Rooms

Rooms share a feeling of light, tranquility and space, with traditional South Indian polished plaster and clean, modernist lines softened by woven bamboo and wood furnishings. Beautiful block-printed fabrics add a pop of colour.

The Sunset Suites have double-height roofs clad with handmade clay tiles from Tamil Nadu that keep the rooms wonderfully cool and breezy. The Garden Suite has a private garden with open-air shower and alfresco tub, and a little pavillion with daybeds for extra guests. The romantic Skyroom is a stunning teak pavilion perched on top of the main villa with glass panelled walls. The ground-floor Tower Garden room has a private garden with a lily pond and hammocks whilst the first-floor Tower Room has a beautiful roof terrace with 360-degree panoramic views over the sea.

Honeymooners will love the loft-like Jalakara Villa, which has its own kitchen and living room. There’s a private yoga deck with a giant hammock and an Ayurvedic copper plunge pool, and a film projector so you can have private screenings under the stars.

Features include:

• Bathrobes
• Fan
• In-room treatments available
• Minibar
• Mosquito net
• WiFi

Eating

As you'd expect from a chef owner, the food at Jalakara is delicious. Breakfast includes house-baked bread, eggs any way, banana pancakes, tropical fruit salads and delicious smoothies.

Lunch is an informal affair served around the pool: Thalis, crisp seasonal salads, wraps, and sharing plates of Andaman prawns, fish goujons and fried momos. Dinner showcases locally caught seafood: poached lobster, crab, langoustine and fish fillets steamed in banana leaves.

There’s also a bar offering a tempting cocktail menu, and a small communal kitchen where you can make yourself a tea or coffee and grab a homemade cookie. If you want to dine out, the friendly team will tell you the best places to go (most, if not all, have lived here for years and know the island inside out).

Features include:

• Bar
• Kids' meals
• Restaurant
• Restaurants nearby
• Room service

Activities

• Hire mopeds and snorkelling gear and explore the island's white-sand beaches and turquoise waters. Zip to one coast for sunrise then wind your way over to the other side for sunset
  
• Bask in the sun and enjoy magnificent views from the gorgeous pool deck, dipping into the chlorine-free pool to cool off
  
• Go on a paddle boarding safari or kayak around the mangrove creeks. We went at night and the starry skies and phosphorescence blew our minds
  
• Book the 'beach butler' service: hammocks, loungers, music and a cooler with drinks and snacks can be set up in your chosen location on the island
  
• Go deep-sea fishing then BBQ your tuna and red snapper back at Jalakara
  
• Enrol in a cooking class. The 3-hour session includes a visit to the local fish and vegetable market to select ingredients, and a big lunch at the end. There's also a follow-up class that includes foraging in the rainforest for wild ingredients
  
• Boat trips to explore the surrounding ocean are a must - the scuba diving and snorkelling is fantastic, with colourful coral and heaps of aquatic life
  
• If you're feeling lazy, just stay put. There's a beautiful wellness pavilion run by an expert massage therapist (Deep Tissue, Thai Yoga & Aromatherapy), a yoga teacher, self-guided nature trails and some of the world’s rarest bird species to spot
  
• If you're here during the monsoon season, there are board games and a home cinema (HD projector and library of films) for indoor entertainment

Activities on site or nearby include:

• Birdwatching
• Boat trips
• Cooking classes
• Cycling
• Fishing
• Kayaking
• Plantlife / flora
• Private guided tours
• Scuba diving
• Shopping / markets
• Snorkelling
• SUP
• Swimming
• Wildlife

Kids

Families are welcome but Jalakara has more of a couples' vibe and there are no specific kids facilities. Teens and adventurous older kids will enjoy the wildlife and watersports.

Best for:

Children (4-12 years), Teens (over 12)

Family friendly accommodation:

Sunset Suite Blue has a mezzanine that can be made up with 2 additional single beds. Sunset Suite Green adjoins Sunset Blue with private garden access between the 2 rooms. Skyroom has 1 daybed. Jalakara Villa, Sunset Blue, Sunset Green & Garden can all easily fit a baby cot.

Extra Beds Available

For more family-friendly places, see our Kids Collection

Location

Jalakara is perched on the side of a hill in the middle of Havelock Island. It's 15 minutes' drive to the harbour, 5 minutes' to the bustling market, 10 minutes' to the dive centres and Govindnagar beach strip, and 15 minutes to Radhanagar beach.

Havelock Island, in the Bay of Bengal, is 1.5-3.5 hours by boat from Port Blair, the capital of the Andaman Islands. Port Blair is easily accessible by air from mainland India.

You will receive a free permit on arrival at Port Blair Airport; please note that if you mention going to the Andamans when you get your tourist visa, some embassies may request that you obtain the permit then, which can delay the visa process. Nationals of Pakistan, Bangladesh and China must apply for the permit in advance, which can take up to 6 weeks.

By Air:
Fly to Chennai (Madras) or Kolkata (Calcutta) in India, then take a domestic flight to Port Blair.

From Port Blair to Havelock
Public ferries will transfer you from Port Blair to Havelock Island pier (the last of which leave Port Blair at 2pm); from there it's a 15-minute taxi ride to the hotel. Choose from government ferries (2hr30) or slightly pricier catamarans (1hr30) operated by private firms. We prefer the catamarans as they are faster and more comfortable than the ferries. Jalakara can arrange all the necessary transfers and ferry tickets for you to take the stress out of the connection.

Private Speedboat charter from Port Blair to Havelock is also possible upon request (from USD 1000 per trip for up to 12 passengers).

Getting around
You'll need to use mopeds, tuk-tuks, taxis or buses.

Detailed directions will be sent to you when you book through i-escape.com.

More on getting to the Andaman Islands and getting around