What’s a good budget package for Andaman, who is the best Andaman tour operator to go with and what should be your budget? Get answers here
Google ‘Andaman Tour Package’ and you’ll get 3,65,000 results. Click through the first few and your’ll wonder where to start. Some ads even outrageously show a rate of Rs. 1000 per person, while others offer minute variations between a 3 and 4 night package. You’ll end up with three questions – what’s a good package for you, who is the best Andaman tour operator to go with and what should be your budget?
Here’s an article that aims to provide an unbiased view to make things easy for you
What do you plan to do at Andaman
When you close your eyes and visualize Andaman, the first thing that comes to mind is the white sand beach and emerald blue sea. But there is a lot to Andaman beyond that. The cellular jail has a unique historic value. The limestone caves and active volcano are a natural wonders. The scuba and sea walk make a call to the adventurer inside you. You may want to see the natural sand bridge connecting Ross and Smith and the natural rock bridge in the Neil islands. And who can forget Havelock and Radhanagar beach – one of Asia’s best beaches.
Some want to stand on top of Mount Harriet and see the view featured on India’s Rs. 20 note. Others will want to touch the southenmost point of India to catch a sunset like no other. And some others will want to watch the parrots descend and leave the Parrot Island. Some want to do it all, some want to pick and choose. And it is a difficult choice at so many levels. Start by reading a definite destination guide to Andaman and then picking the things that fit you and your companions. If you are traveling with children or elderly you may want to take it easy. If you are a young adventurous group, you may love the trek to the limestone caves.
Then make a list of the things feasible for you. Juxtapose it with the time required and the costs. Scuba for example can take the whole day can each dive can cost up to Rs. 2500 or more. Arrive at a final list with the things you defenitely don’t want to miss out while in Andaman.
How do I plan my itieneary?
The options can get a bit confusing beyond a point. There are blue water white sand beaches everywhere so how do you pick where you want to go?
Port Blair: Your flight will get you to the city of Port Blair. Most tour operators will include the local attractions including a day visit to the Cellular jail and an evening visit again for the light and sound show. Port Blair also has some other attractions like the Samudrika museum and some shopping points. These should be covered by default during your 1 day stay in the city. The other places of interest include Jolly Buoy island, Baratang, Chidia Tapu, Ross Island and North Bay – where water activities happen.
Havelock is the place all tourists flock to. It is where you’ll see a glimpse of postcard perfect Andaman. The scenic resorts, the Radhanagar beach and water activities makes this a must do. You can spend a night at Havelock to make sure you have enough breathing time and are not rushing through that amazing sunset.
Beyond this is where the itenary gets flexible. You can spend one day to visit the Neil island for its natural Howrah bridge and Ross and Smith island in Diglipur and try your hand at snorkeling, glass bottom boat rides and even sea walks. During season, some people love to visit Rangat to see the turtle nesting ground. Others travel for hours through the Andaman forests to see the active volcano or limestone caves. Some others take a day out to do Scuba diving. If you have a 6 -7 day vacation you can do many of these.
Top 5 most recommeded things to be included in your Andaman Tour Package
- A walk down the history lane with the Cellular Jail
- Scuba diving at Havelock
- Trekking to the limestone caves
- Snorkelling at Jolly Buoy
- Natural white sand bridge between Ross and Smith islands
Figure out the number of days you have
While we all would love a six month vacation twice a year, we are bound by work pressures and school schedules. Realistically, most people take a 4-5 day vacation to the Andaman which allows a mix of adventure and relaxation and 2 days dedicated to travel – that makes a week of vacation.
Book your flight tickets first
Seasonal flights can cost a bomb and the earlier you book the better. The money saved can easily go into making your vacation experience better. From the newly started Vistara to others like Air India, there are quite a few airlines who fly to the Andamans. Here is a quick read about flights to Andaman. Our recommendation is to book a late night flight so that you can spend the night in travel and reach Andaman early in the day.
