Andaman and Nicobar Islands

Andaman and Nicobar [1] are a large group of nearly 600 islands in the Bay of Bengal.

The Andaman and Nicobar Islands were shrouded in mystery for centuries because of their inaccessibility. These are the paragon of beauty and present a landscape full with scenic and picturesque extravaganza. These islands shimmer like emeralds in the Bay of Bengal. The dense forest which cover these islands and the innumerable exotic flowers and birds create a highly poetic and romantic atmosphere. "Here the white beaches on the edge of a meandering coastline have palm trees that sway to the rhythm of the Sea. The beat of tribal drums haunt the stillness and technicolour fish steer their way through crystal clear water."

The Andaman and Nicobar Islands have great maritime importance. During the British period political leaders considered dangerous to the interests of the Raj and other dreaded criminals were deported from mainland to the Cellular Jail- the Indian Bastille, situated on the sea coast of Atlanta Point in the North-Eastern part of Port Blair. Thus these islands were infamously known as the 'Black Water  Prison' or 'Kala Pani'.

The Andaman & Nicobar are a group of picturesque Islands, big and small, inhabited and uninhabited, islets and rocks lying in the South Eastern Part  of the Bay of Bengal.They lie along an arc in long and narrow broken chain, approximately North-South over a distance nearly 800 kms. . The flora and fauna of these islands, however, indicate that this land connection if it existed, should have been prior to the development of their present life form.

Some of the islands in Andaman and Nicobar are hilly in places, covered with tropical jungle and with flat stretches of beaches. Adventure tourism like trekking, Island camping, snorkeling, SCUBA diving are the real attractions. 

The places of interest include Cellular Jail, Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park, Water Sports Complex, Fisheries Museum, Chidiya Tapu, Mount Harriet and Samudrika Museum. It is also famous for its only active volcano, Barren Island. It also has many state of the art hotels to cater to its ever-booming tourism industry. Spectacular mix of nature's most prized delights; the Andaman & Nicobar Islands are a once in a lifetime holiday experience.

The Andaman & Nicobar Islands are a veritable Garden of Eden and a naturalist's heavenHavelock Island, the most visited of the islands, with the most (although still minimal) infrastructure. Beautiful beaches, great snorkeling and scuba diving.

• Rutland Island, is pristine, non-polluted and least visited island. Beautiful Mangrove forest and coral reefs welcomes you to the 274 sq.km island. There is also a 45 acre Totani Resort which has quaint little huts which can be used as a base camp for exploring the island. It is the ideal place for eco-tourists.
  
  
  

• Neil Island, quieter than Havelock with nice beaches and decent snorkeling.

• Wandoor, a relaxed destination in it's own right, but known more as the gateway to the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park.There is a newly setup luxury resort called Sea Princess Beach Resort
  
  
  

• Baratang Island, Mud Volcano, Limestone Caves, and Magrove Creeks in back waters.
  
  
  

• Barren Island, an island with the only volcano in all of India.

• Long Island, great if you're looking for Robinson Crusoe style camping. Nothing exists here, so you must bring all of your own gear and food.
  
  
  

• Little Andaman, once popular for surfing, it was devastated in the 2004 tsunami. Ask around in Port Blair to find out the current situation.

• Jarwa Reserve

. The clean environment, roads, greenery as well as unpolluted fresh air attract all nature loverne

For now the only way to reach the Andamans by air is from the Indian mainland to Port Blair. There are talks of opening up flights from Bangkok, which could drastically change the situation in the islands, but as of 2009 these remain just plans. Flights can fill up in peak season and immigration doesn't look kindly on people arriving without confirmed flights back, so book a return ticket and change the flight date if you decide to hang around longer.

• Indian Airlines [2] fly from Kolkata and Chennai. They charge a much higher rate for foreigners than Indian residents.

• JetLite [3] now flies from Chennai to Port Blair, and from Delhi via Kolkata.

• Kingfisher Red [4], formerly Air Deccan, flies daily from Chennai and is often cheapest way to get to the islands. One-way fares start from around Rs 6000.

