Yes, I am now up to 11 waterfalls on Kei Besar (August 2024).  These are all time consuming to get to from Kei Kecil and even from Elat on Kei Besar.  They are all worth seeing but it is does take a lot of time and effort.  I’ve now been to Kei Besar about 6 times, spent over 3 weeks there in total, and I have yet to see another tourist. Tourists do come here, although I’d be surprised if any of these waterfalls see more than 100 foreign tourists/year. You can expect to jump over or wade through water in many places en route.  Also note that the waterfalls will change depending on rainfall and what season it is.  Dry season is from August-October and wet season is December-May.

The road south of Hollat is very bad now and is impossible in a scooter (August 2024). Only motorbikes and mobiles are on the stretch of road from Hollay to Hollat. But north of Hollat the road is new and perfect almost to Haar.  I haven’t been to some of these areas for many years now so a lot could have changed (for better or worse).

1. Hoko waterfall

If you can only see one waterfall in Kei Besar, this is the one!  The waterfall is compelling and the swimming area is just brilliant.  You can swim under the falls and in behind too.  Absolutely perfect on a hot day!  It is about 1.5 hours each way from Elat by ojek and then about 10-15 minutes from the road. The Hollat, Hollay and Arki waterfalls are also in this area and Banda Efruan, Renfan and Wassar are further north.

2.  Banda Efruan

The waterfall at Banda Efruan very large and impressive. If any tourists come here the numbers are likely less than 5/year.  A large group of children joined me on the walk from the village of Banda Efruan to the waterfall.  This waterfall is about an hour and 15 minutes each way from Hollatt–45 minutes by motorcycle and 30 minutes walking.  There are bi-weekly boats from Banda Ely to Langgur but I haven’t take these yet. 

3. Renfan waterfall

This is a great waterfall and swimming area. The only problem is that it took us 2 hours each way from the road. I guess younger people would do it faster than me though! The walking trail leaves from Renfan village. I paid 150,000 Rp for some young locals to show me the way.

4. Weduar

This waterfall is beautiful and has 2 levels which are separated by a small flat area.  From the village of Weduar it is only about 5 minutes by ojek and 5 minutes walk.  Weduar is in the Southeast of Kei Besar about 1.5-2 hours from Elat by ojek and so far as I know there aren’t any other attractions in this area.  There are also direct boats (2 hours) to the west coast village of Tamingil from Langgur (about 5 times a week).  They leave from the same place in Langgur as the boats to Elat.

5. Harangur

This is the easiest waterfall to get to from Elat.  It is only about 20 minutes south by ojek, followed by a 5-10 minute walk.  The upper falls is quite scenic and photogenic.  The lower falls flows directly into the ocean and is probably best viewed from a boat.

6. Hollat

In some ways this is my favorite waterfall.  The first time I went here, the children wouldn’t let anyone speak anything other than the Kei language because of ghosts.  This year (2018) when I went there were 2 or 3 people in our group who were afraid to go to anything other than the lower level.  So we just swam at the lower level, which isn’t the most scenic but did provide a refreshing dip.  I didn’t mind skipping the upper level because I’d been here before.  Beware of ghosts!!

7. Ad

The Ad waterfall is accessed from near Ad village which is a long 1.5 hour bouncy ride north of Elat.  This is one of the most powerful waterfalls and also has the most difficult access trail.  It is very slippery!  There are multiple levels here too as you will see in the photos below.  Note: There is also a cave near Ad which I haven’t been to.

8. Soinrat

Soinrat waterfall is a short 10 minute ojek ride from Elat, followed by a long walk.  It took us 2 hours return from Soinrat, including swimming and photos.  The trail begins at the village of Soinrat and climbs up through multiple levels and through a lot of water, fallen trees and bush.  It was a fun journey but very tiring.  I went to the Ad waterfall in the morning and Soinrat waterfall the same afternoon.  Afterwards I was completely done…I haven’t been that exhausted in a long time.

9. Arki waterfall

This is a difficult waterfall for me to rate because I haven’t been here yet. My friends went but I powered out and turned back. I would have been fine except that it was my second waterfall of the day. It’s accessed from a bridge north of Hollat. I guess that it’s about an hour from the road.

10. Hollay

This waterfall near the village of Hollay is more about the journey than the destination.  The entirety of the trip is swimming and crawling over rocks.  It is fun though, especially if you go with some locals!  The walk/swim from the road took an hour return including photo time.

11. Wassar waterfall

This small waterfall is located about 15 minutes from Wassar. It’s relatively easy to get to and it’s worthwhile if you’re in the area.

Additional stuff

See also the Kei Besar page, and  An Epic Trip to the Waterfalls of Kei Besar