Andaman Islands

Radhanagar Beach at 6 am in August 2018. 2km of white sand, completely empty. The Andaman Sea turning turquoise as the sun rose through the forest behind the beach. I stayed for 2 hours before the first other visitors appeared. This is Asia's Best Beach when it belongs to nobody but you — and in August at 6 am, it does. Havelock has Radhanagar Beach (No. 7 Beach — 2km, Asia's Best Beach 2004), Elephant Beach (snorkelling + glass-bottom boat), Kalapathar Beach (dawn photography, black-and-white pebbles), and Neil's Cove (quiet swimming). The island has the best scuba diving infrastructure in India — multiple PADI-certified dive centres. 90 minutes from Port Blair by speedboat.

The Sound and Light show at Cellular Jail in August 2018 — 40 people in the courtyard, the jail wings illuminated in the monsoon evening. The narration of what happened in these cells from 1906 onward — the solitary confinement, the oil-press labour, the executions — in a space where it actually happened. The monsoon quiet made it more affecting, not less. Built in 1906 by the British to isolate political prisoners from mainland India — 696 cells in a radial design from a central watchtower. Veer Savarkar's cell is preserved and marked. The Sound and Light show (Shyam Benegal directed the original production) is the finest evening cultural experience in the Andaman Islands.

Laxmanpur Beach at sunset on Neil Island, August 2018. The natural bridge (a limestone arch formation over the sea) at the north end of the beach, the sunset behind it, and approximately 8 other people on the beach. Three days on Neil Island in the monsoon — the most complete quiet I have found in India. Neil Island (20 sq km) has 3 beaches: Laxmanpur (sunset, natural bridge, stunning), Bharatpur (snorkelling, close to jetty), and Sitapur (sunrise, rocky, raw). Much smaller than Havelock, fewer restaurants and hotels, no nightlife — perfect for couples wanting genuine island isolation.

The ballroom at Ross Island, August 2018 — the ceiling gone, banyan tree roots coming through where the roof was, the dance floor recognisable under the forest growth. Spotted deer walked through the ruins without acknowledging my presence. This is what 80 years of jungle looks like reclaiming colonial architecture. Ross Island was the British Chief Commissioner's headquarters until the 1941 Japanese occupation — abandoned afterward, the jungle has been consuming the structures since 1945. The church, the ballroom, the Chief Commissioner's bungalow, the swimming pool — all visible, all overtaken. Open 8:30am–4:30pm.

The mangrove creek at Baratang at 7am — the speedboat moving through dense mangrove forest at water level, the roots arching overhead, the creek narrowing and widening. Then the limestone cave at the end — stalactites 20 metres high. Nothing else in Andaman looks like this. Baratang requires joining the government convoy through the Jarawa Tribal Reserve (convoy timing: 6am and 2pm from Jirkatang checkpoint — timings change, check with Port Blair hotels). The convoy is followed by a speedboat through mangrove creek to the limestone caves. Baratang also has a mud volcano (the only one in India) — small but active, bubbling grey mud at the surface.

Sea walk at North Bay Island — the helmet-diving experience where you walk on the coral reef floor at 5–6 metres depth without any scuba training. Fish at eye level, coral branches visible from 1 metre. The Andaman Sea floor at walking distance is a specific experience that no description captures. North Bay Island is the day-trip island for water sports from Port Blair — glass-bottom boat, snorkelling, sea walk (underwater walking with a diving helmet — no training needed), and the most accessible coral viewing in Andaman. 20-minute boat from Port Blair.

Radhanagar Beach at 5:30am — the light just beginning, the sea grey-green turning turquoise, the entire 2km beach visible and empty. The forest behind provides the specific combination of island beach — sand, sea, and untouched canopy — that justifies every superlative written about this place. Radhanagar (No. 7 Beach) is Havelock's western beach — 2km of white sand curving in a bay, backed by tropical forest, facing the sunset. The water is safe for swimming (no strong currents in the bay area, lifeguards in peak season). No commercial development on the beach itself — the restaurants and resorts are a 10-minute walk back from the sand.

Glass-bottom boat at Wandoor — the reef visible through the boat floor, the coral heads at 3–5 metres, parrotfish and angelfish moving below. No diving certification, no getting wet. The Andaman reef, viewed from the surface through a glass floor, is the easiest and most accessible coral experience in the islands. Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park (281 sq km) at Wandoor Beach covers 15 islands and has some of the most protected coral reefs in the Andaman Sea. Glass-bottom boat tours run from Wandoor jetty — the reef around Jolly Buoy Island (open alternately with Red Skin Island, seasonal) has excellent coral cover. No snorkelling or swimming — glass-bottom boat only to protect the reef.