Monsoon 5 Days Long Island Andaman Package | Silted

The government ferry from Rangat to Long Island takes approximately 30 to 45 minutes across the channel — a short, calm crossing that arrives at the Long Island jetty in the morning with the full day ahead. The absence of motor vehicles on Long Island registers within the first few minutes of stepping off the ferry. The jetty area has a small market, a handful of basic shops and a path leading into the island’s interior.

The trek to Lalaji Bay starts from near the jetty — approximately 45 minutes to an hour through forest on a defined but narrow trail that has some elevation through the middle section before descending to the beach. Lalaji Bay at the end of the trek is a long curve of sand inside a bay enclosed by forest on three sides with open ocean to the east. The group spends the afternoon here. The return trek in the late afternoon takes the same path. Overnight at Long Island.

The second day on Long Island in this long island andaman package has no fixed programme — which takes some getting used to if the group has come from the organised activity circuit of Havelock. A second visit to Lalaji Bay in the morning is worth it at a different tide level from Day 2 — the beach changes character depending on how far the water has pulled back and the reef edge at low tide reveals detail that the high-tide visit covers. The island settlement away from the beach is where the rest of the day goes — the paddy fields running back from the main path, the vegetable gardens, the fishing boats at the jetty in the morning before they head out, a community operating entirely outside the tourist economy.

Bicycles are available for hire locally for those who want to cover more of the island’s paths. Phone connectivity on Long Island is limited and the absence of that constant signal is something most travellers notice and then stop noticing. Overnight at Long Island.

The morning ferry from Long Island back to Rangat takes approximately 30 to 45 minutes. The drive south from Rangat toward Port Blair passes through the Baratang area in the late morning where this long island andaman package makes a stop at the Baratang limestone caves. From the Baratang jetty a motorboat crosses a mangrove creek to the cave landing point — approximately 15 to 20 minutes on the water — followed by a jungle trek of roughly the same duration to the cave entrance. The limestone formations inside are natural stalactites and stalagmites shaped over thousands of years, visible by torchlight since there is no artificial lighting in the caves.

The Baratang mud volcanoes are a short walk from the main road — low mounds of grey clay with slow subsurface gas activity that makes them unlike anything else in the Andaman Islands. The convoy through the Jarawa Tribal Reserve on the return applies the same rules. Port Blair by evening. Overnight in Port Blair.

The final morning of the long island andaman package is in Port Blair. Groups with afternoon or evening departure flights have time for Ross Island — now Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Island — reached by a short boat ride from Aberdeen Jetty, the former British administrative headquarters of the Andamans now largely forest with colonial ruins and deer moving through the cleared paths.

North Bay is available for a glass bottom boat ride over the coral reef closest to Port Blair. The Sagarika government emporium near the clock tower carries Andaman shell craft and local spices at fixed prices for a last purchase before the airport. The Bon Voyagers vehicle drops at Port Blair Airport. The trip back from an island with no motor vehicles to an airport departure carries a specific kind of readjustment.