Geographical analysis of tourism sites in Andaman Archipelago (India) and ecotourism development for Smith Island of North Andaman

Abstract

This paper applies the nearest-neighbour analysis to analyse the clustering of tourist attractions in Andaman region and suggests ecotourism development for Smith Island of North Andaman using remote sensing techniques. The results indicated that present tourism sites are distributed in clusters in three regions (Port Blair, Mayabunder and Diglipur). To avoid concentration of tourism sites and population pressure in one particular area, there is a need to promote tourism to other locations as well. The study provided suggestions for ecotourism development in Smith Island after analysing its various ecological features to support the Andaman Administration’s vision to promote ecotourism.

Keywords:

• nearest-neighbour analysis
• Andaman
• Smith Island
• ecotourism
• environmental protection

Acknowledgements

We wish to thank the director, NCSCM, for providing support for the research work. Views expressed are of authors only and not necessarily of the affiliated organisations.