The Most Picturesque Islands In India To Add To Your Bucket List, According To Travelers

Looking at a map, travelers might be surprised that these islands are part of India. An archipelago that unravels in a north-south direction across the Andaman Sea, they are closer to the west coast of Thailand than they are to India. This grouping of tropical islands promises visitors gorgeous blue seas all around, though the various islands in the chain have their own selling points. Barren Island is the only verified active volcano in India, and though visitors can't step on the island, boats can tour around it. It's a craggy, mountainous spot that scores highly on Tripadvisor; it last erupted in 2005. 

Swaraj Dweep, formerly known as Havelock Island, has fine strips of sand, calm, clear seas, and coral reefs that are great for snorkeling — even if this is not one of the world's best islands for snorkeling, it's worth seeing. Close by, Neil Island has a laid-back vibe and features equally appealing swimming and sea life. The island is small enough to get around on a bicycle. Near the capital of the Andamans, Port Blair, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Island is filled with history. It's a tiny island, smaller than a square mile, and was turned into a prisoner of war camp by the Japanese during World War II. Visitors can see an old church and a graveyard where the British were buried.

A popular beach destination in India, Goa is the smallest state in the country. Think of islands in Goa, and you might imagine one sitting offshore, ringed by glittering seas. But Chorao Island is actually set within the Mandovi River and is an oasis of nature and greenery. As a visitor noted on Tripadvisor, "The lush green nature during monsoons is a sight to behold on Chorao Island." What makes the island all the more remarkable is that it's only a few miles away from Panaji, the capital of Goa, and a hotbed of restaurants, cafés, bars, nightlife, and tourists. 

Where Panaji is all commerce and cacophony, Chorao is verdant and serene. This is where to find Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary, where herons, kingfishers, and many migratory birds live among the mangroves and water channels in and around the island. You can also visit old churches, which have Portuguese influences and pretty façades. Foodies will want to make stops in the small villages around Chorao to sample some Goan dishes in simple, low-key restaurants.

Sitting next to Chorao Island, Divar is another easy escape close to the capital of Goa, Panaji. Old villages and verdant rice paddies give this island in the Mandovi River a distant feel, even though it's near the state's main hub. There are sites that should definitely be part of a visit. The Kadamba Dynasty ruins are set on top of a hill and feature a church built on the site of a former Hindu temple that was destroyed by Muslim soldiers. Look for carvings in the church that date back centuries. The Museum of Christian Art presents a deep dive into the work of Goa's Christians. Guests will be able to pore over silverware, paintings, and furnishings that showcase influences from Portugal and India. 

From the Church of Our Lady of Compassion, the dome and bell tower are pleasing to the eye, while the views of the river and over Diu are memorable. Other pleasures include wandering around small villages and seeing bright green rice paddies and old Portuguese-style homes around the island. There's also plenty of animal life here, as a commenter on Tripadvisor noted. "We spent [three] days on Divar Island and enjoyed the peace and quiet roads. There are some very nice houses on the island, but we were there mainly for the birds and the wildlife, and we weren't disappointed."

This grouping of islands spreads across the Indian Ocean. The archipelago's name means "hundred thousand islands," though in reality, there are only 36 of them. They all sit west of India, though Minicoy, for instance, is closer to the islands of the Maldives than to the country. What they all promise, however, is lovely turquoise water, making them an Indian alternative to the Maldives, a destination with kid-friendly resorts for the perfect family vacation and the best resorts for food lovers. 

Lakshadweep consists of 12 atolls and 3 reef systems, and of all the isles, only 10 have human populations on them. Warm, sunny, and seductively tropical all year round, the isles are best visited from October through March, when rainfall is minimal. April and May tend to be hot and very humid, while the summer months are when monsoon hits. 

Agatti Island is long and skinny and is home to the main airport. Its shimmering lagoon invites travelers who love to swim in the sea. There are more beaches and clear seas throughout the archipelago. Narrow Kadmat Island has lagoons on either side, some shallow enough that they are perfect for visitors with limited experience swimming in open water. As one commentator on Tripadvisor wrote, "This is the most beautiful small island in the world." For a real escape, go to Minicoy. It lies more than 100 miles from the other islands and features small villages and a lighthouse built by the British that's about 300 feet.

This destination in Kerala occupies the liminal space between rivers and lakes and is a great spot to go boating. Though the name suggests one solitary island, Munroe is actually a conurbation of eight different isles, with slender channels and skinny lakes slicing between them. The island's name comes from a former administrator, John Munroe, who masterminded the creation of canals in the interior of Kerala. These canals have helped to bolster the image of Kerala's backwaters, a web of waterways flanked by verdant land. 

On a boat, you can glide along tranquil waterways, wind through thickets of mangroves, and watch villagers cross over bridges that span the channels. One of the highlights of any boat tour is a naturally formed arch of mangroves, through which sunrise and sunset can be seen when on the water. Other sights not to miss are the bungalow of John Munroe, where photos trace the owner's past, and a Dutch church dating from the 1800s.

These islands are usually referred to as part of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and they are technically part of the same territory in India. But the Nicobar Islands sit some distance south of the Andaman Islands, and the southernmost of them are actually less than 100 miles from the coast of northern Sumatra, in Indonesia. There are a handful of islands in the Nicobar chain, and some were used as penal colonies by the British in the Second World War. The Japanese also occupied the islands during that war. 

Visitors will notice the differences among the Nicobar Islands. Car Nicobar is relatively level, with soil that allows for small-scale agriculture, whereas the other islands are much more vertical, with Mount Thullier on Great Nicobar climbing up to 2,100 feet above sea level. Forests blanket all the islands; looking up, travelers might spot mangoes growing on trees and palm and pandanus leaves swaying in the breeze. Tourists might also spot the endemic Nicobar red-tailed macaque if they can ever avert their gaze from the fine beaches and crystal clear waters. Two tribes live on the islands, one deep in the forests with minimal contact with outsiders.

Lying off the coast of Karnataka, near the towns of Malpe and Udupi, these islands have jagged, irregular coastlines. The islands are all uninhabited, making them a dream destination for a traveler wanting to get away from it all. The largest of them, which sits in the north, is St. Mary's Island, where pretty basaltic rocks give the shoreline a dramatic heft. The rock here is similar to that found in Madagascar, off the coast of Africa, and one theory posits that the two landmasses were once linked. Apart from the rocks, some of which appear like columns clumped together and rising from the sea, there are beaches to enjoy and calm waters to slide into. 

One beach on St. Mary's Island is filled with shells, hence its name, Shell Beach. On another island in the cluster to the south, the Daria Bahadurgad Fort is a trip back in time, a complex of ruins that testify to the history of the region and from where the sunset views are memorable. The best time for a visit is from October through January when the sea is calm and the weather isn't sweltering. During monsoon, from June to September, boat crossings become dangerous, and the island closes down for travelers. On the boat ride over to these islands, visitors might see Brahminy kites soaring across the sky or dolphins spinning in the sea.