© Cryptickk, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Elephant Falls
Three successive falls in a fern-hung dell below the town, named by the British for a rock that an earthquake destroyed in 1897.
The three-step waterfall
The Khasi name, Ka Kshaid Lai Pateng Khohsiew, means the three-step waterfall, and it is the accurate one: a mountain stream drops through three successive falls set in dells of fern-covered rock. The English name came from the British, who saw a large rock near the falls that looked like an elephant. The rock did not survive the 1897 earthquake, so the name now describes something nobody living has seen.
Explore Elephant Falls on the map
City locations, drawn from our published destination data. Attractions, hotels and restaurants are not mapped yet.
What there is to see
Three falls, reached by stepped paths, and they are genuinely different from one another.
💧 The first fall
- Broad, and largely hidden among trees — a horsetail dropping into a punchbowl
- The least photographed of the three because the vegetation closes over it
🌿 The second fall
- The tamest of the three, and in the drier months it can look almost inconsequential
- This is the one that disappoints people who come in March; it is not the end of the walk
⛰️ The third fall
- The tallest, and it comes into view suddenly at the bottom of the steps
- Clear water over sharply broken rock — the reason to keep going down
🌱 The dell
- Fern-covered rock on both flanks the whole way down, which is what the Khasi name is describing
Getting there
It is below the town on the way up to the peak, which is why the two are always done together.
🚗 By road
- A short drive from the town, on the Upper Shillong side
- Every Meghalaya itinerary pairs it with Shillong Peak in the same afternoon
🪜 On foot
- The three falls are linked by stepped paths and railed platforms; the descent is the walk
- It is steps down and the same steps back up, which is the only real demand it makes
When to go
Water is the whole question here, and the season decides it.
📅 Season
- After the rains the falls are full and the third is at its best
- In the dry months the middle fall in particular thins out considerably
🕰️ Time of day
- The dell is deep and shaded, so the middle of the day gives the most light on the water
⏱️ How long
- Three quarters of an hour, and it pairs with the peak in one afternoon
Before you go
A short, well-made visit that asks for grip rather than fitness.
👟 Footwear
- The steps and the platforms stay wet from the spray, and they are slick
📷 Photography
- The third fall is the picture. The first is hard to shoot through the trees at any season
🎟️ Entry
- A ticketed site with a car park at the top and the falls below it
🧭 Pair it
- Shillong Peak is on the same road above, and the two make a standard afternoon
Nearby
The rest of the Shillong afternoon.
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