Andaman and Nicobar India Travel

Honeymoon in Andaman & Nicobar Islands

After the two photo-heavy posts of our Andaman trip (Havelock, Andaman & Nicobar Islands – In Pictures and Havelock, Andaman & Nicobar Islands – In Pictures – Part 2), why not give you a detailed insight now! Okay, so let me begin with…

For our honeymoon, I had two options in mind. Lakshadweep and Havelock in Andaman & Nicobar islands. After the initial ‘research’, it was clear to me that Lakshadweep was too uncertain to be considered as a honeymoon destination and so, Havelock it was for us, with a little bit of Port-Blair thrown around!

Our tickets were for the early morning Air India flight from Chennai so we reached the airport at night itself. I had made sure we book take the left-side seats so that we get the beautiful view of the islands scattered in the ocean. We were pleased to have a clear sky which gave us fantastic views from the window. It was wonderful to see big, small and *tiny* (of course comparatively) green islands, as if scattered randomly.

port blair from flight
Beautiful scattered islands as seen from the flight

We had NO plans whatsoever so we took things slow but still, we were all up and ready to head out by 9.30 AM. We decided not to have our break-fast in the hotel. It turned out to be a bad decision, more on that later but first things first, we had to rent a scooter for the day. We asked about it to the reception and in no time, a scooter was there for us.

Some very quick formalities later, which hardly took 5 mins, I had the key in my hands. This not being the ‘season’, the rent per day was Rs.400/-.

All set, we two starving souls headed out to hunt for food. I had heard and read a lot about the Light House restaurant so that was naturally the first place I wanted to head to. When you know(expect in this case) food is not far ,the hunger grows much stronger and it *is* true! I can vouch for that.

But, all this changed when we went inside the restaurant and found it empty!! The staff confirmed my doubt, no food is available before 11 AM in Port-Blair. After getting the same reply from the next 3-4 restaurants, we decided to head to Carbyn’s Cove and try our luck there 🙁  .

So ladies and gentlemen, if you are going out early in the day, have your break-fast in your hotel or you will have to starve until its 11 AM!!

As we started for Carbyn’s Cove, we totally forgot about out hunger, the ride was so beeeeeeautiful! The road to Carbyn’s snakes up and down small hills with the vast sea on the other side. At some curves it becomes scarily beautiful, specially when you are riding up-hill and then as you reach the top, you see no road in front of you… only the vast sea. That feeling (and the beauty) cannot be put in words.

Sun-beds at Carbyn's Cove
Sun-beds at Carbyn’s Cove

After a magical (yes, it was nothing less than magical) ride later, we finally reached Carbyn’s Cove. Had a sad and over-priced breakfast at the ‘The Waves’ restaurant which, if I am not wrong, is a government – maintained restaurant. The reason I said ‘sad’ was because, almost everything that seemed worth-ordering in the menu, was not available and so we had to make do with whatever was available.

About the place, I found it to be a decent place to sit back and relax. You can also go for water-scooter rides also, which was priced at Rs. 600/- for 2 rides per couple. Rs.300/- per person. It was very tempting but both of us were not confident enough at that point in time :p. After spending a wonderful couple of hours or so there, we started back. I forgot to mention that, the staff of the place from where we rented the scooter, gave us a map of the interesting places and their route which we might find useful. It was very helpful and helped us make a rough ‘plan’.

So, our next destination was the Wandoor beach which was some 20-22 kms from Port-Blair. We instantly decided to go there instead of other places of interest in the city just because of the ride involved 😉 .

Needless to say, this ride was even better and more beautiful than the ride to Carbyn’s Cove. Beeeeautiful narrow winding roads, going up and down the small hills, we already had got more than we had even expected from Port-Blair, a capital. There are stretches which are tricky and one has to be very careful or you can land straight in the water but if you are alert while riding, its pure bliss.

Not many shops are there en-route so at-least carry some drinking water with you.

road to wandoor beach
Beautiful narrow roads, lush green surroundings

Once at the Wandoor beach, we sat there in front of the beautiful beach doing nothing, just soaking-in the beauty. Traces of the tsunami that happened almost a decade ago can still be seen there and yes, crocodiles are not very un-common here so, stay away from the water in this beach. In case you try to play bold & think that you can fight – off the croc in case one gets hold of you and still want to take a swim in the water, the security present there will anyway not allow you to venture in the waters!

Wandoor beach, andamans
The peaceful Wandoor beach

After some souvenir shopping, we took the same beautiful roads back to Port-Blair and headed straight to visit the cellular jail.

The jail closes at 5.30 PM and the tickets for that are available there itself, we reached a bit late so we decided to take tickets for visiting the jail as well as the light & sound show together but came to know that was not possible. You get tickets for the light & sound show (the last show) only once the jail closes for visitors.

View from atop the Cellular Jail, port blair
View from atop the Cellular Jail

The cellular jail is a must-visit for everybody whoever visits Port-Blair. There’s so much of history in there, seeing all that we have heard and read in our childhood in front of your eyes is a unique experience. The jail building as a monument too, is a must visit. The surrounding views from the building’s top are also fantastic.

cellular jail, port blair
Cellular Jail

By the time we were done with the light & sound show, which is sure to make you at-least a little emotional, it was already 8 PM. We were starving by then as we had skipped our lunch today. We had preferred to visit the Jogger’s Park for some plane/helicopter-spotting instead of having lunch :p . Even though I have not spoken much about this place but it too, is a must-visit; not for the park because of which it is called ‘jogger’s park’ but for the fantastic view it gives, of the airport where planes and helicopters are constantly come & go.

