After sharing my travel experience with a friend, it's time for a solo adventure. This trip is all about me. With a limited budget and a weekend off, I decided to go on a one-day trip without having to split the cost with anyone (since I'm going alone). But I still wanted to do something I enjoy.

The answer to this trip is "Erawan Waterfall" in Kanchanaburi Province.

The photos might not be very clear. I'm still learning how to photograph waterfalls and haven't quite mastered using a tripod. Most of the pictures are just of the waterfall and the walking path to give you a rough idea of what to expect and how to prepare. ^^ Getting there is super easy. I woke up early in the morning for a one-day trip. Don't sleep in! You want to have plenty of time to explore. My alarm clock is the best. If I don't wake up, my mom will give me a little "tap"...literally. She's the best! Mom even woke me up to go on this trip with me. ^^ (Actually, she thinks I'm going to work. Shhh!) The first stop is the Kanchanaburi Bus Terminal.

*** Currently, the vans from Bangkok to Kanchanaburi have moved to the Southern Bus Terminal (Pinklao). ***

**** However, we decided to take a bus to Rangsit because we didn't wake up early enough. We walked across to the Major side. Between Major and Future Park, there is an island in the middle under the overpass. There is a motorcycle taxi stand there. There is a bus stop there that goes to Lat Ya. If you can't find it, you can ask the motorcycle taxi drivers in the area. The ticket booth is very small. We walked up and asked what time the next bus was leaving. The ticket seller replied that there were 3 seats left, which means that the bus will leave when it is full. We paid 130 baht. Luckily, we didn't have to wait long. The van left around 7 am and picked up passengers along the way. It ran on the Bang Len Kamphaeng Saen route.

We arrived at Kanchanaburi Bus Terminal at 8:55 am and rushed to buy a bus ticket to Erawan Waterfall. The ticket booth is located at the beginning of the terminal. The ticket seller told us that the previous bus had just left and we had to wait for the next one at 9:50 am. We had almost an hour to spare, so we went to find something to eat. I was so worried about sightseeing that I forgot to eat. If I want to lose weight, I should probably go on more trips. 555 Oh... If you're in a hurry and want to get to the waterfall quickly, there are also shared taxis available. You'll have to negotiate the price. After we had a snack, we went to check the bus schedule for the return trip from Erawan. We talked to the uncle who was driving the bus we were going to take to the waterfall. He said it would take about 1.30 hours to get there. If we could catch the 3 pm bus back, we would go back then because the last bus would be crowded.

Bus schedule from Kanchanaburi Bus Terminal to Erawan Waterfall

From Kanchanaburi Bus Terminal >>> 08.00 - 08.50 - 09.50 - 10.45 - 11.50 - 13.30 - 15.00 - 16.20 - 17.40

From Erawan Waterfall >>> 05.40 - 06.20 - 07.00 - 8.00 - 10.00 - 12.00 - 14.00 - 15.00 - 16.30

The journey takes about 1.30 hours. Don't forget to factor this time in when choosing your return bus to Bangkok. The driver will honk the horn to pick up passengers all the way, which is really cool. We like it. Sitting on the bus, especially on a fan bus like this, gives you a good view of the scenery. We use the time, the silence, and the coolness of this bus to reflect on the things that have happened in our lives.

Our problem with taking the bus to Erawan is the width of the seats. We are 170 cm tall and our knees hit the seat in front, so we can't stretch our legs. If we sit at an angle, we take up more space. Some foreigners are even more unfortunate and have to sit with their knees bent. When we get home, our legs hurt, and we're not sure if it's from walking up the waterfall, or from sitting on the cool Erawan bus!

Erawan National Park Entrance Fee

The bus will drop us off right in front of the tourist service center. When we reach the entrance where the park entrance fee is collected, park rangers will come onto the bus and collect the fee: 100 baht for adults, 50 baht for children, and 300 baht for foreigners.

Vehicle service fee

Bicycle 10 baht / Motorcycle 20 baht / 4-wheel car 30 baht / 6-wheel car 100 baht

Business hours 07.00 - 16.30

We arrived at Erawan National Park around eleven o'clock.

