Sea Walking

Sea Walking - Water Sport at Andaman Islands

Sea walking puts you on the ocean floor wearing a heavy diving helmet that's fed air from a compressor on the surface boat. Unlike scuba diving, there's no tank on your back and no mouthpiece - you breathe through your nose and mouth exactly like you would on land, just underwater. A guide stays with you the entire walk, usually leading you by hand along a rope or railing.

North Bay Island, a short boat ride from Port Blair, runs the most sea walking operations in Andaman. Havelock Island offers it too, generally with calmer conditions and slightly better visibility outside monsoon months. The walk itself stays in the 4-6 metre range, shallow enough that pressure isn't really an issue for most people.

Sea Walking at Andaman Islands

The helmet itself is the part people remember - it's heavier than you'd expect on land, but underwater the weight disappears and it just sits on your shoulders. A boat crew lowers you down a ladder until you reach the seabed, then your guide takes over from there, walking you slowly past coral formations and whatever fish happen to be around that day.

Since you're not swimming, there's nothing to coordinate - no kicking, no equalizing your ears the way divers do, no holding your breath. People who've tried snorkelling and felt uneasy about it tend to find sea walking far less stressful, since your head and face stay dry the entire time inside the helmet.