Port Blair to Diglipur: Every Way to Reach North Andaman

Port Blair to Diglipur is a 290 to 325 km haul up the Andaman Trunk Road to the top of North Andaman. You have four real options: the government ferry (about 9 hours), the ATR bus (10 to 12 hours), a private cab, or the Pawan Hans helicopter (about 1 hour). Each suits a different budget and stomach for a long day.

Suggested Read: Places to visit in Andaman and Best time to Visit Andaman

How far is Diglipur from Port Blair?

Diglipur sits roughly 290 to 325 km north of Port Blair by road, depending on which route and ferry crossings your driver takes. By sea the gap is shorter, about 180 km. Either number tells you the same thing: this is the longest single journey most travellers make in the Andamans, and it is not a place you reach in an hour.

The road option follows the Andaman Trunk Road (ATR), the spine that connects South, Middle and North Andaman. It threads through Jirkatang, the Jarawa Tribal Reserve, Baratang, Middle Strait, Kadamtala, Rangat and Mayabunder before it finally drops you into Diglipur. Port Blair was officially renamed Sri Vijaya Puram in September 2024, so you will see that name on newer ferry manifests and government bus boards. It is the same city.

What is the best way to get from Port Blair to Diglipur?

For most tourists the government ferry is the sensible pick: it is cheap, you can sleep or read instead of gripping a seat for 12 hours, and it lands you close to the Aerial Bay jetty. Choose the road only if you actively want to break the trip at Rangat or Baratang, or if the ferry days do not line up with your plan. The helicopter is the fastest by a mile, but seats are scarce and rarely guaranteed for tourists. Here is the quick comparison.

Mode	Time	Approx cost (non-islander)	Best for
Government ferry	9 to 10 hrs	Rs 1,495 to 2,085 per person	Budget, comfort, solo or couples
ATR government bus	10 to 12 hrs	Rs 300 to 400 per person	Cheapest, backpackers
Private semi-sleeper bus	10 to 12 hrs	Rs 600 to 800 per person	A little more comfort by road
Private cab or taxi	9 to 11 hrs	Rs 18,000 to 40,000 per car	Families, groups, flexible stops
Pawan Hans helicopter	About 1 hr	Rs 5,250 per person one way	Speed, if a seat opens up

All fares as of August 2026. Confirm current rates before you travel; government fares and helicopter subsidies are revised periodically.

Port Blair to Diglipur by ferry: Schedule and Fares

The government ferry is the most cost-effective way to cover the water. It leaves the Haddo (Phoenix Bay) jetty in Port Blair around 07:00 and reaches Aerial Bay jetty in Diglipur near 16:00, running via Rangat, about 9 hours on the water. The catch is frequency: these ferries sail only 3 to 4 times a week, and there is no private high-speed ferry on this route the way there is to Havelock or Neil.

Vessels you will commonly see on the route include MV Jollybouy and MV Rani Lakshmi. Seats come in three classes, and the price gap between islander and non-islander fares is large.

Class	Islander fare	Non-islander fare
Seat (2nd)	Rs 240	Rs 1,495
Chair (AC)	Rs 310	Rs 1,785
Bunk	Rs 615	Rs 2,085

Port Blair (Sri Vijaya Puram) to Diglipur government ferry fares, as of August 2026.

Booking opens two days before departure, either at the ferry counters in Port Blair or on the Andaman and Nicobar shipping portal (dss.andamannicobar.gov.in). Book your return from Diglipur as early as you can, because a cancelled or full return ferry can strand you up north for a day or two. If you get seasick, the chair class cabin is worth the extra rupees on a 10 hour crossing.

Port Blair to Diglipur by bus and road

The bus is the cheapest way to reach Diglipur, and it is how most islanders travel. Government ATR buses and private operators leave from the STS bus terminal at Mohanpura in Port Blair. Government buses are basic, non-AC, and cost around Rs 300 to 400. Private semi-sleeper and AC coaches run Rs 600 to 800 depending on seat type. Operators like SSV Transport and Apna Lines sell online, and many seats also appear on Redbus.

Most buses leave very early, between 4:00 and 5:00 in the morning, so they clear the Jarawa reserve convoy and reach Diglipur by evening. Total road time is 10 to 12 hours with stops at Baratang and Rangat. Carry water, snacks and a little cash, because long stretches of the ATR have no shops, no reliable mobile signal and few clean toilets. The bus itself boards a vehicle ferry at Middle Strait, so part of your ticket includes floating across a creek.