Plan a budget
Most vacationers love to get a deal that fits their budget. There are Andaman Tour Packages for most pockets. They can be tweaked and customized to ensure you get the best value for your money. For some people, a luxury stay with good amenities is important. For others, they simply need a room to spend the night and rather use the money on siteseeing and activities.
While money is a big determining factor, we recommed that you go with quality over quantity here. The cheapest option is generally the no-frills one and you may end up receiving the short end of the stick after traveling such a distance to get there.
One of the best recomendations to cut down on costs is to use the power of numbers to your advantage. If you are a big group of 20-30 individuals, you can bargain and get good deals for everything from stay to activities. This can bring your average 3 day package cost per person down to even Rs. 10,000 – Rs. 15000 depending on the activities you choose. Couple packages and Honeymoon packages genrally range between Rs.25-30000 per person. This amps up your stay options in the deluxe category. For those with a taste for a finer holiday, you can have a great package put together for you for Rs.40-50000.
What other than the budget should really matter to you?
The one thing to keep in mind here is that you need to have a deciding factor beyond money when you select your tour operator. A local expert will know Andaman like the back of his hand and will be able to pull together an ‘experience’ package for you fully understand your purpose of the visit. He will also be adept at handling emergencies locally and will ensure that your trip is smooth thorughout. It is their years of experience that will be poured in to make your few days trip a happy one. So feel freel to ask them about it.
Another thing to keep in mind is to know what you are being charged for. Once you have a breakdown on the charges for each stay / trip and activity you can do a micro level customization to tweak your budgets.
Here are some good parameters
Check out if your tour operator is available on social media and what their response rates are
Check out their reviews and testimonials on the regular review sites
Ask them if they are willing to do personalized Andaman Tour Packages and not give a run-of-the-mill experience
Don’t be afraid to ask them for references. If they have happy customers, they won’t be afraid to show off
See how responsive they are – do they give you text book responses for your package or really go the extra mile to serve you.
Plan your stay
Now that your budget is set, you can ask a local expert tour operator to negotiate a good Andaman tour package rate for you. While a lot of people think its best to book things yourself considering everything is available on the internet, the reality is that local tour operators huslte and get much better rates because they often work with bulk deals. There are budget, deluxe, luxury hotels and even eco huts available in certain places. Many come with free breakfast during the stay too. All you need to do is let mention what type of place you need in your Andaman Tour package and you’ll be all set.
So, what’s next?
It’s time to convert your plans into reality. Andaman Holidays is not only the best tour operator in Andaman – we are a boutique destination management company. We have successfully anchored thousands of vacation experiences in the Andamans. Come rain or shine, we work with a single motto – If our customers don’t have smile on their face, our tour hasn’t been successful. And that has simply never happened. That is a really tall order and but we love to meet and exceed expectations.
Our local expertise extends not only to tourists but also for yacht owners, cruise ships, corporate holiday planners and MICE. We have expertly handled large groups visiting the Andaman and also provide personlized Andaman Honeymoon packages to newly weds. We do adventure tours, womeny-only tours, group tours and more.
Some quick facts about Andaman Holidays
1. We are the only company approved by Ministry of Tourism, Government of India.
2. We are also approved by Andaman Tourism.
3. We are the members of Indian Association of Tour Operators, Travel Agents Association of India, Andaman Chamber of Commerce and Industries, Network of Indian MICE Agents and Federation of Responsible Tour Operators.
4. We have hosted the clients like Crown Prince of Dubai and Sir Ian Botham.
5. We are one of the oldest operators in Andaman. Here’s the case of Mr. Prashant from Bangalore who first came to Andaman as for his honeymoon and returned after fourteen years with his wife and son. We had the privilage to serve him both times.
Our friendly staff ensures that you get nothing but the best – not only in terms of budget but in terms of your Andaman experience. This is why several of our new customers have been referred by our previous ones.
Here’s the family from Thailand who came yachting to Andaman. See their experience first hand about their Andaman Yacht Tour
We have these and hundreds of other testimonials that will vouch for our reliablity and expertise. And when you are traveling with your family, that’s what matters the most. We are quick on a turn around time too. Want to try? Drop us a message now