Waterfall

Banjhakri Falls & Energy Park

#7of 7 places to visit in GangtokGangtok, Sikkim

Also known as Ban Jhakri Falls · Banjhakri Waterfall Park

Quick answer

Opening hours: 08:30–17:30. Entry: ₹30 Indian · ₹40 foreign. Allow 1.5 hrs. Best time: 10:00 – 13:00.

Updated 16 September 2026 · Compiled by Traveliac, AI-assisted · 4 min read

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Photo: Indrajit Das / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Opening hours: 08:30–17:30
Entry fee: ₹30 Indian; Ticket from
Time needed: 1.5 hrs
Best time of day: 10:00 – 13:00
Best months: Mar – May, Oct – Dec
Address: Ranka Road, Sichey, near Ranka Monastery, Gangtok, East Sikkim 737135, approximately 7 km from central Gangtok

About Banjhakri Falls & Energy Park

Banjhakri Falls & Energy Park is a themed recreation ground built around a genuine forest waterfall roughly 7 kilometres from central Gangtok, its statuary and walkways given over almost entirely to depicting the Ban Jhakri — the traditional shamanic forest healer of Sikkimese folk belief, distinct from the region's institutional Buddhist and Hindu religious traditions. It is a deliberately hybrid site: half nature park built around the falls and a small hydro-fed pond, half open-air museum of folk shamanism, with a modest renewable-energy exhibition hall attached that reflects the state government's parallel interest in promoting Sikkim's hydro and solar power programmes to visitors.

Best time of day: 10:00 – 13:00. When the park's fountains and water features are running at full capacity and before the late-afternoon dip in light through the forest canopy.

Photography

₹20 camera fee

Banjhakri Falls & Energy Park timings

Opening hours: 08:30–17:30; Mon–Sun 08:30–17:30
Closed on: Open every day

Mon–Sun	08:30–17:30

Opening hours compiled from sikkimtourism.gov.in and public records, last updated 16 September 2026. They change without notice — confirm before you travel. How we write these guides

Banjhakri Falls & Energy Park ticket price

Entry fees for Banjhakri Falls & Energy Park
Ticket	Price
Indian visitors	₹30
Foreign visitors	₹40
Children	₹15
Camera	₹20

Modest entry fee at the gate; a separate small camera fee applies for still photography. Rides and specific exhibits inside the park (aerial cable rides, boating on the small pond) are charged individually, typically ₹50–₹150 each.

Prices compiled from sikkimtourism.gov.in and public records, last updated 16 September 2026. They change without notice — confirm before you travel. How we write these guides

Best time to visit Banjhakri Falls & Energy Park

Quiet
Moderate
Busy

08:30 – 10:00
Early OpeningBest time to go
Park quiet just after opening; good for unhurried photographs of the falls and statuary before ride queues form.
Quiet
10:00 – 13:00
Family Peak
Families and school groups arrive in volume, particularly on weekends. Aerial ride and boating queues at their longest.
Busy
13:00 – 15:30
Afternoon Lull
Some groups depart for lunch or onward to Ranka Monastery. Falls area remains pleasant with reduced congestion.
Moderate
15:30 – 17:30
Late Afternoon
Crowds thin toward closing; forest light dims earlier under the canopy than in open areas of Gangtok.
Quiet

History of Banjhakri Falls & Energy Park

The park was conceived after Sikkim's then Chief Minister, Pawan Kumar Chamling, visited the falls in September 2004 while travelling to the nearby Ranka Monastery, and was struck enough by the site to commission its development into a themed public park. Construction proceeded over the following years and the park was formally inaugurated on 5 January 2008, again under Chamling's tenure.

