Namtok Pha Charoen National Park

Pa Charoen Waterfall National Park spans roughly 855 sq km across Phop Phra and Mae Sot districts in Tak, right on the Thai-Myanmar border hills. It’s open daily 08:00-17:00 and, unusually for a Thai national park, charges no entrance fee — it still carries the official “(preparatory)” designation, meaning it hasn’t been formally gazetted yet, so the standard park fee doesn’t apply.

The waterfalls

Pha Charoen, the park’s main waterfall, drops through 97 limestone tiers fed by mountain springs, flowing year-round rather than drying up outside the rains. In front of the entrance, a field of Chat Thong (Curcuma roscoeana), a wildflower found only in Tak Province, blooms from July to early September. A second cascade, Pa Wai Waterfall, runs along the Wai River through more than 100 tiers, with red rock formations — the source of its name — set against the surrounding greenery. The walking route there takes you from the lower tiers up to a mountain shaft about 30 metres past the top, where water disappears down a 10-metre-wide opening.

Huai Nam Nak Hot Spring

A third feature worth building time for: Huai Nam Nak is a large, naturally sulphur-free hot spring at around 60°C, open year-round with mineral bathing pools, restrooms, and rest pavilions. It’s a genuinely different pace from the waterfall hikes — most visitors treat it as the wind-down stop after Pha Charoen or Pa Wai.

Atmosphere and timing

This stretch of Tak sees far fewer visitors than the waterfalls around Mae Sot’s better-known trails, and the mountainous terrain (peaks including Doi Pa Tan and Doi Luang, part of the Thanon Thongchai range) keeps it noticeably cooler than the valley towns below. The dry season (November-April) gives the clearest trails; the rains bring the flower bloom but also wetter, more slippery limestone underfoot.

Insider Tip: Visit Pha Charoen first thing in the morning if you want the falls without crowds, then head to Huai Nam Nak for a hot soak in the early afternoon once the day has warmed up.

Watch out: As with all Thai national parks — gazetted or preparatory — pets aren’t permitted inside the park boundary. Leave dogs at your accommodation in Mae Sot or Phop Phra town.

The park sits in Tak at Chong Khaep, Phop Phra district. The two named cascades also have their own detailed write-ups: Namtok Pha Charoen and Namtok Pa Wai. Call (66) 5503 0178 for current conditions, or the Department of National Parks at (66) 2562 0760.