• Spicejet, offers a flight direct from Delhi to Port Blair.

Flights to Port Blair are not really "low-cost", if compared to the same airlines' mainland India flights, but still cheaper than any other way to get to islands. Price varies significantly with date, so if your travel dates aren't fixed, you can save significantly by choosing the right day to fly. Advance booking (available on respective airline's website) at least several days before trip is recommended.

Port Blair's Vir Savarkar Airport is probably one of the most quaint and idyllic airport in India. There is a scenic view point where the whole airport can be seen. There are no night flights as the airport is handed over to the Indian Air Force after 3pm.

[edit]By sea

It is still possible to take a ship from Kolkata, Chennai or Visakhapatnam which takes almost 4 days to arrive in Port Blair. However, with the arrival of the Kingfisher Red flights that allow foreigners to fly for the same rate as Indians, and cost about the same as the boat, there is little reason to spend 4 days at sea unless you're in it for the experience.

Andaman and Nicobar are a vast archipelago, and aside from some erratic, infrequent and expensive helicopter shuttles and a pricy seaplane service to Havelock Island, passenger ferries are the only way to get between the islands.

All passenger transport in the islands is handled by the government-run Directorate of Shipping Services (DSS), which also runs the ferries back to the mainland. The DSS operates basically two kinds of vessels: small "tourist" ferries, and larger "local" ferries. Despite the names, fares are more or less identical on both, at Rs.150-200 one way from Port Blair to Havelock Island.

Tourist ferries seat about 100 people in padded bucket seats in a notionally air-conditioned cabin (which can still get sweltering hot). While you can access the top deck, there are no seats, shade or shelter outside. These boats are fast(er) and seaworthy, but top-heavy, and sway quite a bit in high seas. There is no canteen on board, so bring snacks or at least drinks.

Local ferries are considerably larger, seating up to 400 in two levels: padded "bunk" or "luxury" seating upstairs, and plain old benches on the "deck" downstairs. Neither class is air-conditioned, but ocean breezes keep temperatures tolerable, and a canteen dishes out chai, samosas and bottled water. Due to their larger size, they're more stable in heavy seas, but take about twice as long as tourist ferries to get anywhere.

There's a new a/c catamaran ferry from Port Blair to Havelock. Tickets are 650, 750 or 1000 (which gets you a leather seat and your own tv) and can be booked from a dedicated ticket booking window at Port Blair, thus avoiding the queue barging, and through your guesthouse (or wild orchid, emerald gecko & andaman bubbles) on Havelock.

In high season demand often exceeds supply, so book your tickets at least one day in advance, either through a travel agent or directly at Port Blair's harbour. Ferry ticket booking has now been computerised. This means you can book any ferry from any jetty - i.e. Rangat to Havelock from the Diglipur ferry jetty. This obviously depends on the computers working! Services may be changed or cancelled at short notice due to inclement weather, notably cyclones in the Bay of Bengal. If you're prone to sea-sickness, pop a pill an hour before you get on board.

[edit]Within islands

• Auto-rickshaws are available in Port Blair and on Havelock Island.
• Taxis are available in Port Blair. They are usually the rather vintage Ambassador cars and often not very well maintained. It is slightly more expensive than the Auto-rickshaws, but a more comfortable way to get around the island.
• Scooters & Motorcycles used to be available for rent in Port Blair, however, its not very easy to get one now. Auto-rickshaws may be the best way to move around the city. However, in Havelock Island they are the best option to enjoy a ride to the Radhanagar beach or around. It may cost you around Rs. 150 - Rs. 250 per day with a security deposit of around Rs. 750 - Rs. 1000.

ered with tropical jungle and interspersed with flat stretches of crescent shaped beaches. AdveDo

• Scuba diving - Havelock Island is the main dive destination, but the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park has reopened. South Cinque Island is another possibility, enquire at Anugama Resort at Wandoor. One of the dive shops on Havelock was talking about opening a shop in Diglipur soon, which would open up newly discovered sites.