What is the Andaman Trunk Road convoy, and what are the rules?

Every road traveller to Diglipur passes through the Jarawa Tribal Reserve, and you cannot drive it freely. Vehicles gather at the Jirkatang check post and cross the reserve in a timed, police-escorted convoy. There are only a few convoy slots a day in each direction, so missing yours means waiting hours for the next one.

Inside the reserve the rules are strict and non-negotiable, and we tell every guest the same thing. Do not stop. Do not photograph or film the Jarawa. Do not offer food, money or anything else, and do not roll the windows down to interact. These are legal protections for a vulnerable Indigenous community, and the fines and consequences are real. Roughly midway you reach Middle Strait, where a vehicle ferry carries the bus or car across to the Baratang side, a crossing of about 15 to 20 minutes. From there the road continues north through Kadamtala and Rangat.

Port Blair to Diglipur by Private Cab or Taxi

A private cab is the comfortable, flexible choice, and the one we book most often for families. Expect Rs 18,000 to 40,000 for the car depending on size (a sedan versus a Tempo Traveller) and whether it is one way or round trip. The drive is 9 to 11 hours and gives you door-to-door service, plus the freedom to stop for the limestone caves at Baratang or a leg-stretch at Rangat. When you book, confirm in writing whether the quote includes fuel, tolls, the Middle Strait vehicle ferry fee and the driver’s night halt at Diglipur. Those extras are where surprise costs hide.

Port Blair to Diglipur by helicopter

The fastest way to reach Diglipur is the Pawan Hans helicopter operated under the Andaman administration, which covers the hop in about an hour instead of a full day on the road. The tourist fare is around Rs 5,250 one way; islanders pay a heavily subsidised Rs 2,100. It sounds ideal, and the aerial view of the archipelago is genuinely special. The reality is that seats are extremely limited, allocated on priority to government officials, residents and medical or emergency travel, with tourist seats released only when spare. The service does not run daily and is very weather-sensitive. Treat it as a lucky bonus, not a plan you build a trip around.

What our Port Blair team tells travellers before the Diglipur trip

We handle this route most weeks of the season, and the gap between a smooth Diglipur trip and a wasted day usually comes down to a handful of things no schedule tells you. This is the on-ground briefing we give our own guests.

•  Give Diglipur two nights, three if you want Saddle Peak. One night means you arrive shattered at dusk and leave at dawn, having seen a jetty and a hotel ceiling and nothing else. Two nights lets you take Ross and Smith on a full day at the right low tide, when the sandbar is walkable. The Saddle Peak trek on its own eats a morning, so add the third night if that climb is on your list.

•  Read the cab quote line by line before you pay. An 18,000 rupee headline can climb past 25,000 once the Middle Strait vehicle-ferry fee, the tolls, the driver’s night halt at Diglipur and the return-leg fuel are added in. Get every one of those in writing. The cabs we book fold the ferry fee and the halt into the number, which is exactly where families get stung on the doorstep.

•  Stay at Kalipur, not Diglipur town. The town is a working bazaar, not a base. Kalipur puts you five minutes from the turtle beach and the Ross and Smith boat point and saves an hour of backtracking every morning. North Andaman carries a fraction of Havelock’s rooms, though, and the few good Kalipur stays fill weeks ahead in turtle season, so lock your room the day your dates firm up.

•   Book the turtle night watch through the Forest Department, not a beach tout. Kalipur’s nesting watch is run by the department, free or near enough, with the no-flash and no-touch rules actually enforced on the sand. Anyone charging a private ‘turtle tour’ fee at the beach is selling you what the department already runs for nothing. Ask your stay to point you to the right ranger for the night.

•  Treat the ferry’s 4 pm arrival as the plan, not a promise. The boat is timed 07:00 out of Haddo to 16:00 into Aerial Bay, but rough North Andaman water pushes it later often enough that you should keep that first evening free of any fixed booking. On the crossing itself, the AC chair or bunk class earns its extra rupees if you are prone to seasickness. The open seat deck is a long nine hours in swell.

