Andaman Island Beach
Andaman Island Beach / iStock / rudikennard
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Hindu Temple
Hindu Temple / iStock / tropicalpixsingapore
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Freedom Fighters Memorial
Freedom Fighters Memorial / iStock / Nickolay Stanev
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Ross Island Banyan Tree
Ross Island Banyan Tree / iStock / Sokolenko
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Ross Island Lighthouse
Ross Island Lighthouse / iStock / jreaves
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Cellular Jail
Cellular Jail / iStock / Nickolay Stanev
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Port Blair, India

Our Review
Deal Expert / Travel Blogger

The epitome of exotic, the capital city of the remote Andaman Islands blends quirky British colonial heritage with India's cultural melting pot against a backdrop of rainforest, coral reefs, and rural Asian life.

What We Love

Aberdeen Bazaar: Port Blair's chaotic market area is a rich mosaic of everything Indian, including the smell of spices, the flash of saris, the sound of Bollywood music blaring from second-story windows, and merchants who love to bicker.

Havelock Island: Even more remote than Port Blair, Havelock offers drop-dead gorgeous, white-sand shores and better snorkeling. Get there in 90 minutes via high-speed ferry.

Best Known For

Ross Island: This Victorian-era headquarters of the colonial government was destroyed by a 1941 earthquake and never rebuilt. The extensive ruins, now overgrown with jungle, offer the British Empire version of Angkor Wat.

Jail Time: Called “Kālā Pānī” (black water) by the locals, this notorious prison functioned as a Devil's Island for British India. The museum features the original gallows, as well as exhibits about the many political prisoners incarcerated here between 1906 and the late 1940s.

Who It's Best For

Indiana Jones Wannabes: Those who thrive on traipsing through jungle-shrouded ruins and rainforest trails will be in their element.

Culture Vultures: Anyone who’s into a place that features Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist, and even Christian cultures — sometimes within feet of one another — will like it here.

Don't Say We Didn't Warn You

Not the Best Place for Indian Food: The local restaurant scene is rather spartan and doesn't come close to the excellent quality of Indian cuisine on the mainland.

Jolly Buoy Island: Despite its fame, this popular tourist destination doesn't have great snorkeling.