Bayleaf Inn — Hotel in South Andaman Island

Convenient hotel for stay in port blair ||Good: |1. Convenient location. Very close to cellular jail, airport, market|2. ⁠rooms were clean |3. ⁠staff was polite |4. ⁠can easily find autos outside hotel |5. ⁠breakfast was satisfactory ||Not so good: |1. Bathroom fittings need maintenance. Shower fitting was not in very good condition 2. ⁠small bed, queen size ||Port Blair:||Its a cute town and can be conveniently and economically explored on scooter if that suits you. Ideally you should keep 3 nights for port Blair. Things to cover- cellular jail- carbyns cove beach-chidiya tapu-few islands nearby||||To do:||Cellular jail is worth a visit and the light and sound show is not to be missed||Carbyns cove beach is also worth a visit. The coastal road to this beach is very beautiful. If you have time you can plan both sunrise and evening visits.||On the way to carbyns cove there is Flag point which is a must visit specially post sunset hours. There is a very patriotic feel to this place. Its a beautiful view seeing tri colour waving high in the backdrop of ocean and island and with some historical context to it which can be read there, the point has been nicely maintained and you can sit there and spend some time enjoying the breeze and views||Autos can be found easily in port blair. It is better to hire autos for sight seeing then taxis which charge exorbitant rates||The marine museum is a must visit. Its small but very informative and sets a context to the andaman trip, we visited towards the end of trip and were able to relate to the exhibits there and learned a lot about the islands and life. Anthropological museum can be skipped||Annapurna cafeteria is a good local eatery. Reasonably priced and good food||You should definitely make a visit to chidiya tapu. More on the same in my...

A decent hotel in Port Blair which is centrally located. The USP of the hotel is its proximity to Cellular Jail and the jetty to travel to Ross and North Bay islands. The view from the rooms on the higher floors is good enough. The windows can be opened which is a good thing.

However, our experience there wasn't very nice mainly because of the cold behaviour of the staff. Check-in was smooth but the room which was allotted to us had a horrible stench of burnt cigarettes. The moment we stepped inside; I felt nauseated. I sternly denied to stay in that room and had it changed. We were given a better room on the 3rd floor. Amenities in the room were decent and clean.

The biggest let down was the breakfast. The spread was bare basic with mostly idly and dosas. The menu never changed. Their restaurant is located in the basement without any windows. The behaviour of staff at the restaurant was very cold and unwelcoming. They were reluctant to serve and forgot orders frequently.

Our worst experience was during check-out. We got a call from the reception in the morning reminding us to vacate the room by 9 am. We did our best and left by 9:30. When we handed the key card at the reception, the staff asked us to wait since he had to go and check the room before they could let us go. The awkwardness of those few minutes might be normal for them but we felt so humiliated and insulted that it left a very bad taste before bidding farewell...

I will delve into the details and be completely unbiased and transparent in my review.

Firstly, the room my family stayed in was very tiny and the moment the you entered the room it ended. However, the other rooms might be worth it. The room was not maintained very well as it could be seen by the walls and the slightly dirty sheets. The washroom, however, was great. It was clean, sanitary, and partitioned (unlike some other hotels' rooms).

Secondly, the service staff was very polite, friendly, and hospitable. I felt welcome as a guest. Please keep it up!

Lastly, the restaurant, ABSOLUTELY GREAT. In the whole of Andaman I haven't got the experience of delicious food at value for money anywhere but at the ambient Bayleaf Inn rooftop restaurant. The food is delicious and priced really well for its portions. I even came back here after my 7 day itenary because I loved the food so much. Fabulous, I will come again for sure.

Overall, the experience was a 4.5 out of 5. Given that Port blair is the starting point to most of yours Andaman vacation, I would highly recommend you to book at the Bayleaf Inn for the first day or two days you stay in Port Blair before going to explore other islands. The location is bang on the centre and hotspot of the city. The famous Kala paani jail is at walkable distance too!

Thank you, Bayleaf Inn, for your...