The car will be parked at the parking lot near the Tourist Service Center. Those who have a National Park Tourist Passport can walk in to have the park stamped by the officer here. Those who want to find something to eat, there are many shops to choose from at the parking lot. There are also shops on the top floor, which are welfare shops. There will be ready-made food, lunch box menus, snacks, papaya salad and drinking water.

From the park sign, you have to walk for a while to reach the first waterfall. But if you don't want to walk, there is a golf cart service. But we are tough, we walk by ourselves. The path is easy, there are only people coming together as couples, groups, families. Is anyone here alone like me?

*** Please note!!! When visiting a national park, a natural tourist attraction like this, please read and understand the rules and regulations, including any prohibitions. This will help ensure that the beauty of the park is preserved for future generations and that everyone can enjoy their visit. Any behavior that disturbs others, even if it is not specifically mentioned in the rules, should be considered using common sense and tourism awareness. Consider what is appropriate and what is not. Let's be mindful of others. Thank you very much.

This section of the trail is easy to walk on.

However, we will not be comfortable because we have a bag and a tripod with us. Hehe, we came to practice taking pictures of waterfalls. We want to get a soft waterfall.

Near the first and second levels of the waterfall, there is a concession stand. They offer pre-made boxed meals and fresh som tam (spicy papaya salad) made to order. Importantly, they do not use styrofoam containers here. Instead, they use clear plastic boxes for food. The food looks very delicious! If you want to buy food or drinks, you need to exchange for coupons first.

The food prices are typical of tourist attractions, with menus and prices clearly displayed.

Pizza 65 baht / Grilled chicken 60-80 baht / Grilled pork neck 60 baht / Mixed salad 50 baht / Som tam menu 40 baht / Pad see ew, dry noodles, Pad Thai 30 baht / Snacks such as spring rolls, quail eggs, sandwiches, French fries 25 baht / Boiled noodles, rice noodles, boiled beans, boiled eggs, crispy pork skin, etc. 20 baht / Meatballs, popcorn, sticky rice 10 baht / Mineral water 10 baht, approximately. ^^

We didn't stop to eat anything, our hearts were already at the waterfall^^ We just bought a bottle of water and went for it!

The distance from the 1st floor to the 7th floor waterfall is approximately 2,000 meters.

Waterfall Level 1 "Return to the Nest"

From the first level of the waterfall to the second level, a distance of 100 meters, I just started, I still have energy, huh!

Level 2 Waterfall "Wung Matchcha"

This level is quite crowded because you can buy food from the welfare shop and sit and eat. This level of the waterfall is also beautiful, with cute fish swimming around. If you want to do a fish spa, try dipping your feet in and watch them disappear! Just kidding, the fish will come and nibble on you, making you giggle. But some of them, oh my god! They're huge! When they swim by, you have to lift your feet out of the way.

The first and second floors are suitable for families to relax and play. You can bring the elderly because the walkway is not difficult. There is also a golf cart service. The third floor and above will start to have a steep path. You have to climb the stairs ^^

After the second floor, there will be a checkpoint of the park to bring things into the waterfall. After this point... food, snacks, plastic bags and water bottles are prohibited. You must leave them at the checkpoint. But they do not accept luggage. If anyone wants to bring a water bottle up, they must sign how many bottles they bring in. Then the officer will take our bottle to write a number and pay a deposit of 20 baht per bottle. When you come back out, bring the bottle back. The officer will ask you to sign and see the number of our water bottle. Then the officer will refund the deposit.

After passing the checkpoint, you will encounter stairs like this. Still comfortable to walk for tough women like us.

Along the way, there will be small waterfalls.

Waterfall Level 3 "Pha Namtok"

From the 2nd floor to the 3rd floor, a distance of 150 meters, it's a pleasant walk. I was here three years ago, and there were more giant gouramis.

To exit the 3rd floor, you will need to climb a steep staircase. Take a deep breath, tighten your backpack, check your tripod, and slowly grab the handrail to climb up. Here is a picture of the steepness.

