Travel Guide to Andaman Islands
Andaman Islands

From | To | Status |
---|---|---|
18-Oct |
21-Oct |
Closed |
22-Oct |
31-Oct |
Operational |
01-Nov |
04-Nov |
Closed |
05-Nov |
14-Nov |
Operational |
15-Nov |
18-Nov |
Closed |
19-Nov |
28-Nov |
Operational |
29-Nov |
02-Dec |
Closed |
03-Dec |
12-Dec |
Operational |
13-Dec |
16-Dec |
Closed |
17-Dec |
26-Dec |
Operational |
27-Dec |
30-Dec |
Closed |
31-Dec |
09-Jan |
Operational |
10-Jan |
13-Jan |
Closed |
14-Jan |
23-Jan |
Operational |
24-Jan |
27-Jan |
Closed |
28-Jan |
06-Feb |
Operational |
07-Feb |
10-Feb |
Closed |
11-Feb |
20-Feb |
Operational |
Andaman Tourism Opens: The Andaman & Nicobar administration has announced that all tourist spots in the South Andaman district will be opened for tourism activities with immediate effect 8 Feb 2022.
The tourists are allowed to visit Baratang/North & Middle Andaman on production of double dose covid certificate/ All other passengers viz. unvaccinated and partially vaccinated passengers (those who have taken only 1S1 dose of COVID vaccine) shall have to produce RT-PCR negative test report
General Guidelines defined for traveling to Andaman Islands during COVID :
What are the guidelines for testing for tourists coming to Andaman after August 03 2021?
On arrival at Port Blair :
1. The tourists need to carry COVID-19 negative test report from mainland based 1CMR approved lab using Reverse Transcriptase-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RTPCR). However, the sample for RTPCR test should have been taken within 48 hours prior to starting the journey from the origin station. (For e.g. if the tourist takes a flight from Delhi at 0600 hrs. on 1st September, 2021, the sample for RTPCR test should have been taken not before 0600 hrs. on 30th August, 2021).
2. The tourists/visitors on arrival at Port Blair airport have to undergo mandatory Covid-19 screening with RTPCR test free of cost. Thereafter the tourists/visitors are allowed to move to their respective hotels. However, they will have to be under quarantine at Port Blair in their hotel rooms until the result of RTPCR tests are received. In case of RTPCR positive test results, the tourists/visitors shall remain in
institutional quarantine in hotels notified by the Hoteliers Association in consent with the A&N Administration, on rates as specified or to the designated hospital/ Covid-19 care centre on case-to-case basis.
3. Tourists may also have to undergo random Rapid Antigen Test conducted from time to time on payment basis as prescribed by A8N Administration.
What if the tourists test positive after arriving at the Andaman Islands?
If the tourists tests positive during their stay in the Islands, he/she will need to undergo institutional isolation as per existing health protocols. The
cost of such isolation for govt. facility will be paid by the tourists as fixed by the administration from time to time.
If the patient wants to stay at hotels, he/she can stay in the hotels if all the conditions below are met:
a) Patients are not symptomatic and not more than 60 years old.
b) Request/ undertaking is made by patient in writing.
c)lf allowed by doctors.
Hotels will make necessary arrangements to designate a part of their rooms for institutional isolation for this purpose.
Roughly 25 kilometres north of Diglipur, lies Shyamnagar, a little hamlet, where you can witness a rare natural marvel called the mud volcano in a place locally known as Jal Tikry. A mud volcano is a natural spectacle and is caused by the eruption of hot mud, slurries, gases and water from the ground. About 1100 mud volcanoes have been identified around the world, and in Andaman, they can be found at Diglipur and Baratang. These are not textbook volcanoes as they do not emit lava and are not necessarily driven by magmatic activity. After trekking through the dense woods of Shyamnagar, you arrive at the site where several active muddy craters can be found. One of the most unusual occurrences in the world, behold these mud volcanoes some of them have been active for years, while others have laid dormant for quite some time.
After a fifteen-minute trek through the semi-evergreen forests of Shyam Nagar, the initial point of the craters come into sight. The little village is blessed with picturesque countryside and plays hide and seek from behind the banana and date plantation. Upon arrival, large dormant volcanoes are prominent in the beginning, followed by the small bubbling new mud puddles. There are around 41 active muddy craters in the wilderness, with the smallest ones a couple of meters wide, and the larger ones a few kilometres wide. To give visitors a better insight into the area, information is available on the notice boards, in the vicinity. To ensure a better experience, the eco-friendly seating arrangement made of bamboo and fallen tree logs seats is in place.
Several mud volcanoes are used as mud baths too owing to their balanced temperatures, that don’t rise too much, ranging between 36°F and 212°F.
Jal Tikry is roughly 330 kilometres from Port Blair and can be reached via Shyamnagar which is 40 kilometres from Diglipur. Jal Tikry is accessible via shared jeeps that run on this route at regular intervals and drops you at Hathi level in roughly twenty minutes. From here, it is a 3-kilometre trek through the villages which turns strenuous towards the end and is the onset of the forest area.
Conceived by natural gases spewed by decomposing organic matter underground which gradually pushes the mud upwards, these craters are not what you expect from a ‘volcano’, that is, since it does not emit lava, gives an appearance of small puddles. If you start early after a pleasant trek through the dense rainforest, you will catch your first glimpse of a mud volcano in Diglipur. Not all mud volcanoes are active so you will have to ask around before you visit and it is best to do this with the help of a local expert. There are 41 mud volcanoes in the area, so if you find a dormant dried up mud volcano, then you can keep looking for more.
A word of caution, most visitors arrive at the volcano site expecting a ‘Volcano’, and then, when they see a pile of mud and a few bubbles, their hopes of an adventure are shattered. One must be clear on what to expect from a mud volcano – Mud! This is a geological phenomenon and it is quite unusual to witness active mud volcanoes with bubbles oozing out of the earth and leaving behind a crater site.
Medical Facilities in Jal Tikry- There is no medical facility near the site, the closest community Health Centre is at Diglipur and the closest medical facility is the G.B.P Hospital at Port Blair offering a team of super-specialized Doctors in the various departments.
Timings- The most suitable time to visit it is early in the morning as the temperature is lower and the weather less humid.
Mobile Connectivity- Mobile connectivity in Jal Tikry might not be up to one’s expectation, thus visitors face several network issues.