cu chi tunnel

i rarely book for tours when i go to places as i usually prepare my own itinerary. but in this case, we chose to get a tour package as the site is about 40kilometers from the city center of Ho Chi Minh. a guided tour to show the historical background of the world famous Cu Chi tunnel is definitely worth it. since this is one of my longest post, i made a Cu Chi Tunnel Tour Route map guide for you to see the whole area.
[1] Entrance Booth. each one is given a bottled water and a brochure of the area. tourists were also given enough time to go to the restroom after that almost 2-hour drive from the city center.
[2] Main Tunnel Entrance. before reaching the main Cu Chi preserved area, one passes this long dark tunnel. it is here where the guards collect the tickets of the tourists. this tunnel brings in extra excitement of what is on the other side.[3] Camp site. upon reaching the other end of the main tunnel, the camp site comes in view. it isn't the usual camp site as the huts are semi-underground where you can only see the nipa roof on a ground level. a video is played to give the tourists a brief background of the Cu Chi tunnels history. after the video, the guide shows a map of how Vietcong militants or the VCs mobilized their strategy versus the American soldiers. it's here where one can really be amazed at the strategy the VCs used.[4] Booby trap. the walking tour starts right after the briefing following a cleared path in the area where one will pass by booby traps. this time fully fenced and secured but it still reminds you a lot of the movie Rambo.[5] Tunnel Hidden Holes. the guide stops on one spot and talks about how the VCs hides and by surprise he clears a spot revealing a camouflaged hole. we were actually on top of the tunnel system. at first look, you can't imagine that an adult person would fit in but someone demonstrates how they do it. since most Vietnamese are thin, it was so easy for them to fit in. we then were given the chance to try it and i did it. i was impressed. [6] Jungle path. i noticed that there were no hills in the area but the whole site is surrounded with trees except for the cleared path. as the guide mentioned, the soil here is not ordinary as it is really hard. i even thought that we were walking over rocks. it has the color of a clay.
[7] Damaged tank. along the path, you will pass by a damaged tank and a set of VC wax mannequins showing the uniforms and the arms that they used during the war. a great add as tourist would take some photos with it which in an angle looks so real.[8] Trap camp. we thought we've seen enough traps but not until one reaches the trap camp where one can see the various traps made by the VCs. mostly made up of sharp metals in forms one wouldn't want to imagine seeing someone trapped by these.[9] Armory camp. another set of underground sites where it showcases how the VCs improvised some of their arms and bombs. most of which came from the remains of bombs. [10] Shooting rage. the whole time we're walking we can hear gunshots which actually makes the tour a bit scary. as we walked farther, we finally reached the source of the gunshots which is a shooting range. one can actually try out but you have to pay for the bullets that you'll be firing. [11] Souvenir shop. just within the area of the shooting range is a souvenir and a food shop. after that long walk, you'll definitely order something from here. i recommend ice cream but you won't spend too much time here as the gunshots are so loud in this area. also few walks from here is a nipa house where one would see how a rice wrapper is made and slippers out of used tires.[12] Tunnel entrance. this tour can't end without a chance to enter and walk through those small tunnels. everyone is given the option to do the 50-meter long tunnel only about half of our group decided to try it and is definitely a must-try. one needs to duck walk when you're inside the tunnel system. 90% of the path was completely dark with a few low-light red and yellow bulbs just to guide your way. it took about 10minutes before one reaches one end. it was hot but was really worth the try. for me it is the highlight of the whole Cu Chi tour.
[13] Tower. it is here where the tour ends and i noticed that there were smoke holes within the area. when reaches the tower, you cannot easily find it as it stands as high as the trees in the area.
the whole tour was fun and you end up tired but impressed as to how the Vietcongs made these tunnels. this system is just a part of a 200kilometer tunnel system in the whole of Vietnam. even if they made just 10kilometer i will already be impressed but they made aroud 200kilometers. such an amazing system. i highly recommend this tour.
eskapo recommends: that you book a day ahead your desired tour date to secure a slot. you can visit The Sinh Tourist office which is just along De Tham street. the tour starts at 8:00am and ends by 2:00pm or sometimes earlier. tour costs of the time of our visit was 8USD exclusive of the site entrance which is around 80000Vietnam Dong. the whole tour and entrance fee roughly cost Php550.

location:
island: Greater Asia

district: Ho Chi Minh

country: Vietnam

GPS location

11^ 3' 45.23" N

106^ 31' 41.96" E

escape rate:
site location: 3.5
tour area: 4.5
tour experience: 4.0
historical value: 5.0
overall escape rate: 4.5