Sri Nakarin Dam National Park is located north of Erawan National Parks in Sai Yok, Sri Sawat and Thong Pha Phum districts of Kanchanaburi Province. Huai Mae Khamin Falls which is the park’s main attraction is 240 km north/west from Bangkok, 110 km from Kanchanaburi and around 43 km from Erawan Falls intersection. The park is mainly famous for Huai Mae Khamin Falls, which is more easily walked through than Erawan Falls, perhaps more beautiful and more importantly not as crowded because it is in a relatively remote area. The park is named after the adjacent Sri Nakarin Dam that holds the reservoir on the east of the park. There is no public transportation option to the park, so visitors need to arrange private transportation into the park. Due to its remote location, the park is not as popular/crowded as Erawan National Park and that makes it a fantastic destination for those who give a bit more effort to get there. The park also has several caves and hot springs.
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The bit of road from Erawan Falls to Huai Mae Khamin Falls is quite narrow, but paved nowadays, accessible with regular cars or motorcycles. If the rooms are available, they can be booked on spot. There are no other private hotels nearby. The park accommodations can be booked through the DNP website in advance. The entrance fees are 300 Baht for foreigners (children 200 Baht) and 100 Baht for Thai citizens (children 50 Baht). There is a spacious campsite and a number of park accommodations for rent at the visitor center vicinity of the Huai Mae Khamin Waterfall visitor center area. Payments can be done at 7-Eleven convenience stores or banks. As the money transfer must be done within 2 days and the fact that it takes time with transfers from abroad, it is only possible to book from within Thailand only. Cars charged 30 Baht. The opening times for the park is 6 am until 4:30 pm (entering), park gets closed at 5 pm.
Resorts Near Ban Kha
There is a good chance they are available on arrival during the weekdays Mon to Fri (except for the holidays). There are restaurants at both campsites, in a short walking distance from the park accommodations. Huai Mae Khamin Falls is the main attraction of the park located at the east side of the park just a kilometer from Sri Nakharin Reservoir. The restaurants open at 7 am but have irregular closing times, normally around 5 pm during weekdays and around 7-8 pm on the week-end and holidays depending on how busy. While it is possible to rent tents from Huai Mae Khamin Waterfall, the visitors need to bring their own tent for camping at Pha Tad Waterfall. A set of accessories including a sleeping bag, a sleeping mat and a pillow costs 60 Baht per person to rent. There are two waterfalls at Huai Mae Khamin Waterfall campsite, read more details further below on the attractions section.
It is a multi-tiered waterfall with 7 major tiers. Mobile reception at the campsites can be a bit slow at times, sight seeings at Uthai Thani but relatively good. Many more minor tiers/ponds. The trailhead to the waterfall starts from the eastern campsite near the reservoir, continuing upstream mostly on a boardwalk. Both campsites have restaurants, toilet/shower facilities and smaller cantines. The total length of the trail is 2.3 km long, including a bit of dirt road walk. The national park has two campsites at Huai Mae Khamin Falls area, nearly 1.5 km apart. It is possible to swim in one of many ponds along the trail. The trail ascends from 195 meters asl to the last tier at 275 meters asl. Huai Mae Khamin Falls historically has water all year round, but in the 2017 dry season for the first time the river feeding the falls dried out completely, the park was closed for the visitors until the rainy season.
The main trail head starts right behind the visitor center.
The first campsite is at the east end of Huai Mae Khamin Falls, where the main visitor center is located and where the trail head for the waterfall tiers starts. The restaurant has irregular opening time, closes 5 pm on weekdays and 6 to 7 pm on week-end and holidays. The trail continues after the 2nd campsite upstream for another 1.2 km through bamboo forests. The campsite is quite spacious, has a restaurant, cantine, toilet and shower facilities. The main trail head starts right behind the visitor center. The first few hundred meters of the trail is a dirt road through a bamboo forest, the rest of the trail is a boardwalk along the river, all the way upstream until the 2nd campsite for about 1.1 km. Visitors who do not intend to stay overnight are recommended to get to this campsite for hiking along the tiers. The campsite is just a few hundred meters from the Si Sawat Reservoir.