Overview
About Wandoor Beach & Marine National Park
Wandoor gets treated as a transit point, which does it a disservice. The beach is a broad sweep of pale sand backed by a wall of forest, littered with the bleached trunks the 2004 tsunami left behind, and on a weekday morning you will have most of it to yourself. It is one of the few beaches in South Andaman that still feels genuinely wild.
It is also the administrative gateway to the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park — fifteen islands, reef flats and mangrove creeks protected since 1983, holding the best-preserved coral in South Andaman. The forest office at Wandoor issues the permits, and the boats to Jolly Buoy and Red Skin leave from the jetty here. Nothing goes into the park without clearing this counter first.
There is a small interpretation centre by the office covering the park's reefs, turtle nesting and mangrove systems. Ten minutes, but it makes the boat trip mean more.
Swim with care. The beach shelves unevenly, there are no lifeguards, and the tsunami left submerged debris in places. Most visitors walk it, photograph the driftwood and take the boat out rather than getting in the water here.
Why people come here
- Wide, wild beach with dramatic tsunami driftwood
- Permit office and boat jetty for the Marine National Park
- Departure point for Jolly Buoy and Red Skin islands
- Marine park interpretation centre
- Forest-backed coastline with almost no development
Things to do
What to do here
Walk the driftwood beach
A kilometre of pale sand and bleached trunks with forest right behind it. The most photogenic hour is the first one after sunrise.
Boat into the Marine National Park
Permits and boat seats for Jolly Buoy or Red Skin are issued here each morning. Whichever island is open that half of the year, this is where you start.
Marine park interpretation centre
Displays on the park's coral, turtles and mangrove systems next to the forest office.
Mangrove creek edges
The creeks either side of the jetty are good for waders and kingfishers early in the day.
Getting there
How to reach
By cab from Port Blair
An hour each way. To catch a park boat you need to leave Port Blair by about 7 am.
By bus
Government buses run from Port Blair to Wandoor, but the timings do not reliably match the boat departures.
On a tour
Sold as a full-day Jolly Buoy or Red Skin trip, permit and boat included.
Best time to visit · November to April, early morning
Park boats do not run in rough weather, and the monsoon months from June to September see frequent cancellations. Arrive at the permit counter by 8 am in season.
Good to know
Travel tips
- Carry original photo ID for every person in the group — permits are issued against it.
- No plastic goes into the national park. Bottles, wrappers and bags are checked at the jetty.
- Get there early. Permits are capped daily and the counter closes when the quota is gone.
- Nothing to buy past the jetty — pack water and food for the whole day.
- The beach itself is worth an hour even if you have no park plans.
Gallery
Wandoor Beach & Marine National Park in pictures
Port Blair (South Andaman)
Combine it with
Tour packages
