Easiest Waterfall Hike in Chiang Mai, Thailand

Chiang Mai, Thailand is home to the easiest waterfall hike I've ever encountered in Thailand! You can actually reach it in only a matter of minutes.

Because I work online, I spend most of my days inside, sitting at my laptop. And honestly, because of that I sometimes feel really reluctant to do any excessive or strenuous exercise. So when I heard there's a waterfall in Thailand, that I can reach in only a matter of minutes, I decided to check it out.

Enter: Huay Kaew Waterfall

The Huay Kaew Waterfall is located in the northwest part of Chiang Mai, near the zoo and next to the Kruba Srivichai Monument, just off Huay Kaew Road (route 1004 - the road to Doi Suthep temple) and about a 20-min ride from the center of Old town. 

There are 2 ways to reach the waterfall. The easy way or the easiest way. Easy: walk to the entrance. How easy this is, depends upon your start point. Easiest: take a cab/uber or songthaew (local red bus) to the entrance.

I opted to walk to the entrance which took about 45 minutes from where I started in the Santitham neighborhood of Chiang Mai. The first 40 minutes were completely flat and was a straight walk up Huay Kaew Road. And the last 5 minutes had an incline that wasn't too steep at all.

Bonus that comes with walking: Along the way I discovered the Huay Kaew Arboretum, a quiet tree park full of shade, seating and walking paths. And amazingly enough, when I walked by it was completely empty! So I made a huge mental note to come back here to read, relax and spend a little time.  You can see it in the Video I posted.

Once I arrived at the entrance, the waterfall is only 200 meters away, a short two-minute hike! 

And even better, when I arrived at 9am on a Tuesday, I had the falls completely to myself and even 45 minutes later that was still the case!!! 

Then, it was decision time. There's a stone hiking trail that leads up the side of the mountain near the waterfall. I heard that the view of Chiang Mai is great from here, but the hike is steep.

This was my chance to see the city from above in something other than an airplane. So I decided to go for it.  Why not.  Since the first part of getting here was so chill, I decided to challenge myself. Less than 10 minutes later, and a bit out of breath, I made it.

You can check out my YouTube video of my waterfall excursion here

The video from the top, and hiking up to this point, is a special one that I created especially for my Patreon subscribers. Sign-up now to view this one and others. And to enter my monthly giveaways!