Ba Ho Waterfall in Nha Trang is one of the most interesting places to visit and walk through the real jungle near Nha Trang. It is the only waterfall that is located in close proximity to Nha Trang. Here tourists prefer to go on their own or as part of a tour, and after Ba Ho Falls often go to the wonderful Doc Let beach, which some even compare to the Maldives beaches.
Ba Ho Falls is a 3-level waterfall, which was formed from a mountain river, whose water flows from the highest level to the middle and lower level, forming small but deep pools in which you can swim, jumping off the cliffs. Ba Ho means “waterfall with 3 pools” in Vietnamese, in English it is spelled Ba Ho waterfalls, in Vietnamese it is Thác Ba Hồ. Ba Ho waterfalls are often visited just to walk through the jungle, spend time outdoors, exploring interesting places. Ba Ho Falls is quite an interesting place, the water flows down huge rocks that you have to wade through for 30-40 minutes. I have seen many waterfalls in different countries, but none of them led to so interesting and sometimes difficult road.
It is recommended to visit Ba Ho Falls in dry weather, as in the rainy season and in the rain you can easily slip off the rocks and fall into the waterfall.
Most people reach only the first and most scenic level, where you can cool off by jumping, for example, from a cliff 9 meters high. It’s deep enough, but jumping upside down is still not recommended. My husband jumped from a rock 2 times, he loved it, while this time I did not dare, and jumped from a height of 1-2 meters.
By the second level of the waterfall you will need more skill, because sometimes you have to climb steep rocks on cramps and holding on to the rope. On such a road go only more prepared tourists, of course, without children.
It was not recommended to visit Ba Ho Falls with children under 7 years old, but now it is officially allowed, as restrictive fences have been made all the way to the first most popular level of Ba Ho Falls. There used to be red arrows indicating the path on the rocks, and the word STOP was written where it was forbidden to stand or walk. However, everything remains exactly the same, if you decide to go to the 2nd level of the waterfall and then to the 3rd. My husband and I have reached the highest level, but, frankly, I did not expect exactly such a fairly difficult way, I have not read the information on the Internet beforehand. So that is the way with the crawling with a rope in his hands on the huge stones was a complete surprise to me. But that didn’t stop us from getting to the top level, although a few times on the way I wondered if I needed it all. Here I really felt some danger for myself and my health.
Ba Ho Waterfall in Nha Trang – how to get there
Ba Ho Falls is about 25 kilometers from Nha Trang. Often you go here by rented moped or car, or you can get out at the turn if you take bus number 3 towards Doc Let Beach. But you have to walk another 3 km from the turnoff to the entrance to the Ba Ho Falls area. The easiest option is to rent a vehicle and drive yourself, combining the trip with a visit to Doc Let Beach after a walk through the jungle.
If you do not want to rent a moped or a car, then you can take a tour to visit both Ba Ho Falls and Doc Let Beach. There are often tourists on the tour, maybe the guide can tell you something interesting about the local area.
We drove to the waterfalls about 45 minutes by moped, which we rented in advance at our hotel for the entire stay in Nha Trang. Near the waterfalls there is a parking lot for mopeds, which costs 5 thousand VND.
Cost and operating hours of Ba Ho Falls
From April 1, 2019, the cost of visiting Bajo Waterfalls is VND 100,000 per person. This ticket includes a visit to the waterfalls themselves – 50 thousand VND, and for another 50 thousand VND you can ride catamarans, inflatable boats, surf on sap boards, as well as have fun in inflatable barrels.
You will be given 2 tickets, we tried to explain that we only need a ticket to enter the waterfalls area, to which we were told that you can’t buy a ticket only for the waterfalls, they are sold together. That’s such an interesting marketing trick. With us, I did not see a single person who, after a hike to the Ba Ho waterfalls, would want to spend more of their energy in these activities. Indeed, there is not much energy left after a visit to Ba Ho Falls, especially if you have reached the highest level.
Entrance to the territory of Ba Ho Falls is open from 8.00 – 17.00
Our visit to Ba Ho Falls
We decided to go to Ba Ho Waterfall at about 10 am, got up slowly, had breakfast. We already had a moped rental at our Sun Hotel and left with the expectation that we would spend the day outside Nha Trang – visit Ba Ho Waterfall and the famous Doc Let Beach, as it is all on the way.
The time on the road on a moped was about 45 minutes, although the distance is only 25 kilometers. The road after the turn from the main highway leaves much to be desired, we rode on it at a low speed. As we approached the Ba Ho Falls area, we saw a paid parking lot and put our moped down for 5000 VND.
Then at the ticket office we bought tickets for VND 100,000 and a beautiful path deep into the jungle opened up in front of us.
As we drove, changed clothes, and started our trek around lunchtime, it was getting hot outside. We looked out for Ba Ho Falls, but it never showed up, only the lake along the way reminded us that we were on our way to the falls.
On the way to the first level of the waterfall we met huge stones near which everyone took pictures. We thought, wow, this is the terrain, not realizing that soon we will crawl on the same exact stones.
The first part of the road is very scenic and not dangerous at all, we walked strictly along the red arrows, not turning anywhere. At the very bottom, along the water, we met some forest swings.
You can take very nice pictures on them. But after about half an hour, we came to the first level of the Ba Ho waterfall – the first cascade, here the water formed a small pool, in which many people enjoyed bathing.
On the right side of the rock you can jump into the water, they are from 5 to 12 meters high, my husband jumped from about 9 meters. I jumped from about one :). The water is great cooling, it’s pretty deep here, but I still wouldn’t advise anyone to jump headfirst.
We spent about half an hour on this level, many went back after that, while we went on to explore the falls. And here began the most interesting thing – we literally crawled over the high stones, clinging hands to the protruding bumps. We climbed several times on crampons, and several times using the rope – adrenaline was enough for me! It was very important to have the right shoes for this kind of climbing, and I had sandals, at least not slippers.
On the second level of the waterfall was also a small pool of water, but there we did not go swimming, and went to the top, further.
Along the way we also met the same picturesque swings as at the bottom. But we did not pay attention to them, it became very hot again and we wanted to get to the very top, and then we had to go this way again.
On the photo above you can see the highest, the third level of the waterfall, in general, it is not particularly remarkable, it is shallow enough to swim, but the locals have fun like that crawling on a rope that is stretched from one side of the rocks to the other, like tarzans.
Only 3 couples, including us, made it to the top in front of us. We stood there for a while, took a picture and started walking back.
The way back took us another 40 minutes, we really wanted to bathe in water again, but we did not waste time because ahead of us was waiting beautiful Doc Let beach, to which we drove another hour by moped.
What can I say about the waterfall of Ba Ho, is that it is worth a visit if you are vacationing in Nha Trang. If you come without children, I recommend climbing to the top of the waterfall, the adrenaline and great emotions will be provided. The most important thing is to wear comfortable shoes, not flip-flops, and take plenty of water, and it is desirable to arrive not at the hottest time, in the morning early or close to sunset. In the rainy season is also not recommended to go up on the rocks, as it may be wet and your shoes will be slippery. Otherwise, Ba Ho Falls is a great place to walk through the jungle.