Seven tiers
Stepped turquoise pools.
Rungsilp Sasitorn — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Pulperm Phungprachit — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Pulperm Phungprachit — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Aleksasfi — Public domain · Nina R from Africa — CC BY 2.0
One of Thailand's loveliest and best-known waterfalls: a seven-tier cascade stepping down through dense forest, its mineral-rich water gathering in clear turquoise pools one below the other, named after the three-headed elephant of legend because its top tier resembles an elephant's head. Visitors climb a forest trail about two kilometres long from the first tier to the seventh; the first three tiers are easy and close, then the path grows steeper and rockier. Swimming is allowed in most pools, where small fish gently nibble your feet, and life jackets are for hire. The park fee for foreigners is about three hundred baht per adult and one hundred and fifty per child; it opens at eight in the morning, and the upper tiers close well before evening. Food is not allowed on the trail, and plastic items are left against a deposit at the entrance. Come early before the crowds and wear shoes suited to water and rocks. The water is fullest and loveliest from July to November. It makes a fun family day trip, and the first tiers are enough with young children.
Stepped turquoise pools.
With small fish nibbling your feet.
The first tiers are easy and close.
About 65 km north-west of Kanchanaburi town
No: tiers two and three are among the prettiest and easiest. The seventh takes about an hour up a rocky trail and rewards those with good fitness.