It was also extremely helpful always having someone waiting with a name placard whenever we’d arrive somewhere! You know, since we couldn’t get our GPS to work or call anyone without service!
So if you’re thinking of checking the Andaman Islands off your bucketlist, here is the itinerary I did with my TourRadar tour that made for the least stressful way of seeing them!
NOTE: If you’re thinking of going to Andaman Islands as a solo traveler, I would HIGHLY recommend joining a group tour! Otherwise you may feel uncomfortable with the stares and requests for selfies. Check out my post on Andaman Islands Essential Tips before you decide!
The only airport you can fly into to get to the Andaman Islands is in Port Blair. It’s not the most exciting or scenic place, but necessary for the arrival and transfer to smaller islands.
There’s not a ton of things to do, with their main attraction being the Circular Jail. It’s one of the first things that comes up when you search Andaman Islands, because it has important cultural significance (…and because again, there’s not much else to do).
Circular Jail is a good visit to learn about the pain of the past in India. It’s where freedom fighters and educated people were tortured and accused of being spies. Gandhi actually insisted that part of it remain intact as a tribute to those who were held prisoner there.
You can see a Sound and Light show at the Circular Jail which tells the story of its history. The TourRadar Andaman Islands trip I was on made sure to book our show for the English showing, rather than Hindi.
Part of our tour included a day trip to Ross Island and North Bay Island from Port Blair. In the morning, the driver picks you up and takes you to the port, where your guide gets your tickets and takes you to the boat you’ll be on. The boats are small and loud, but cute, and get you to the two islands in a timely manner.
Ross Island is small and fairly interesting with all of its ruins that are reclaimed by nature. There’s literally trees wrapping their roots over crumbled buildings, and it’s extremely stunning! You can walk the perimeter of Ross Island in less than an hour, which is about how much time you have to explore.
There’s a small beach on the opposite side of the island from where they drop you off, and the most stunning structure which is an abandoned church. Most people go there first, so if you walk the island counter-clockwise, you’ll get there after the crowds have passed!
North Bay Island was honestly disappointing. Apparently the “reason why you go there” is for the water activities, and the only options are snorkeling or scuba diving.
I couldn’t dive because I had a sinus infection, and didn’t want to go snorkeling because the gear looked questionable. There also was not a single other woman wearing a swimsuit (they were fully clothed) so I felt awkward going in in mine.
Overall it’s a nice day trip if you have time to kill. But if you need to decide between those two islands and one like Neil Island, you can probably leave them out.
Finally I got to go to Havelock Island! Famous in my mind for the swimming elephant that used to live there. It passed away a couple years ago but I still wanted to go anyway, and was happy I did!
My TourRadar trip organized the ground transfers, ferry, and hotel to/in Havelock Island, and again, thank God, because we would have been extremely lost otherwise. The tour included a ride to their most famous beach called Radhanagar but we opted to rent a motorbike instead for only 500INR per day (about $6USD).
Havelock Island is very small and there’s only three roads and three public beaches on the entire island! That being said, we had no problem navigating the area without phones or GPS! In fact, the only map I could even find was a painting on the wall of the motorbike rental place, and I used it like I was using my regular maps on my phone…minus the moving blue dot.
So Radhanagar is of course the best beach, and it honestly has some of the clearest water in the world! It’s just one long stretch of beach with no hotels or restaurants or anything directly on it which is nice. But a couple are tucked into the jungle that lines it, in case you want to check them out.
The majority of people there are Indians, and they hang out in the area directly in front of where you park. That being said, it’s very easy to simply walk to the left and get your own private area of people-free beach!
Kalapathar Beach is the second best beach and it’s located in the southern area of Havelock island. You’ll pass the “main area”, where most of the hotels, restaurants, and little shops are on the way to it.
It’s not as nice as Radhanagar beach, with less clear water and significantly more trash, but you might as well go see it if you’re there. The tour doesn’t include a ride there so the driver will offer a ride for an additional cost of close to $20USD. I’d recommend just renting a motorbike for $5 for the day if you feel comfortable driving one!
Elephant Beach is definitely not worth the one mile per way hike that it takes to get there. I was actually extremely disappointed after hiking through thick mud and jungle to find the beach was nothing special. It’s mostly used for day boat trips, and there’s only one small area you’re allowed on.
There were several sightseeing boats there, and its passengers were either on the beach, snorkeling with guides, or riding a Banana Boat. We tried to walk down to where there were no people and the beach looked less rocky, but were quickly stopped by a life guard type person.
He said the nice beach area was restricted, and that we also shouldn’t go in the water because there’s poisonous Stone Fish. So we hiked back and went to Radhanagar which is nearby.
If you’re looking for good eats and cheap drinks, Something Different near the ferry terminal is pretty good. We originally went there because they sold us on their advertisement on the ferry that said they had good wifi… But of course it wasn’t working when we got there….
Still though the food is pretty good, the drinks are buy one get one free! Plus they print a photo of you to take home as a souvenir. Awwwww.
Unfortunately I didn’t get to see Neil Island even though it was scheduled on my TourRadar Andaman Islands tour. It was just too stressful not having service to work. Plus my partner was leaving early anyway and I didn’t exactly feel comfortable doing the trip solo.
I’ve heard though that it’s beautiful and a bit similar to Havelock. I also mostly heard it’s great for diving! But again, I couldn’t do that, so I didn’t feel as bad skipping it.
If I would have been able to go, it would have been included in the TourRadar Andaman Islands trip though! It would have consisted of a ferry ride from Havelock to Neil where you’d spend the day before returning to Port Blair.
Overall, I’m very grateful for the opportunity to see these beautiful, remote islands, despite the slight hassle it is to travel around them. Booking a pre-planned trip through TourRadar definitely helped! I’d highly recommended it for any adventurer thinking of doing this trip!
Disclaimer: This post is in collaboration with TourRadar as part of a trade-for exchange. However all opinions, experiences, and writing are my own!
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Nice sharing information for Andaman island itinerary. it's a very interested.
Hi Alyssa Ramos, Pictures you have taken are really good. Elephant swims in sea. I could not believe it.
Best destination for newly married couples.