A lot of first-time visitors land in Port Blair expecting one island and are surprised to learn Andaman and Nicobar is actually a union territory made up of hundreds of islands, most of which they'll never see and aren't meant to. Before you build an itinerary, it helps to understand what this place actually is, how it's laid out, and which parts of it a tourist can realistically visit. Here's the full picture.
Two Island Groups, One Union Territory
Andaman and Nicobar sits in the Bay of Bengal, closer to Myanmar and Indonesia than to mainland India, roughly 1,300 kilometres from Chennai and Kolkata. It's made up of two separate island groups. The Andaman Islands, the northern and larger group, is where nearly all tourism happens, Port Blair, Havelock (Swaraj Dweep), Neil (Shaheed Dweep), Baratang, and Diglipur all fall here. The Nicobar Islands sit further south and are almost entirely closed to outside visitors, home to indigenous communities whose isolation is legally protected. Unless you're on official government business, your entire trip will stay within the Andaman group.
In total there are 572 islands, islets, and rocky outcrops across the territory, but only around three dozen are inhabited, and a much smaller number than that have any tourist infrastructure at all. It's worth resetting expectations here: a typical week-long trip covers three or four islands at most, not dozens.
Only about three dozen of the 572 islands in the union territory are inhabited, and of those, only a handful are open to tourists without a special permit. The Nicobar group in particular is almost entirely off-limits to outside visitors, protected for the indigenous communities who live there, so nearly everything in a typical Andaman itinerary happens within the Andaman group, not the Nicobars.
The Islands You'll Actually Visit
Port Blair is where almost every trip begins and ends, it has the main airport, the ferry terminals, and landmarks like Cellular Jail and Corbyn's Cove. From there, most travellers ferry out to Havelock for Radhanagar Beach and the bulk of the diving and snorkelling, and to Neil Island for a quieter, slower pace. Baratang is usually a long day trip from Port Blair for its limestone caves and mud volcano, reached via a convoy through the Jarawa Tribal Reserve. Diglipur, in the far north, is the least visited of the accessible islands, worth it mainly for travellers with extra time who want turtle nesting beaches and Saddle Peak without the crowds.
Permits and Getting In
Indian citizens don't need a special permit to visit the Andaman Islands and simply need a valid photo ID. Foreign nationals require a Restricted Area Permit (RAP), which is issued free of charge and is usually stamped on arrival at the airport or seaport, valid for up to 30 days. Certain areas, including all of the Nicobar group and tribal reserves like Jarawa territory, stay off-limits regardless of nationality. Flights run into Port Blair from Chennai, Kolkata, Delhi, Bengaluru, and Mumbai, and it's the only real entry point for most travellers, since the passenger ship option from the mainland takes several days each way.
A Quick Word on the History
Andaman and Nicobar's modern history is inseparable from Cellular Jail, built by the British as a colonial prison for political prisoners, and from the wider story of India's freedom movement. The islands are also home to some of the world's most isolated indigenous groups, including the Sentinelese, Jarawa, Onge, and Shompen, several of whom have had little to no contact with the outside world. That history is part of why access to certain islands and reserves is so tightly controlled today, it isn't bureaucracy for its own sake.
Planning Your First Trip
If this is your first visit, we'd suggest anchoring your itinerary around Port Blair, Havelock, and Neil Island, that combination covers history, beaches, and diving without overloading your schedule with ferry transfers. Add Baratang or Diglipur only if you have more than six or seven days to spend. And build your dates around the November to May window when seas are calmer and ferries run more reliably, our guide to the best time to visit goes into that in more detail.
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