The best dive sites in the Andamans are in very remote locations and are impossible to get to without a private yacht charter. The dive sites around Havelock are actually very ordinary by Andamans standards. The best diving in the Andamans is: Barren Island (an active volcano), Narcondam Island (an extinct volcano), Invisible Bank (an extensive seamount approx. 100 miles Southeast of Port Blair) and 4 spectacular but un-named sea mounts off the west coast. There is also a good wreck dive just south of North Brother Island. There are a small number of companies that operate live aboard diving and adventure charters in the Andaman Islands. Be aware that many companies that advertise Andaman Islands trips have never been there before.

• Snorkeling - is a fun ,popular activity done at North Bay,MuaTerra Beach and Havelock Island.The equipment is cheap, and can be bought or rented.

• Surfing was possible on Little Andaman Island, but the island was devastated in the 2004 tsunami. Stay tuned.

• Scan corals reefs in glass bottom boats off Jolly Buoy Island, at the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park at Wandoor, 29 km from Port Blair.

• Check out India's only active volcano on Barren Island, but make sure it's actually smoking before you start on the overnight boat journey.

• Take the Andaman Trunk Road, and be the zipping-in-the-car-idiot to the curious Jarawas. The ride is long, but the journey that takes you through some gorgeous reserve forests and up to Maya Bunder and beyond, is worth it.

• Revisit Havelock just to taste the red Snapper in Burmese garlic sauce at Benny and Lynda's Wild Orchid Beach Resort.

• Make a new list. Add scuba diving and sea cow spotting. Do some moon-bathing while planktons swim in a phosphorescent sea.

Bandhavgarh National Park

Bandhavgarh National Park (बांधवगढ राष्ट्रीय उद्दान) is one of the popular national parks in India located in the Umaria district of Madhya Pradesh, a state in central part of india. Bandhavgarh was declared a national park in 1968 with an area of 105 km². The buffer is spread over the forest divisions of Umaria and Katni and totals 437 km². The park derives its name from the most prominent hillock of the area, which is said to be given by Hindu Lord Rama to his brother Lakshmana to keep a watch on Lanka (Ceylon). Hence the name Bandhavgarh (Sanskrit: Brother's Fort).

This park has a large biodiversity. Bandhavgarh has the highest density of Bengal tigers known in the world, and is home to some famous named individual tigers. Charger, an animal so named because of his habit of charging at elephants and tourists (whom he nonetheless did not harm), was the first healthy male known to be living in Bandhavgarh since the 1990s. A female known as Sita, who once appeared on the cover of National Geographic and is considered the most photographed tiger in the world was also to be found in Bandhavgarh for many years. Most of the tigers of Bandhavgarh today are descendants of Sita and Charger.

With the tiger at the apex of the food chain, it contains 37 species of mammals, more than 250 species of birds, about 80 species of butterflies, a number of reptiles. The richness and tranquility of grasslands invites pairs of Sarus Cranes and other migratory birds which   breed in the rainy season. (June-September)

The 105 km² of park area open to tourists was reported to have 22 tigers, a density of one tiger for every 4.77 km². (Population estimation exercise 2001). There is a saying about the Park that goes: "In any other Park, You are lucky if you see a tiger. In Bandhavgarh, you are unlucky if you don't see (at least) one." Well, Such sayings are common for all parks.

Bandhavgarh tiger reserve is densely populated with other species: the gaur, or Indian bison are now extinct or have migrated elsewhere; sambar and barking deer are a common sight, and nilgai or blue bulll to be seen in the open areas of the park. There have been reports of the Indian Wolf (canis lupus indica), hyena and the caracal the latter being an open country dweller. The tiger reserve abounds with cheetal or the spotted deer which is the main prey animal of the tiger and the leopard (Panthera pardus).

Among important carnivorous found in the park are Leopards, Caracals, Indian Wild dogs or Dholes, Jungle Cats, Jackals, striped Hyenas, Small Indian Civets, Ratels (honey badger) and the Flying Foxes. The herbivores population in the park includes Gaurs (world's largest oxen), Sloth Bears, Rhesus Macaques, Sambar, Chital, Indian Muntjac, Chausingha (4-horned antelope), Nilgai (blue bull), Chinkara, Barking Deer, Wild boar, Langurs, Black-napped Hare and Indian Mongoose among many others. The important reptiles found in Bandhavgarh Sanctuary are the Rock Python, Spectacled Cobra, Common Krait and the Rat Snake to name a few.

