Freediving in the Andaman Islands: Havelock, Neil and Beyond

Freediving in the Andaman Islands usually means flying into Sri Vijaya Puram (called Port Blair until 2024), taking a ferry to Swaraj Dweep (Havelock) and training from boats over clear, warm water between roughly November and April. Havelock has most of the freediving instructors and boat sites; Shaheed Dweep (Neil) is quieter and better suited to snorkelling and rest days. For Indian divers it is the most complete freediving destination in the country, as long as you plan around ferries, weather and patchy connectivity.

The Andaman Islands and their new names

The Andamans sit in the Bay of Bengal, closer to Myanmar than to mainland India. Several places have been renamed in recent years, and you’ll see both old and new names on tickets, maps and signboards:

Official name now	Older name you’ll still hear
Sri Vijaya Puram	Port Blair
Swaraj Dweep	Havelock Island
Shaheed Dweep	Neil Island
Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Dweep	Ross Island

Port Blair became Sri Vijaya Puram in 2024; Havelock, Neil and Ross were renamed in 2018. Boat crews, hotels and booking sites use both freely, so don’t panic if your ferry ticket says one thing and your hotel confirmation says another.

Getting there: flights, ferries and buffer days

Flights. Veer Savarkar International Airport in Sri Vijaya Puram has regular flights from Chennai and Kolkata, plus direct or one-stop services from other major cities such as Delhi, Bengaluru and Hyderabad. Routes change by season, so compare options when you book.

Ships. Passenger ships run from Chennai, Kolkata and Visakhapatnam and take around three days. Schedules are irregular. It’s an experience rather than a convenience.

Inter-island ferries. From Sri Vijaya Puram, government ferries and private catamarans run to Swaraj Dweep (roughly 1.5 to 2.5 hours, depending on the boat) and on to Shaheed Dweep (about an hour from Swaraj). Private ferries can sell out in peak season, so book as soon as your flights are fixed. Government ferries are often cheaper but can be harder to book from the mainland. Rough weather cancels sailings.

Buffer days. Plan to be back in Sri Vijaya Puram at least the day before your flight out, so a cancelled ferry doesn’t cost you a flight. That also gives you a sensible gap between your last dive and flying; our post on freediving and flying explains why a conservative gap makes sense after a heavy diving block.

When to go: the Andaman freediving season

The typical season runs from about November to April, with December to March usually the most settled. The southwest monsoon arrives around mid to late May and brings rain, wind and rough seas until roughly September. Some operators keep going on calm days at sheltered sites, but you can’t plan a course around it. October is a shoulder month.

The Bay of Bengal also has cyclone seasons, roughly April to May and October to December. Not every year brings one, but when a system forms, ferries stop. Check the India Meteorological Department’s forecasts in the week before you travel. For how the Andamans compare with the rest of the country, see our month-by-month season guide for India.

Freediving conditions: water, visibility and depth

• Water temperature: typically around 27–30°C. A 1.5–3 mm wetsuit or a long-sleeved rash guard is plenty for most people; the suit is as much about sun and jellyfish as warmth.
• Visibility: in season, often 10–20 m and sometimes more. After storms, plankton blooms or strong tides, it can drop sharply.
• Depth: boat sites around Swaraj Dweep give access to sand and open water well beyond beginner course depths, so instructors can hang a line at whatever depth the session needs.
• Currents and surface: tides drive currents at many sites. Mornings are usually calmer; afternoon wind can chop up the surface.
• Daylight: the islands lie far to the east but run on IST, so the sun rises and sets noticeably earlier than in Delhi or Mumbai. Boats often leave early.

Sun is a bigger problem than cold. A long session on a buoy at midday will burn the back of your neck and your calves through any amount of sunscreen. Cover up.

Safety: Clear water makes depth look shallower than it is, and the Andamans are where many Indian divers first see 20 m of water below them. Dive on a line with a lanyard, with a trained buddy, at depths your instructor sets. Never dive alone, and don’t start breath-hold dives straight after a hard swim or a long, bumpy boat ride.

Swaraj Dweep (Havelock): the main base

Swaraj Dweep is where most freediving in the Andamans happens. Freediving courses from beginner level upwards run here in season, and boats head out to coral gardens, pinnacles and sandy areas suitable for line training. Most accommodation and dive operators are spread along the road on the island’s east side, south of the jetty, around the numbered beaches.

Radhanagar Beach (Beach No. 7), on the other side of the island, is famous for its sunsets and good for a swim when calm, but it isn’t a freediving site. Elephant Beach, reached by boat or a forest walk, has a shallow reef popular with snorkellers; it fills up with day-trippers and water-sport boats, so go early if you want to see it in peace.

Saltwater crocodiles are a genuine, if rare, hazard in the Andamans. Warning signs are posted at some beaches. Take them seriously and ask locally before swimming anywhere unfamiliar.

Shaheed Dweep (Neil): quieter, shallower, slower

Shaheed Dweep is smaller and more relaxed, about an hour from Swaraj Dweep by ferry. Bharatpur Beach, close to the jetty, has shallow reef for snorkelling. At low tide you can walk out to the natural rock bridge near Laxmanpur, and Sitapur, at the eastern tip, is the sunrise beach.

There are fewer freediving-specific instructors on Neil and fewer boat sites. A common pattern is to do your course or training on Havelock and then spend two or three days on Neil for rest, easy snorkelling with a buddy and early nights.

Beyond Havelock and Neil

• North Bay, a short boat ride from Sri Vijaya Puram, is a popular snorkelling stop with glass-bottom boats and day-trip crowds.
• Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park near Wandoor has snorkelling islands such as Jolly Buoy and Red Skin. Entry needs a park permit, plastic is restricted, and which island is open often depends on the season.
• Long Island, Diglipur and Little Andaman are further out, with fewer facilities and long ferry or road connections. Ross and Smith, a pair of islands joined by a sandbar near Diglipur, are lovely for snorkelling. Check which islands are currently open to tourists and how you’ll get back.
• Barren Island, India’s only active volcano, has been visited by some liveaboard trips. Access is restricted and changes, so don’t plan around it without confirming.

Spend most of your actual training time on Swaraj Dweep and treat the rest as exploration.

Permits and rules for Indian and foreign visitors

Indian citizens generally don’t need a special permit for the main tourist islands such as Swaraj Dweep and Shaheed Dweep. Marine national parks have their own permits and fees, and some areas, including tribal reserves, are completely off-limits to everyone.

Foreign nationals have historically needed a Restricted Area Permit for the Andamans. The rules were relaxed for many islands in 2018, but they still depend on nationality and on which islands you plan to visit. Check current rules with official sources before you book, not on a travel forum.

Collecting coral and shells is illegal, and luggage can be checked on the way out. Leave it all on the reef; our post on reef etiquette for freedivers in India covers the rest.

Before you book the Andaman trip

• Book inter-island ferries as soon as your flights are fixed, and keep screenshots of tickets offline.
• Carry enough cash for several days. ATMs on the islands exist but run dry or go offline, and mobile data can be slow.
• Arrive with your equalisation working. If you can’t do a reliable Frenzel equalisation on land, sea days get expensive quickly.
• Pack properly; our freediving gear checklist has a section on extras for Indian islands.
• If this is your first course, our guide to getting freediving certified in India explains how courses are structured.

An online community for Indian freedivers is on its way here at freediving.in, so stay tuned.