09Double Fathom ranking
India’s undiscovered reef
Best for
India’s Andaman archipelago is the Bay of Bengal’s best-kept snorkeling secret: Havelock Island’s shallow coral gardens deliver up to 40 m of visibility in bath-warm water, with clownfish, turtles and parrotfish metres from the sand, and almost none of the Western tourist traffic of Southeast Asia’s famous reefs. This is the rare "world’s best" destination that still feels undiscovered. Plan around the monsoon: roughly June to September the seas roughen, boat and marine-park trips are frequently suspended and ferry schedules get disrupted.
40 m viz · Coral gardens · Crowd-free
Key sites to explore
The distinctive underwater sights worth planning around. Descriptions are curated planning info — always verify local access, rules and conditions before you set out.
01
Elephant Beach, Havelock (Swaraj Dweep)
Shore reef📍 Havelock Island (Swaraj Dweep), Andaman Islands
The flagship: a shallow reef that starts metres off the sand in calm water, with clownfish in anemones, parrotfish, butterflyfish, blue starfish and green turtles.
Reached by a 15-minute speedboat from Havelock jetty or a 40-minute guided forest trek — and it gets busy, so take the first boat of the morning. Snorkel sessions are quoted at roughly ₹500–1,000; verify current prices and what is included locally.
02
North Bay Island, near Port Blair
Shore reef📍 Off Port Blair, Andaman Islands
The arrival-day option: a 20-minute boat from the Rajiv Gandhi Water Sports Complex jetty, with shallow guided snorkeling plus glass-bottom boats and sea walks on the same trip. Ask about the Nemo Reef patch — clownfish sheltering in anemones, the closest thing to a guaranteed "Finding Nemo" moment near the capital.
Quoted at roughly ₹470–1,500 depending on the package; this is the busiest, most packaged water near the capital, so confirm what your ticket actually covers before boarding.
03
Jolly Buoy / Red Skin Island, Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park
Marine reserve📍 Wandoor, about 25–30 km from Port Blair, Andaman Islands
The pristine one: some of the richest coral reefs in the Andamans in a plastic-free, day-visit-only national park, reached by morning boat from Wandoor Jetty.
The two islands open on rotation — Jolly Buoy roughly November–April, Red Skin roughly May–October — so the reef rests, and a park permit is required (roughly ₹50 for Indian nationals and ₹500 for foreign nationals, plus boat ₹850–1,800). Closed Wednesdays and through the monsoon: verify the current rotation, fees and opening days locally.
Snorkeling in Andaman Islands, India: quick answers
- Do you need a permit to snorkel the Andaman Islands?
- Not on the standard tourist circuit. The Restricted Area Permit requirement was lifted for 29 inhabited islands, Port Blair, Havelock and Neil among them, and traveller reports through 2024–2025 confirm nothing is asked for on that route — though nationals of Afghanistan, China and Pakistan are still covered by it, and the US State Department still lists the islands as a restricted area, so re-confirm with an Indian embassy before booking. What is still required are separate Forest Department permits for the marine-park islands, Jolly Buoy and Red Skin, and for reserved forests, wildlife sanctuaries and tribal reserves. The two park islands open on rotation so the reef rests, and they close on Wednesdays and in monsoon.
- How do you reach Havelock's reefs?
- Fly into Port Blair, then cross to Havelock by private catamaran from Haddo Jetty — a crossing of roughly 1.5–2.5 hours with morning and early-afternoon departures only, so there is no evening sailing. Elephant Beach is then a short speedboat ride or a guided forest trek from the Havelock jetty, and its shallow reef starts metres off the sand. North Bay Island is a short boat ride from Port Blair's water-sports jetty, and the marine-park islands are reached by morning boat from Wandoor Jetty, a 45–60 minute road transfer from the city. Withdraw cash in Port Blair rather than relying on the outer islands' ATMs.
Tours & excursions
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Where to stay
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Getting there: flights to Port Blair (IXZ)
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Veer Savarkar International (IXZ) at Port Blair is reached via the Indian mainland, with domestic connections from Chennai, Kolkata and Delhi — no scheduled direct international flights were verified. From Port Blair, private catamarans run to Havelock from Haddo Jetty (Gate 3) in 1.5–2.5 hours, with morning and early-afternoon departures only and the last sailing usually around 2:30 PM.
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