Bandhavgarh National Park also supports a sizable population of birds. The year round flowering and fruiting of trees attracts thousands of birds to the park. So far, around 250 species of birds, comprising of both resident and migratory birds, have been identified and listed in the park. The most commonly seen birds in Bandhavgarh National Park are the Bee-eaters, Blossom-Headed Parakeets, Drongos, Common Teal, Crested Serpent Eagle, Grey Hornbill, Lesser Adjutant Stork, Little Grebes, Lesser Adjutants, Lesser Whistling Teal, Minivets, Pied Hornbill, Paradise Flycatchers, Peafowl, Red Jungle Fowl, Red Wattled Lapwing, Steppe Eagle, Tickell's Flycatcher, White-eyed Buzzard, White-breasted Kingfisher, White-browed Fantail Flycatcher, Wood shrikes and Warblers among many more.

It is the abundance of water and prey here that makes a lot of Tigers comfortable in the Tala Range for sure, not that the neighbouring ranges like Magdhi and Khitauli do not have prey and water they have but something special about Tala Range. 

The Bandhavgarh Fort which stands tall, the beautiful meadows of Chakradhara, Raj Bhera and Sehra, besides some unimaginably beautiful spots like the Climbers point, Rampur Pahari, Sita Mandap which are the key for captivating tourists. 

Safaris in Bandhavgarh!

There are 3 ways you can do a safari inside Bandhavgarh National Park
The first is your own transport, preferably a 4-wheel drive. (It is however necessary to take along an authorized guide.) But take my advise and do not do this mistake as the road are quite bumpy, and you can have a very uncomfortable ride in your vehicle, also with windows panes rolled up you cannot hear any alarm calls, the forest guide with you cannot see any pugmarks, so your chances of wasting petrol, as diesel vehicles are not allowed inside the park, are very high.
The second option are the numerous authorized 4-wheel drives run by the locals, which are available from the hotels and rest houses you would be staying at. This is the best option available and a very exciting one at that, as most visitors prefer an open a safari into the jungle and being accompanied by a professional naturalist who will guide them through the forest.

The third is an elephant ride. This happens are booked the same day depending upon the availability. Commonly known as Tiger show, it normally happens when the Tiger has been tracked by the forest department inside bush.
Elephant Safaris

All the national parks in the country differ in the activities and the facilities that they offer to their visitors. Like wise Bandhavgarh too has certain unique selling point. There is a controversial method which is called "Tiger Shows". For these shows, the mahouts head out in the wee hours of the morning and track down a tiger. Once the tiger settles down in a spot, the word is spread and all visitors are taken for short rides from the nearest point on a jungle track.

This, although it ensures that almost all visitors to the park go back with happy memories of a "sighting", is never as exciting as chance sightings from the tracks. Not knowing what one has in store sometimes is no doubt more challenging than knowing the whereabouts of the animals. 

