Mae Tho Waterfall

Mae Tho Waterfall drops over seven tiers across roughly 40 metres inside Khun Chae National Park, near Ban Mae Tho village in Wiang Pa Pao district. It’s a genuine national park waterfall rather than a free roadside stop: standard entrance fees apply at the park gate — 100 THB for foreign adults, 50 THB for foreign children, 20 THB for Thai adults, 10 THB for Thai children — and the falls sit far enough from the park office that most visitors budget half a day rather than a quick photo stop.

From the park office, it’s a 30-40 minute drive to the Ban Mae Tho trailhead, then roughly two hours on foot to work through all seven tiers if you want to see the full waterfall rather than just the accessible lower pools. The lower tiers are the easiest to reach and the ones most visitors settle for — wide, shallow, good for cooling off after the drive in. The upper tiers require more scrambling over wet rock and are considerably quieter, since the walking time filters out casual visitors. Khun Chae National Park’s forest here is tropical dry evergreen rather than rainforest, and the park’s wildlife list includes Asian black bear, wild boar, and a wide range of birdlife, though sightings on a day trip are unlikely — birdsong and the odd startled squirrel are the realistic expectation.

Insider Tip: If you’re short on time, ask park staff which tier has the best swimming pool that day — flow and pool depth shift tier to tier depending on recent rain, and locals generally know which one’s worth the climb without doing the full circuit.

Watch out: the trail between tiers gets slick after rain, and there’s no mobile signal for most of the route — bring water, proper shoes rather than sandals, and let someone know your rough return time if you’re heading past the lower two tiers. This is a genuine Chiang Rai province hike rather than a swim-up-to-the-car waterfall, and it rewards visitors who come prepared over those chasing a quick stop.