Once you reach the top, you'll find a viewpoint. You can stop and have a drink of water, but don't sit down for too long. Just stand and rest. We find that if you sit down, you'll lose your energy and your legs will get tired immediately. And only take small sips of water, don't drink it all at once or you won't have any left for the next 4 floors. ^^

There are ups and downs, we think hiking makes the trail easy to walk. The weather is cool and comfortable, but our sweat keeps flowing, our clothes are as wet as playing in a waterfall. Finally, we arrived...

Waterfall 4 "Butterfly's Chest"

I walked in for a long time and thought there would be no one. Where did you get this floor? There are as many people as other floors. The rocks are perfect for sliding.

We asked the officer nearby if the 5th floor was still far away. 'About 1 kilometer' Let's go!

Before we could get there, we found another staircase. T0T

Alternating with the low uphill slopes

Huh! Another ladder

This bridge has a story that makes us smile. We overheard tourists talking to each other.

'Do you know what this bridge is called?'

The person being asked shook their head.

The younger person who asked the question then answered, '...Rama Chicken Bridge!'

๕๕๕ We weren't laughing because it was funny, we were laughing because it wasn't funny. The person who was asked looked confused. ๕๕๕

The distance between the 4th and 5th floors is longer than the other floors. The walkway is starting to feel less comfortable than it did at first. I don't know if it rained earlier, but the path is starting to get muddy and wet. I'm wearing flip-flops and it's very difficult to walk. The soles of my shoes don't have much tread, so I'm not walking well and kicking up dirt that's getting my back dirty. I have to be very careful when I walk. I would recommend wearing proper shoes. You can wear sandals, but it's not very convenient and there's a high chance of slipping or twisting your ankle. It's better to wear shoes that are secure and can handle the terrain so you can walk comfortably...

Waterfall Level 5 "Tired of Not Going Down"

There aren't as many tourists at this level as there were at the previous levels.

The 300 meters from the 5th floor to the 6th floor felt like an eternity. Sometimes I was walking alone, looking ahead and not seeing anyone, and turning around and not seeing anyone following me. And at some points, I would pass trees with Thai costumes and flowers. It was scary! It was already difficult to walk in flip-flops, and I had to keep looking behind me. T0T During this stretch, there weren't many constructed paths, but rather natural paths. At some points, I might have to sit down and then step forward slowly.

If you can't think of it, there is a picture to illustrate it.

We came across a sign that gave us two options: a right turn leading to the 6th level of the waterfall and a left turn leading to the 7th level. Without hesitation, we chose the 6th level. However, upon turning right, the bridge we were supposed to use to cross a small stream was broken... I should mention that we hadn't packed any extra clothes. On that day, I was wearing skinny jeans and a T-shirt. I was determined not to get wet or dirty. If I did, how would I get back? But at that point, my shirt was already in a sorry state, soaked with sweat to the point where the color was fading. All I had left was my pants, which were only wet at the bottom of the legs. Having come this far, I decided to give in... I slowly waded through the water, rolling up my pants legs as high as I could.

...There was no one around, and we couldn't see any water... There was only a sign. I was still trying to convince myself, 'Maybe we need to walk further in.' But the path was muddy. Mud vs. flip-flops? The shoes were going to get stuck in the mud, of course. So I tried to lift my feet, but the shoes just flung mud all over my clothes and pants. T0T Aaaaaaaaah! What am I doing here? How am I going to get home? In the end, I had to pull myself up with one hand, holding the tripod in the other and carrying my shoes... I continued walking (while secretly looking back to see if anyone had witnessed my struggle, but there was no one around TT). For those who can't picture it, here's a photo.

Let's see how beautiful the 6th floor waterfall is.

Sixth tier waterfall 'Dong Phruksa'

Tears are about to fall. Is this really the 6th floor waterfall? No wonder no one came in. I tried to walk a little closer and saw a foreigner lying on a cloth, occupying the 6th floor waterfall all by himself. I was about to sneak up on him and say "Boo!" but I was afraid that I would be in danger (he would be in more danger!). I felt like my heart was broken, so I quickly waved goodbye and walked back to the 7th floor through the mud.

