Neil Island

Neil Island is a tiny but beautiful Island located 37 kilometers away to the south of the Andaman Island. It is basically an Island of the Andaman Island, located in Ritchie’s Archipelago. It belongs to the South Andaman administrative district, part of the Indian union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Island. Neil island is also known as the ‘vegetable bowl’ of the Andaman. With unexplored coral reefs, brilliant bio-diversity, white sand beaches and tropical forest and vegetation, certainly thrown the spot light of exotic aura in Indian subcontinent. Neil island is definitely can be said as the lover’s paradise with its lush green surrounding succumbing the mind with such romantic notion of tranquility.
Neil island is the perfect for a peaceful time off, with its charm and serene vibe, the island is soothingly different from its neighboring Havelock. One spends such leisure time at those long deserted beach or indulging themselves on ious water sports in the crystal clear water. Many of such beaches in the island is named after mythological characters from the Ramayana. Neil island can be said as the painter’s dream sketch, the beauty of the place enthralls the mind of every visitor. Perhaps Neil Island can be called as the masterpiece of Andaman Island.

Lakshmanpur Beach : The secluded beach of Lakshmanpur lies 2 km north of the Neil jetty. The beach is a broad spur of white shell sand with shallow water and offers a good snorkeling option. Sunbathing and swimming are other activities. One can view spectacular sun-set from this beach. This rocky beach lies about two kilometers from the jetty with lots of coral formation , ornamental fish, sea urchins, sea cucumbers, star fish etc. which are best suited for people of scientific temperament. The rocky surface can get slippery and one needs to be on ones guard. The main attraction here is the natural rock formations.

Bharatpur Beach : Half a kilometer from the jetty, Bharatpur is one of the best beaches known for swimming and coral-watching with a vast sandy stretch. This beach is ideally recommended for youngsters because of activity options. One can hire glass-bottom boats for coral viewing. The Sea around the Jetty area is full of corals with schools of fish swimming around. The colour and form of vegetation along the beach soothes the senses.

Sitapur Beach : This beach is exposed to the open sea and thus prone to higher tides. It is 5 kilometers to the south and at the tip of the island. This beach is best suited to watch the sunrise with an impressive backdrop of natural vegetation and limestone formations. The journey from the Jetty to Sitapur beach itself is refreshing with green fields and a variety of crops and forest trees.

Activities in Neil Island : Activity options in Neil include Snorkeling, Scuba diving, Game fishing, trekking. Cycling, Sun bathing, swimming, bird watching and many more. The coastal belt surrounding A & N Islands is the abode of one of the richest coral reef ecosystem in the world. The coral reefs and under water formation are untouched by human activities. The abundance of marine life around Neil provides a rich variety of varied diving sites. The ideal dive season is from December to May. The Jetty area and Laxmanpur beach-I are the dive spots. Water Sports activities at Neil Island offers Jet-Ski rides, scuba diving and coral viewing through Glass Bottom Boat. The area around Jetty is ideal for such activities. The place has enormous scope for water sports activities.