Andaman Itinerary
Hey guys, hope you all are doing good. Finally, the April is here and with this kick starts the most awaited #BlogchatterA2Z challenge. Today is Day 1 and that means the letter of the day is ‘A’. My theme for the challenge is ‘Traveling with kids‘Β & I have chosen A for Andaman. In this post, I am going to share the Andaman Itinerary from our most loved trip to the Andaman Islands.
We planned this trip in Jan 2018 for Nemit’s 2nd birthday and it turned out to be one of our most memorable trips. It was a 10-day leisure cum adventure trip and the best part is Nemit’s both grandmothers were traveling with us. Yes, you can plan adventure trips with your kids and that’s not a big deal.
We tried to cover some of the amazing places from South, Middle, and North Andaman. And it took us around 30 days to plan it perfectly. Since it was my 2nd trip to the Andaman Islands, I had a fair idea of what all places we could give a pass & what all we wanted to include. However, I still feel 10 days were not enough to soak in the beauty of these islands.
Let’s start with the Andaman Itinerary (9N/10D)
When you decide to go on a trip with your kids, it’s important to start planning at least 15-20 days prior to your travel date. If you are planning a budget holiday, keep a watch on flight prices as these keep fluctuating. Also, when you shortlist the hotels, call them or drop them a mail with your travel dates and ask them their best price. Some hotels give amazing offers if you are staying for more than 2 nights or if you book directly with them.
Day 1- Delhi to Port Blair
We had an early morning flight from Delhi to Port Blair.
During my 1st visit, I had covered all the main tourist places in & around Port Blair. I was sure no one would like to do a city tour or visit the old ruins or want to know the story behind the cellular jail with a toddler hanging around.
Hence, we skipped exploring the city altogether during this trip.
Stay at Kevin Homestay (www.kevinsandaman.com)
Place visited- Corbyn Cove Beach
Since we had no plans for the day, we decided to ask the owner about any happening nearby place to chill out. He told us about the ongoing Beach Festival at ‘Corbyn cove beach‘. It’s a nice beach to spend some time with family. However, during the festival, it was too crowded & the beach was not that clean.
Day 2- Port Blair to Havelock Island (name changed to Swaraj Dweep)
Next day, we had planned to go to Havelock Island which is the most visited island in the Andamans. Since our ferry was around 2 pm we decided to visit Munda Pahar Beach in Chidiya Tapu in the morning which was about 40 mins from Port Blair.
It’s an eco-friendly beach facility & a nice place to visit with kids. There are many eco-huts & wooden swings along the beachside. One can easily spend 3-4 hrs here, locals recommend to watch the sunset from this beach.
There are 2 ways to reach Havelock, by a Private Ferry (Makruzz/Green Ocean) or by a government ferry.
We had booked a private ferry, Makruzz (http://www.makruzz.com/site/) which took around 1.5 hrs to reach Havelock Island. I will not recommend taking a government ferry when traveling with young kids.
Stay at Havelock Holiday Beach Resort (www.hhbr.in). I will share more details in a separate post.
Day 3- A visit to Radhanagar Beach
Next day, we decided to visit Radhanagar beach which is the most famous beach in Havelock Island. And, it is also known as one of the best beaches in Aisa. Details coming up soon in a separate post on Havelock Island.
Day 4- Trek to Elephant Beach
It was our last day in Havelock and we decided to try some adventure. We trekked to the Elephant beach which was one of the most exciting experiences we have ever had. We also did the sea walk. All details coming up in a separate post.
Day 5- Havelock Island to Port Blair
After spending 3 wonderful days in the South Andaman, it was time to explore the middle and North Andaman which are the least visited parts of the Andaman Archipelago. And I would recommend planning a visit to North Andaman as a separate itinerary and not to club it with South Andaman.
We spent the half day in transiting from Havelock to Port Blair and rest of the day in exploring the market at Port Blair, shopping some necessary items.
Stay at Ixzire Resort (www.ixzire.com)
If you happen to plan a vacation for 5-6 days, then you can simply keep 2 days for Port Blair & rest of the days for Havelock Island. You can also visit another famous island ‘Neil Island‘ (name changed to Shaheed Dweep) for which ferry is available from Havelock as well as Port Blair. We skipped Neil since we had to cover North Andaman.
I will recommend visiting South Andaman if you are traveling with a baby or a toddler. If you have older kids and you like adventure, you should definitely plan for Middle & North Andaman. And if you are adventure junkies lovers like us, go ahead and take your toddler for the most exciting expedition to North Andaman.
