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Lakshadweep Tourism |
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The pure shores of the Lakshadweep archipelago shimmer and shine in the sun kissed setting, and wink and beckon to every traveller. The set of 36 islands is allied to the Republic of India and at a total area of 32 sq km is her smallest union territory. 51,000 people inhabit only 10 of the islands.
They are mainly Muslim and they speak a local version of the Kerala language. The economy survives on fishing and coir making. Only 5 of the islands are open for tourism and only 2 of these are open to non-Indian tourists.
There’s a range of things to do. Swim with the locals: turtles, dolphins, eagle ray and stay away from the bad crowd: sharks, octopus, barracuda! (Don’t worry, the sharks are completely harmless and octopus and barracuda too far from the shores – the waters are completely safe). Snorkel in the reef through colonies of fish. Surf the aqua marine waters, romp the white sands.
A trip to Lakshadweep requires a tourist permit from all. This can be arranged at the Lakshadweep Tourist Office in Cochin (Kochi). The only way to visit is to hook up with a package tour group. Tour operators start the first of the trips in October and continue till May. The most popular months are from January to the middle of May when the diving and fishing is good but it’s possible to visit any time in the year.
Travelling to Lakshadweep may seem like a daunting task because of the list of dos and don’ts that precede a trip but believe us any hassles are more than worth it.
By Air The usual way to get to Lakshadweep is to fly from Cochin (Kochi) in Kerala to Agatti Island. The airport takes Donears and helicopters, which allows only up to 10 kg baggage weight per person.
By Sea The govt tourist dept has the acronym SPORTS: Society for Promotion Of Recreational Tourism and Sports. It operates cruises from Cochin to all the islands that are open to tourists.
People usually stay at the resort island of Bangaram. There is no indigenous local population so this is an out and out tourist facility. The hotel has cottages on the beach; a multi cuisine restaurant with a bar, a library, scuba diving gear on hire, and tons of ambience. Catamarans, kayaks and sailboats are free; grab and go!
Bangaram also has rafting, snorkeling, and deep-sea diving and deep-sea fishing equipment and instructors. Kadmat also has similar facilities and tourist movement is restricted to the tourist area.
The other inhabited islands are Minicoy, Andrott, Amini, Kalpeni, Kiltan, Chetlat, Bitra and Kavaratti. Minicoy is the largest and culturally closer to the Maldives than to India. Kavaratti is the administrative capital, and the seat of the central govt’s representative offices.
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