The Andaman and Nicobar Islands :

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An archipelago of 572 islands, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands located in the Bay of Bengal are one of the worlds most breathtakingly beautiful and pristine islands. Lying along an arc, in a long narrow broken chain and covering an area of 8,249 sq. km from north to south, these ecologically sensitive yet un-spoilt islands, home to some of the most mysterious and endangeredaboriginal tribes are a traveler’s delight. With their tropical virgin rainforest abound in rare and endemic species of flora and fauna, stunning underwater landscapes and marine life, unique tribal culture and heritage and sun kissed beaches, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are now on the top of every traveler’s itinerary.

With their spectacular underwater view of coral and marine life, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are an ideal place for pursuing activities like snorkeling, sea bathing, scuba diving, fishing and island camping. The islands, with their endless azure blue waters, myriad coral reefs and numerous islets offer a lifetime experience that one shouldn’t really miss!

With the seas around the islands largely being unspoiled, snorkeling in the Andaman seas is a real pleasure. An abundance of vivid and amazing marine and coral life greets you. Swim along with the dugongs, chat with the dolphins and watch the magic of thecoral reefs unfold at the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park, Carbyn's Cove Tourism Complex, Havelock Islands and other islands such as North Bay, Rutland, Kachuadera, Barabalu, Tarmugli etc.

Diving :

As an abode of one of the richest coral reef ecosystem is the world, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands provide a unique lifetime experience. With most of their coral reefs and underwater formations undamaged by human activity, one gets to view a fascinating world of under-water marine life, large varieties of colorful fishes, rarest of the coral reefs etc. With their crystal clear waters and warm diving sites suitable for people of all ages, visitors can enjoy a profusion of the islands beauty in its entirety.

Scuba diving is available in most of the Islands in Andaman and equipments are available in all major resorts and tourism promotion agencies. Visitors can also take advantage of the variouscourses that are offered by the resorts in scuba diving. Most of these courses last from a day to a week and are conducted by PADI certified instructors.

Some Good Diving Spots :

Havelock Island : Spread over 55 square miles, Havelock Island, voted by TIME Magazine as having two of the best beaches in the world, has a large number of diving sites. Divers can enjoy a dive in the islands protected waters and explore its myriad reefs, underwater rock formations, canyons etc.

Cinque Island : With its crystal clear emerald water and a visibility up to 80 feet, Cinque Island is one of the best dive destinations in the island. The deep dive offers a fascinating view of a large variety of marine life, including black coral, sharks, hammerhead etc and is ideal for the experienced diver. The North Point and the Southeast Reef are excellent for novice divers and have a large number of hard and soft corals, sponges and fishes.

Fish Rock/ Passage Island : With their rocky slopes, boulders and drop-offs, featuring large fan of corals and plenty of sponges, Fish Rock/ Passage Island offersan extremely colorful dive. With its rocks covered in small bushy soft corals in numerous hues, the dive is spectacular. Grey and White tip Reef and Reef Sharks are almost always in the vicinity as are Nurse Sharks and other marine life.

Bala Reef : Spread over 4-5 sq.km, Bala Reef is considered as one of the best sites in the Andaman’s for coral-with vibrant colours.

Corruption Rock : A wonderland of gullies, channels, ridges and canyons, it has wonderful undersea landscape of boulders. An amazing range of giant napoleons and eagle rays, huge snappers, schooling fusiliers, banner and unicorn fish, Dolphins, tuna and reef sharks have also been sighted here.

Rutland Island : With its shallow waters, Rutland Islandis an excellent site for beginners and also a good place for training divers.

Mac Point : Mostly hard corals and their inhabitants are found. Offers good visibility, dugongs have been spotted here. Aquarium : A popular fish breeding area, divers can expect to get to see huge variety of fishes and can occasionally spot the dugong. Suitable for both advanced and beginners.

Barracuda City : Ideal for the experienced diver, this diving site has a sloping bottom with rocks to upto 25 m. Also is known for its minor currents, one can view shoals of fish, turtles, and mostly hard and some soft corals.

Seduction Point : A huge rock with different kind of aquatic life, Seduction Point is regarded as the bastion of the Napoleon fish, which have been sighted in large number. The shallow part is full with stag horn corals and its inhabitants.

Lighthouse : A huge dive site and excellent for night dives. This site is suitable for all kind of divers’ .A huge variety of soft and hard corals, fishes, sea cucumbers etc can be seen.

The Wall : is a huge dive submerged rock. The wall drops down to a maximum of 55 meters and is full with life. Huge forests of hard and soft corals plus schools of fish circling you, makes it a memorable dive. Being sheltered between islands, this dive is suitable for both beginners and advanced divers.

Pilot Reef : Located near Havelock Island, Pilot reef is a huge block of pristine hard corals. At the bottom, a number of canyons stretch out, Leopard and White Tip Sharks have been sighted as also manta rays, jack fish, tuna etc.

Minerva ledge : A top diving site, Minerva Ledge located some 10 nautical miles away from Havelock is suitable for experienced divers only. Dropping off on all sides to a sandy bottom at 18m and more, a large variety of pelagics, shoals of different fishes, white tip and nurse sharks, giant groupers manta rays can be seen.

Campbell Shoal (off North Button Island.) : Reputed as having one of the best hard coral formations in the Andaman and Nicobar islands, Campbell Shoal hosts a multitude of marine life which includes Whitetip Reef Sharks, snappers, large cod and groupers, Coral Trout, manta rays, sting rays and a host of colorful reef-fishes.

Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park : Situated 29 km. from Port Blair, the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park at Wandoor covering an area of 281.5 Sq.Kms, was created 24 May 1983 to protect marine life such as the corals and nesting sea turtles. Comprising of open sea, creeks and 15 small and large islands, one can view rare corals in the fringing type of coral reefs and also see thousands of coral reef fishes such as clownfish, butterfly fish, surgeon fish, angel fish, parrot fish, bat fish, White tip shark, hammer headed shark; Manta ray and blue fin jack and groupers.

Besides, snorkeling and diving, the islands also provide a host of other popular water sport facilities. The Andaman Water SportsComplex offers aqua sports facilities like water skiing, wind surfing, sailing, addle boats, row boats, water cycle, water scooter, wind skiing etc.