The tears on the way are more beautiful than the 6th floor Y0Y...

As we walked to the 7th floor, we started to see the water in a clearer blue than any of the floors we had passed.

The stairs are endless! And the wood they're made of is super slippery. You have to hold onto the railing to get to the 7th floor. There are at least 2 flights of stairs to climb.

Finally...we were able to conquer all 7 levels of Erawan Waterfall alone ^^

Erawan Waterfall Level 7 'Phu Pha Erawan'

The big waterfall is really as rumored... So cool ^^

The water is really this blue, I didn't edit the photo.

We started walking at 11.30 and arrived at the 7th floor at almost 2 pm. We took a break to drink water and take a selfie with the waterfall. We'll post it on Facebook so our friends can see how tough we are. When we folded the camera screen to take a selfie, hey! Where's the human aunt? 55555 The condition is really bad. From what we were going to post on Facebook, we decided to keep it for ourselves. We didn't have much time to sit and rest because we thought we would be back in time for the 3 pm bus. So we hurried down. Walking down was as tiring as walking up, plus our legs were shaking. When we reached the checkpoint, we took our water bottle that we had paid a deposit for and got the deposit back. We like this method because there is very little garbage inside, even though there are a lot of tourists. If you walk in and see it, please help pick it up. People who litter have no conscience, but we do... let's help each other.

Another problem arose... how were we going to get back? The clothes we were wearing were completely unwearable. They were soaked, dirty, and smelly.

So we went to buy T-shirts from the park and JJ pants to wear back. They were sold at the welfare shop, with shirts costing 130 baht each and pants costing 100 baht each. We'll wear this set on the way back. Oh, and the bathroom... it's behind the welfare shop. It's free to use. We walked back to the tourist service center a little after 3 pm. We asked someone nearby, who told us that the car had just left a few minutes ago. TT We had to wait another hour and a half for the last round (last round at 4:30 pm). When the car arrived, we bought tickets from the driver. The car leaves on time, even if it's full before the scheduled time.

The return trip

Before coming to take the exam, I asked the driver or the pier master at the point where we got on the bus in Bangkok if they had a contact number for the bus pier in Kanchanaburi, as the phone number may have changed.

1. The bus station in Kanchanaburi is a bus that goes to Bangkok. You can take a bus from the waterfall to the bus station in Kanchanaburi. The last van to Bangkok leaves around 7pm.

2. Lad Ya will also have buses going to Bangkok. The bus stop is called Sw. 82.

3. There are vans going back to Rangsit at the overpass before Lad Ya. The last van leaves at 6:00 PM. You can call 0871576336 for more information. If you miss the van, you can get off at Lad Ya and arrange for someone to pick you up in front of the 7-Eleven at Lad Ya. If you prefer to board in the city, the meeting point is in front of the Krung Sri Bank. However, you need to make a reservation in advance.

We arrived at Rangsit before 9 pm...

This trip is for me, truly. I want to think freely, to daydream, to have a day where I can be myself, with my own thoughts. If you ask me why I want to be myself so much, it's because...

How will we ever know... if what we are, what we are doing, is what we really want to do!

We do things for others... and then we do things for ourselves. It's not selfish because it doesn't hurt anyone.

Traveling alone also has its benefits...

We're getting braver. We smile at strangers more often, making friends. Most importantly, we gain memories and experiences. Thank you for following our journey. We hope this review will be helpful. Some paths, you just have to walk alone…

Expenses…

• Bus fare to Rangsit: 15 baht
• Van fare to Kanchanaburi Bus Terminal: 130 baht
• Snacks: 50 baht
• Songthaew fare to Erawan Waterfall: 50 baht
• Park entrance fee: 100 baht
• Water: 45 baht (Too tired to eat anything but water)
• Shirt and pants: 220 baht (The seller gave me a 10 baht discount)
• Bus fare from the waterfall to Lad Ya: 50 baht
• Mama noodles and Oishi drink: 31 baht (Just realized I was hungry)
• Van fare back to Rangsit: 150 baht
• Van fare back home: 20 baht
• Total: 861 baht. If you bring your own clothes, it's only 641 baht ^^