With seven tiers of beautiful cascading waterfalls, emerald green pools, and adventurous trails through the jungle, a visit to the Erawan National Park is a must when you are visiting Kanchanaburi.

Visiting the Erawan waterfalls was definitely one of the highlights of our trip to Thailand.

In this post, you will find everything you need to know for a visit to the Erawan waterfalls.

How to get there

The Erawan National Park is located within the Kanchanaburi province. We got there by public bus from Kanchanaburi. It’s the cheapest and most easy way to reach the National Park. You need to take bus 1870, which leaves from the main bus station. The price for a bus ticket is just 50 THB, and buses leave every hour. The last bus back from Erawan to Kanchanaburi is at 5 pm.

Another option is to rent a scooter and drive yourself there. There are a lot of places where you can rent scooters in Kanchanaburi. The distance between Kanchanaburi City and Erawan is around 65 km so expect the journey on a scooter to be around 2 hours one way.

You can also get there by car from Bangkok and drive yourself there or go on an organized tour. We don’t recommend this as you will have to rush through the Erawan National Park.

Opening hours and entrance fee

The Erawan National Park is open from 8 am – 4.30 pm daily. The access to waterfalls above the 4th level closes at 4 pm. The hike to the 7th waterfall is 2km so if you plan to hike to the 7th level, be sure to start way before 4 pm.

The entrance fee is 300 THB for foreigners and 100 TBH for locals. If you go in your own vehicle, you will have to pay extra for a parking spot; 20 THB for a motorcycle, and 30 THB for a car.

Once we arrived at the entrance we bought entrance tickets and some drinks and snacks for the hike.

We followed the trail of 2 kilometers through the jungle which took us to the seven waterfalls. We were surprised by how different each one is. Some are tall with powerful, towering water, while others are gentler, with smaller rock pools.

The trail to the first 5 waterfalls was easy to follow. For the last 2 waterfalls, we had to climb over some slippery rocks.

The waterfalls at Erawan are absolutely stunning. We had a lot of fun taking in the vibrant turquoise shades of the water and relaxing in the pools.

Tips

1. There are strict rules about taking food and drinks with you. To discourage people from leaving plastic waste, you will need to pay 20 THB as a deposit to take a plastic bottle with you.

2. Try to visit on a weekday. Weekends can be a lot busier.

3. Get there early to avoid the crowds.

4. There are lots of fish and they love nibbling dead skin, just like a fish pedicure! They are harmless. We were laughing when we first got in the water. It was such a tickly feeling!

5. Don’t forget your swimming clothes.

6. Bear in mind that during the rainy season the trails and the water will be muddy.

7. Wear comfortable shoes.