Cunca Rami Waterfall — Attraction in East Nusa Tenggara

Hidden Jungle Gem – A Detailed Guide to Cunca Rami Waterfall (via Desa Pinggong)

If you're planning to visit Cunca Rami Waterfall, this is the scenic and lesser-known route via Desa Pinggong, and it’s honestly one of the most rewarding nature hikes I’ve done in Flores.

🛵 Getting There (from Desa Pinggong): Start from Desa Pinggong. From the main road, you’ll still need to ride about 45 minutes through hilly terrain and narrow paths. The scenery is gorgeous — expect rice fields, forested sections, and small villages. The road gets bumpy closer to the trailhead, so a motorbike with good tires is recommended. Drive slowly and with care, especially after rain.

🥾 The Hike (approx. 45 mins): From the trailhead, you’ll trek around 45 minutes through lush forest with two shallow river crossings — so yes, your feet will get wet! Bring good sandals or waterproof hiking shoes, or prepare a change of socks if you’re wearing closed shoes.

💰 Entrance Fee: There’s a local entrance fee — I paid 20,000 IDR as a small token. Some locals say it’s optional since it’s a public waterfall, but as a guest in their country, I chose to pay to show respect and appreciation. It’s not much, and it helps the local community.

🧍‍♀️ Guide Situation: A friendly woman approached me along the trail offering guide services. She was kind and not pushy at all. I was already halfway in when I met her, so I politely declined. If you don’t need a guide, you don’t have to pay anyone else. The trail is fairly straightforward, and locals along the way are helpful if you're unsure.

⚠️ Important Navigation Tip: As you’re nearing the waterfall, you’ll see a sign telling you to turn right — don’t follow it. Instead, go up the stairs just slightly ahead. Within a few more minutes, you’ll reach the falls directly. That small detail saved me from getting lost!

💦 The Waterfall: Cunca Rami is tall, beautiful, and surrounded by lush jungle. The water is clear and cool — a perfect reward after the hike. You can take a dip or just relax and enjoy the peaceful atmosphere. It’s not crowded, especially via this route.

🧳 Things to Bring:

Water

Snacks

Quick-dry towel

Waterproof/dry bag

Proper footwear

Camera or phone

Small cash (for entrance or snacks)

✨ Final Thoughts: This route to Cunca Rami is for those who enjoy off-the-beaten-path adventures. It's peaceful, scenic, and offers a more authentic experience compared to the standard tourist trails. Just come prepared, wear proper footwear, and enjoy...

I'll tell you a story about how we got there- more of an adventure. It's not negative, the view was gorgeous. But I am very torn because of the local- two in particular that was hanging by the waterfall.

Cunca Rami Waterfall; we've learnt a few things getting here.

Pack food and water- we had two big sandwiches and three 800ml of water bottles. It's a three hour motorbike ride to, and another three hours back. Sunblock, sunblock, and more sunblock! It also rains up the mountains: raincoats advisable. The bike path gets a lot tougher. Rubbles, mud paths. The bike can reach quite deep inside. Our walking route was perhaps 20 minutes to the waterfall. You may need a guide to get to the waterfalls: the locals there would bring you for a price, we gave around sgd 10 for two person. (Carry petty cash for the whole trip in general.) There is a "donation" before entering the waterfall-more petty cash; your guide will probably be who you're donating to. They carry relatively big knives: to clear their paths in the forest and definitely quite threatening around travelers too. You can definitely swim in the waterfall : bf did so. Locals hover near the waterfall and can be quite scary: I did not even take a nice photo and was so close to tears, telling my bf that I wanted to go so badly. The guy that scared me so badly may not be there even, but be careful, bf was walking out of the forest holding a large bamboo found on the ground just in case things went wrong. The journey back down was cold and wet but all well when we got to the lower part of the mountain. Mostly the locals were hospitable and there were a few pit stops/small sheltered area on the way down to hide from the rain.

It was a very fun and exciting journey and definitely did...

I met Lusia and she took me to the waterfall. It’s about a 30 minute trek one way. You go down a fairly steep incline through the jungle. While walking Lusia told me all about the trees, plants, fruit, coffee, and nuts that grown along the trail.

We passed through the valley floor where the village rice terraces were. They also had some domesticated Buffalo. Then walked through two streams and up some steps to the beautiful waterfall.

After the long sweaty hike I jumped into the pool at the base of the waterfall. It was cool and refreshing. Be careful of the wet slippery rocks. I was the only one at the waterfall and Lusia took many photos for me. If you look up high to the right of the waterfall attached to the rocks there are many bee hives way up high.

On the way back we met one of her family members and I got a huge coconut from him.

Lusia told me that she also offers for people to stay the night at her house with her husband Francisco and three children. She will cook fresh local food with vegetables from the garden. She will also offer local coffee from the jungle. I highly recommend contacting Lusia via WhatsApp to be your guide.

I went February 15th 2021 if...