Places to See in Bandhavgarh National Park
1.Sidhababa - The Holy Meadow : The marshy is the abode of Sidhababa
2. Chakradhara - The Sprawling Meadow : Surrounded by the hillocks, this marshy meadow is rich in both flora and fauna.
3. Gopalpur - A Place for Bird Watching : Approach with a slow drive may give you moments of memorable sighting of wild fauna.
4. Shesh Shaiya - Origin of River Charanganga : This statue of lord Vishnu reclining on the seven hooded scrpent is the classic example of the architechtural treasure of the past.
5. Bari Gufa - Ancient Monument of Past : This is the biggest man made cave of the reserve dating back to tenth century.
6. Ketkiha - Pendanus Point : This wet patch of aromatic plant Kewra in the shadow of lofty jammu and arjun trees is the real treasure of floristic wealth of the Rreserve.
7. Bhitari Bah - Tranquility in Wilderness : Blissful drive along the meadow will induce thrills of jungle and feeling of lingering relaxation.Look for the important medicinal .
8. Three Cave Point - The Archaeological Remains of past : These caves visible from ganesh hillock road are the mute testimony of rich historical past.
9. Rajbahera - The Bandhaini Hillock View : This marshy meadow is the origin of river Dammer.Look for the storks, vultures and herds of chital, samber and wild pigs.View of Bandhaini Hillock is an additional attraction.
10. Climber's Point - Nature's Beauty : Woody climbers of butea superba and Bauhinia wahlii amidst the giant sal trees offer spectacular view for the tourist.
11. Sehra - The Fort View : This is the biggest meadow of the Reserve.Look for the breeding pair of saras crane in the month of june.It harbours the insectivorous plant drosera.
12. Mahaman Pond - Place to Quench the Thirst : This water hole surrounded by bamboo clumps is an ideal place to watch variety of hervivores and carnivores.

Bandhavgarh Fort : The oldest fort in India, considered to be more than 2500 years. One-hour trek upto the fort is worth the effort. The charm of this trek lies in discovering these monuments in the jungle, unspoiled and unexplored. Some of the statues lie off the main path and so it is best to take a guide. Apart from the avatars, well worth seeing are three small temples of around the 12th century. These temples are deserted but the fort is still used as a place of worship. Kabir Das, the celebrated 16th century saint, once lived and preached here. The natural ramparts of the fort give breathtaking view of the surrounding countryside. Vultures wheel around the precipice which also attracts blue rock thrushes and crag martins.The fort still belongs to the Maharaja of Rewa and permission is required to visit it. However permission is available locally and no trip to Bandhavgarh is complete without making an effort to climb up the fort. The staff of the resort carries your lunch while you are busy negotiating the trek upto the fort.

Places to See Around the Park 

Village Tala : To view a day in the life of an Indian village, where the pace of life is still measured by the rhythm of the seasons. The humble dwellings, the mud clustered houses, the elders smoking hookahs sitting on a cot, are some of the common scenes which signify that the time stands still in certain areas of the world even today.

Baghel Museum : Located only 100 metres from the resort, it houses certain precious belongings of the Maharaja of Rewa who maintained Bandhavgarh as his Shikargah, or a game preserve, a stuffed white Tiger still stands in the museum amidst certain personal belongings of the Maharaja.

Bhamera Dam : 20kms from the resort, huge water bank in the neighboring Panpatha Sanctuary, good place for water birds.

Gharpuri Dam : 10 kms from the resort, adjoining on the outskirts of Bandhavgarh National Park Good Place for Water birds.

Chenchpur Waterfall : 44 kms from the resort. 

Best Time to visit Bandhavgarh National Park

Bandhavgarh defies all logic, most of Wildlifers think that hotter it gets better the Tiger and other game sightings near the water hole. For Bandhavgarh, it is applicable but only partially, the Tiger sightings are great from October till June. Sloth Bear sightings are good March till May, as they come out to eat a local flower called “Mahua”, the locals collect this flower to make a local alcohol as well. For Birds Bandhavgarh is good from November till March. 

Banghavgarh Travel Information

Bandhavgarh national park is well connected with all the major cities and station in india

Umaria : 35 km/ 45 min

Khajuraho : 270 km/ 6 hrs.

Jabalpur : 190 km/ 4 hrs.
Satna : 120 km
Delhi : 978 km
Gwalior : 565 km
Katni : 102 km

How To Reach There :

By Air:
Fly from Delhi, Agra or Varanasi to Khajuraho and drive (7-8 hours) to Tala park entrance at Bandhavgarh. Nearest airport from the park is Khajuraho.

By Rail:
Nearest railway station is Umaria after Katani railway station, from there it is about 40 minutes drive to Nature Heritage. Alternatively, take the overnight train from Delhi to Umaria and drive (30 minutes) to the park. Only jeeps are available for transfers. Khajuraho / Bandhavgarh distance is 250 Kms, (8 hrs drive).