Day 6- Port Blair to Diglipur
Diglipur is the largest town of the North Andaman Island. You can witness the laid back village life, people are very friendly and the food is simple yet tasty. It takes around 8-9 hrs to reach Diglipur by road. However, with kids, it may take up to 12-14 hrs. So, go prepared!
There are many places of interest for adventure lovers such as Saddle peak (highest peak of Andaman & Nicobar Islands), Ross & Smith Islands (also known as the twin islands), Mud volcano, Alfred caves, Lamiya bay, Kalipur beach (famous for turtle nesting), etc.
Stay at Pristine Beach Resort (www.andamanpristineresorts.com)
Place visited – Amkunj Beach
I will share more details in another post.
Day 7- Ross & Smith Island & Kalipur Beach
Next day it was Nemit’s birthday and we had planned to visit Ross & Smith Islands.
You can read our whole experience of visiting Ross & Smith Islands here.
Day 8- Diglipur to Rangat
Unfortunately, we had only 2 days to spend in Diglipur, hence we couldn’t visit all the locations. It is still in our bucket list & we will plan a trip to North Andaman soon. Day 8, we decided to halt overnight at Rangat (in Middle Andaman) since we wanted to visit Baratang caves on the next day.
Stay at Priya International (the only stay option we could find in Rangat)
Place visited- Dhani Nallah Nature Walkway & BeachΒ
Day 9- Rangat to Port Blair via Baratang
We wanted to explore the limestone caves at the Baratang Island hence we kept an extra day for that. One can also do the full day tour to Baratang caves from Port Blair if they are not going to the North Andaman.
All details coming up in a separate post.
Stay at Ripple Resort (www.rippleresort.com) at Port Blair.
Day 10- Port Blair to Delhi
This was our last day in Andaman and we had booked an afternoon flight to Delhi.
So, that’s our Andaman Itinerary, this is also an overview of what all I will be sharing this week. So stay tuned and keep visiting my blog daily for some cool travel updates this April. And, if you are planning a trip with kids, this can be your go-to guide as well.
Thanks for reading, hope you liked this post and if you find this helpful, then please do share it with your friends and family. And, I would love to hear your views or experiences in the comments below.
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Back from Andaman trip in January makes me go again after reading your post. nice, write up.
Oh great! Thank you for stopping by.
Woow! A well detailed post. Loved itt
Glad you liked it, Vidhya.
This is a very helpful post, might get some courage to plan our trip. My dad gets LTC, we’ve been planning Andaman trip since ages :p it always gets canceled as we are Aquaphobic to an extent.
#AtoZChallenge #BlogchatterAtoZ #vigorousreads
Then you should plan for Middle & North Andaman, there’s a lot to see apart from exotic beaches. Visit the Baratang caves, check out the mud volcanoes, or trek to the top of the Saddle Peak. There’s so much to experience!
Andaman has been on my to do list… will def refer to your post while olanning my trip… v nice n well written post…
Thank you Kushal π
I loved the post and it is an amazing feeling that both the grandmothers are travelling with Nemit. Isn’t? I must say all the pictures are super lovely.
That’s true Deepika, it feels really good when we travel with both our mothers. Just trying to break the laws of relationship. I am so glad you liked the post. Thank you so much!
Amazing post!!
Thank you so much π
I always wonder whether I would be able to travel with my kid in the future. But your post motivates me to not give up my traveling plans when my kid arrives. Also, I have been living in Bangalore for the past 2 years – so I must plan this Andaman trip (have always wanted to visit).
Thanks for the detailed itinerary.
https://evergreenleaf.blogspot.com/2019/04/amorphous.html
I am glad you found this post motivating. Thanks for stopping by!
Loved the post especially because you had the grannies travelling with you. I am a grandmother myself and will be travelling to Phuket with both my grandsons….so looking forward to it. #blogchatterA2Z
Best wishes for your trip. I am sure you will have a great time with your family. And, thank you so much for your kind words.
My Dad went on a trip to Andaman for a week with his youngest siblings. I’ve seen the pics and heard stories from him. We intend to make a trip here very soon.
Thanks for stopping by, Sonia π
We have been planning for an Andaman trip for long. Now, this April I am going to read your travel posts and plan ours.
Aww, that would be so great, you can anytime ping me for any query. Thanks, Pragnya π