Namtok Thung Na Mueang

Namtok Thung Na Mueang is a seasonal waterfall inside Pha Taem National Park in Ubon Ratchathani’s Khong Chiam district, dropping about 20 metres over a dark, tiered rock face. Unlike a perennial spring, it depends on the rains: water runs from roughly June through December and can shrink to a trickle or stop entirely outside that window, so checking the season before the drive out matters more here than at most Isan waterfalls.

During the flow months the fall fills the surrounding forest with mist and a steady roar, with several pools forming at the base where the rock has been worn smooth. The site sits within the same protected forest that shelters Pha Taem National Park’s famous prehistoric cliff paintings, and it’s one of a handful of waterfalls inside the park boundary alongside Soi Sawan and Saeng Chan — most visitors combine two or three in a single day since they share the same access road and entrance fee. Because this is a working national park rather than an open access site, the standard day-use fee applies here too: 400 THB for foreign adults, 40 THB for Thai adults, covering the whole park for the day rather than just this one waterfall.

Forest surrounds the fall on all sides, and outside weekends and holidays it’s genuinely quiet — most Pha Taem day-trippers head straight for the cliff paintings and skip the waterfalls, so you’ll often have the pools to yourself. Watch out: the approach trail gets slick with mud during the rainy season, exactly when the falls look their best, so sturdy grip on your shoes matters more than speed.

Most visitors come to Pha Taem National Park for the cliff paintings, not the waterfalls — the park protects a stretch of sandstone escarpment marked with prehistoric rock art thought to be around 3,000 years old, and that’s the headline draw for first-time visitors. The waterfalls, including this one, are the reward for staying longer or coming back a second time, and since one park ticket covers everything inside the boundary for the day, there’s little reason not to see both if your schedule allows it.

Bring cash for the park gate, water shoes for the pools, and a dry bag if you’re carrying a phone or camera near the spray. Pair the visit with Sao Chaliang, the park’s wind-eroded mushroom-shaped rock formations a short drive from the falls, to make the most of a single park entry fee.