Helicopter landing at port-blair, andamans
Helicopter landing – taken from Jogger’s park

We finally called it a day after having a sumptuous dinner at the New Light House restaurant. Tomorrow we leave for Havelock. Excited about our first ship/boat/ferry (whatever you want to call it) ever!!

Key Takeaways about Port-blair:

  • Web Check-in early so that you get the left-side seats. You get fantastic views of the islands as you land in Port-blair from the left side seats.
  • Keep enough cash with you, most of the places either would not accept cards or the connection would be patchy.
  • Don’t think too much about pre-arranging pick-up from the airport. Cabs & autos are easily available and no, they don’t fleece you like they do in our very own ‘cities’.
  • If you plan to leave early from your hotel, have your break-fast (or at-least get it packed) before you leave, no restaurants serve food before 11 AM.
  • Take a map of popular tourist attractions and explore the place on your own.
  • Its a very safe place with nice & helpful place, so don’t worry much and enjoy your stay.
  • And NO, Indians don’t need a VISA to visit Andamans

16 thoughts on “Honeymoon in Andaman & Nicobar Islands”

  1. Quite a peaceful honeymoon , it seems. Far away from the hustle-bustle of city life…..Ahhhhh…. A perfect bliss to spend a few days there ! Best wishes to you and Ruchi 🙂

      1. Hello Rajiv,

        After reading your experience in port Blair and havelock, I have decided to go over there for my honeymoon, please suggest hotel to check in port Blair and how many days to stay in port blair.

        1. Glad that you liked my post, thanks!

          I think… couple of days in port Blair should be good enough. As it your honeymoon, I would suggest you spend more time at Havelock & Neil islands rather.

          Let me know when and for how many days are you planning and an appropriate budget and I will be able to suggest in a better way!

          1. Hey Bro,
            Thanks for the quick reply. I will be going around in october or November ( looking for 5 to 7 days with an open descent budget) want to try scuba diving also. Please help me outline the places to visit and duration and resort / hotels to check in. Looking forward for ur reply.

          2. See if you like this plan Fayaz.

            Eight days is a good-enough time for Andamans according to me.
            I would suggest you to do something like this:

            Day 1: Get settled in a hotel in Port Blair and head out for brunch. Rent out a two-wheeler to roam around. Post lunch, head to Carbyn’s cove beach for some water-sports like water-scootering, etc. Post lunch, visit cellular jail and watch the light and sound show there.

            Day 2: Visit Samudrika museum and then after an early lunch, head to the Wandoor beach. Its a beautiful drive. Roam around in PB after returning from Wandoor.

            Day 3: Ride to Chidiya Tapu this day and watch the beautiful sunset there.

            Day 4: Visit Jolly Buoy or Ross Islands. Snorkell.

            Day 5: Take early morning ferry to Havelock. Try to get the tickets of the Govt. ferry. You can enjoy your time at the deck. Stay somewhere around the Vijayanagar area. Visit the kalapatthar beach. Roam around and spend time doing nothing in one of the many cafes.

            Day 6: Snorkell/scuba if you want. Head to the elephant beach (trek). Then head to the beautiful Radhanagar beach, sit, relax and watch the sunset. You can also go night-kayaking if you want.

            Day 7: Head to Neil and explore the island. Bharatpur, Sitapur & Laxmanpur beaches.

            Day 8: Head to Port Blair and fly back home.

            Let me know if you have any more questions or doubts 🙂

          3. Hey bro,
            Nice plan, it would nice if u suggest me good hotel/resort for my stay in port blair And havelock.

            Thanks for ur precious time.

          4. I have heard good things about Sinclairs Bay View and TSG Blue in Port Blair. You can give them a try.

            For Havelock, I would absolutely suggest The Wild Orchid. For accommodation in Havelock during that time, make bookings well in advance.

            Have a wonderful trip!

  2. Hi Rajiv,

    I loved ur post since it was outlining every part of your trip. I am planning a trip for 5 days to PB and your advise would help. I am looking for places to stay in both PB and Havelok. Also, i am interested in scuba, i read about ur experience in the reef, however if u know of any place else, would be great too.

    Additionally, I also wanted to know about the net connectivity / availability in the areas, whether it is there in PB & Havelok.

    Thanks.

    Yamini

    1. Hi Yaimini,

      Thanks for stopping by. There are quite a handful of places where you can stay, in PB. Havelock however has limited options so it is advised that you book that part in advance.

      Havelock has one of the best scuba-diving spots in the country so I would suggest you do the dive there. However, if you want to, you can head to Neil islands where Scuba diving has been started recently.

      Also, I hope this post should give you some more idea https://webguy.in/2016/01/25/things-to-know-before-visiting-andaman-islands/ .

      BSNL, Airtel work for most of PB but speeds are not very fast. In Havelock, there’s hardly proper connectivity.

      If you have any more questions, feel free to ask them here 🙂 .

      Cheers,
      Rajiv

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