•  Draw your cash and fill the tank in Port Blair. ATMs in Diglipur exist but run dry, and card machines are patchy, so carry what you need well before Baratang. If you are self-driving, do not count on a fuel stop across the long ATR stretches between the checkposts. Top up in Port Blair and again at Rangat, never on the assumption of a pump somewhere on the way.

• Break the drive at Rangat rather than enduring it in one shot. Same distance, a completely different day. A night at Rangat or Baratang buys you the limestone caves or Amkunj beach and lands you up north rested, instead of turning twelve hours on the ATR into something you simply survive.

When is the best time to travel from Port Blair to Diglipur?

The honest answer is November to April, and December to January if turtles are your reason for going. That window gives you the calmest seas, the most reliable ferry sailings and Kalipur’s nesting season all at once. It is also the busiest and priciest stretch, so book early.

Avoid the peak monsoon from roughly late May through August. The North Andaman sea gets rough, government ferries to Diglipur are cancelled at short notice, and the ATR can flood or trigger landslips that hold convoys for hours. The road technically stays open, but a washed-out day up north is a miserable place to be stuck. September and October are a shoulder gamble: quieter and cheaper, with weather that can still turn.

Do you need a permit to travel to Diglipur?

Indian citizens do not need any permit for Diglipur or the ATR. Foreign nationals no longer require the old Restricted Area Permit for most of the popular Andaman islands after the rules were relaxed, though a few zones remain restricted and the situation is reviewed periodically. Whatever your nationality, the Jarawa reserve convoy rules on the ATR apply to everyone, every time.

Foreign national permit (RAP) rules for the Andamans have changed more than once. Confirm the current requirement for your specific itinerary before booking.

What is there to do once you reach Diglipur?

Diglipur earns the long haul. The headline sight is Ross and Smith Island, twin islands joined by a natural sandbar you can walk across at low tide, with clear water and easy snorkelling. Kalipur beach is the most important sea turtle nesting ground in the Andamans, where Olive Ridley, green, hawksbill and leatherback turtles come ashore between November and March; join the Forest Department’s guided night watch and follow the no-flash, no-touch rules. For hikers, Saddle Peak at 732 m is the highest point in the Andaman Islands and a proper trek. Nearby you can also fit in the Alfred Caves and the mud volcano.

Planning your Andaman trip with andamantourism.org

Reaching Diglipur is one of those trips where local knowledge saves you a wasted day. We are a locally run, Andaman-based operator with our team on the ground in Port Blair, and we handle the North Andaman route constantly. That means we know which ferry days are actually running this week, how the convoy timings have shifted, which cab drivers include the Middle Strait ferry fee honestly, and which stays near Kalipur are worth booking. We hold real relationships with the operators, hotels and boatmen up north, the kind of detail a mainland travel desk simply cannot track. If you want the Port Blair to Diglipur leg planned around ferries, convoys and turtle season instead of guesswork, that is exactly what we do at andamantourism.org.

Port Blair to Diglipur: FAQs

How long does it take to travel from Port Blair to Diglipur?

About 9 to 10 hours by government ferry, 10 to 12 hours by bus or cab on the ATR, and roughly 1 hour by the Pawan Hans helicopter when a seat is available.

Is there a direct ferry from Port Blair to Diglipur?

Yes, the government ferry runs directly from Haddo (Phoenix Bay) jetty to Aerial Bay jetty via Rangat, but only 3 to 4 times a week. There is no private high-speed ferry on this route.

Can I do Diglipur as a day trip from Port Blair?

No. The one-way journey alone is 9 to 12 hours. Plan at least two nights so you actually get time at Ross and Smith Island and Kalipur.

How much does the Port Blair to Diglipur bus cost?

Government ATR buses cost around Rs 300 to 400 per person. Private semi-sleeper and AC coaches run about Rs 600 to 800, as of August 2026.

Is the Port Blair to Diglipur road safe?

Yes, when you follow the rules. The ATR crosses the Jarawa reserve in a police-escorted convoy with strict no-stop and no-photography rules. Travel by day, keep to the convoy, and do not attempt the reserve stretch alone.

Can foreigners travel from Port Blair to Diglipur?

Generally yes. Most Andaman islands no longer need the old Restricted Area Permit for foreign nationals, though some zones stay restricted and rules are reviewed periodically. Confirm the current requirement for your itinerary before you book.