Elephant Waterfall: How much longer will it remain closed?

Pristine Beauty Going to Waste

Located about 30 km southwest of Da Lat, Elephant Waterfall is one of the area's most striking natural attractions. Water from the upper reaches of the Cam Ly River plunges about 35 meters, forming a broad curtain of white water against a backdrop of lush greenery. Its thunderous roar mingles with the sounds of the forest and can be heard from afar.

To reach the foot of the waterfall, visitors must descend more than 150 stone steps along a steep mountainside. The farther they descend, the more dramatic the scenery becomes, with huge moss-covered boulders scattered across the stream like a herd of bathing elephants. Around them are lush vegetation, deep caves and tangled forest vines, while mist from the waterfall hangs in the air, enhancing the site's wild and mysterious beauty.

Elephant Waterfall has long been closely associated with the cultural life of the local K'ho community. Its name is linked to a tragic legend about a mountain maiden who waited in vain for her lover to return from battle. The K'ho people call the waterfall Liêng Rơwoa Jơi Biêng, a name evoking elephants said to have knelt down and turned to stone as witnesses to the maiden's unwavering love and her endless calls for her lover to return.

For years, Elephant Waterfall was a popular destination for both domestic and international visitors drawn by its wild natural beauty. It is also one of the stops along the Da Lat - Ta Nung - Nam Ban tourist route. Today, however, visitors can admire its beauty only from a distance.

In 2005, the former People's Committee of Lam Dong Province approved the Elephant Waterfall Natural Landscape Conservation Project, which included organizing tourism activities to help preserve and promote the values of the scenic site, and assigned an investor to implement the project.

However, the project was revoked twice and subsequently assigned to different investors because previous investors lacked sufficient investment capacity, failed to put the project into operation and improperly transferred it. Another investor failed to meet legal requirements on investment, land, construction and forestry, allowing unauthorized construction to take place within the protected area of the national-level scenic site.

"Awakening" Elephant Waterfall

Elephant Waterfall has been completely closed to visitors since 2021. Nguyen Thi Minh, who lives nearby, said: "Many tourists travel a long way only to arrive at a locked iron gate. They can hear the waterfall roaring beyond it, but have no choice but to turn back disappointed. It is such a wasted journey. Those hoping to see the waterfall can only walk along DT 721 or sit at cafes about a kilometer away to catch a glimpse of it."

For the past five years, the waterfall has continued to thunder, the moss-covered boulders have remained in the rushing water and the surrounding forest has stayed green. Only the entrance gate has remained firmly closed. The prolonged closure not only leaves the site's tourism potential untapped but also increases the risk of unregulated visits. Tourists who attempt to find their own way down to the waterfall face serious safety risks from the steep, rugged and slippery terrain.

Vu Quang Dien , who has worked at Elephant Waterfall for more than 25 years—as a security guard, cleaner and gardener, helping care for the scenic site day and night—feels a deep sense of regret as he listens to the waterfall roaring nearby. He remembers the days when streams of visitors and vehicles flocked to the site from everywhere to admire the waterfall, with hundreds of tourists arriving on some days.

According to Dien, the appeal of Elephant Waterfall lies in its pristine natural beauty, so its natural landscape and ecosystem must be preserved. If the site is renovated, walkways can be reinforced for safety, but widespread concrete paving should be avoided, as it is precisely this pristine beauty that makes the waterfall attractive.

Currently, the Provincial People's Committee is carefully selecting capable investors while strictly following legal procedures to address existing issues related to Elephant Waterfall, with the aim of bringing the tourist destination back into operation as soon as possible in a safe, effective and legally compliant manner.

Relevant departments, agencies and the People's Committee of Nam Ban Lam Ha Commune are also coordinating to review legal dossiers, land use, forestry and construction matters to formulate a management plan for the area, laying the groundwork for the selection of a new investor and the reopening of the scenic spot for safe and sustainable tourism development while preserving its landscape values.