The folkloric theming is deliberate rather than incidental: 'Ban' means forest and 'Jhakri' refers to a shamanic healer figure who, in Sikkimese and broader Himalayan animist tradition, communes with spirits believed to inhabit caves and forest features like this waterfall. The park's statues, cave installations, and healer figures were built specifically to document and popularise this pre-Buddhist, pre-Hindu belief system, which otherwise receives little formal institutional space in a state whose public religious life is dominated by monasteries and temples. The energy component was added with support from the Sikkim Renewable Energy Development Agency, and the park itself was made self-sufficient with a small 7-kilowatt micro-hydel plant installed in 2008, drawing power from the same river that feeds the falls.

Rules & etiquette at Banjhakri Falls & Energy Park

This is a family recreation park rather than a religious site, so the etiquette is considerably more relaxed than at Gangtok's monasteries — no footwear removal or dress code beyond ordinary decorum. The aerial cable ride and boating facilities have posted capacity and safety limits; follow staff instructions on these rather than assuming self-service.

The walkways down to the falls involve a genuine, moderately steep descent and an equivalent climb back up — manageable for most fitness levels but worth pacing for visitors unused to the elevation, and not straightforward for anyone with significant mobility limitations.

Tips for visiting Banjhakri Falls & Energy Park

1
The park sits directly on the road to Ranka Monastery (Palchen Choeling Monastic Institute), a large, relatively modern and less-visited Buddhist monastery a further short drive away, which makes an easy pairing for a half-day out of central Gangtok that avoids the more heavily trafficked Rumtek circuit.
2
Go earlier in the day if travelling with children — the aerial rides and boating queue up quickly once school-holiday tour groups arrive around midday, and the waterfall's spray and cooler forest air are more pleasant before the afternoon sun reaches its highest point. This is a genuinely family-oriented stop rather than a heritage or devotional one, and works well as a lower-key alternative to a second monastery visit on an itinerary already heavy with gompas.

How to reach Banjhakri Falls & Energy Park

The red star is Banjhakri Falls & Energy Park; the numbered pins are the 2 nearest places in our guides, each showing its rank in its city. Tap a pin for details.

Ranka Road, Sichey, near Ranka Monastery, Gangtok, East Sikkim 737135, approximately 7 km from central GangtokDirections in Google Maps

From MG Marg, Gangtok
₹250–₹350
7 km · 20–25 min
One-way by taxi; combined half-day trip with Ranka Monastery ₹500–₹700.
From Bagdogra Airport (IXB)
₹3,500–₹4,500
128 km · 4–4.5 hours
Private car to Gangtok; the park is a short add-on once in town.

Nearest airport

From Pakyong Airport (PYG)

approximately 28 km, 1–1.25 hours. Bagdogra Airport (IXB) – approximately 128 km, 4–4.5 hours, the reliable year-round gateway.

Nearest railway station

From New Jalpaiguri (NJP)

approximately 128 km, 4–4.5 hours by road. Sikkim has no railway of its own.

Banjhakri Falls & Energy Park FAQs

What does 'Ban Jhakri' mean and why is the park themed around it?

Ban means forest and Jhakri refers to a traditional shamanic healer figure in Sikkimese folk belief who communes with spirits inhabiting forest features such as caves and waterfalls. The park's statuary and installations were built specifically to document this pre-Buddhist, pre-Hindu animist tradition, which otherwise has little formal public presence in the state.

When was the park built and by whom?

It was conceived after Sikkim's then Chief Minister Pawan Kumar Chamling visited the falls in September 2004 en route to Ranka Monastery, and was formally inaugurated on 5 January 2008 under his tenure.

Is the park suitable for children?

Yes — it is explicitly designed as a family recreation park, with an aerial cable ride, small-pond boating, and easier walking paths alongside the waterfall viewing areas, distinct from Gangtok's more devotionally focused monastery visits.

Can Banjhakri Falls be combined with a monastery visit?

Yes — it sits directly on the road to Ranka Monastery (Palchen Choeling Monastic Institute), a large and relatively less-visited monastery a short further drive away, making an easy half-day pairing away from the busier Rumtek circuit.

Compiled with AI assistance from official sources and public records, and published only after the checks in How we write these guides. Nobody from Traveliac has visited this place. Last updated 16 September 2026. How we rank and check places