'''Cu Chi''' is about 40 km northwest of Ho Chi Minh City in southern Vietnam. The '''Cu Chi Tunnels''' are an elaborate underground community made up of 250 km of tunnels and chambers below the city.

Understand

The tunnels were dug with simple tools and bare hands during the French occupation in the 1940s, and further expanded during the Vietnam War in the 1960s to provide refuge and a defensive advantage over the American soldiers. Despite all the bombings in their town, the Cu Chi people were able to continue their lives beneath the soil, where they slept, ate, planned attacks, healed their sick, and taught their young. Some even wed and gave birth underground, but over 10,000 lost their lives here.

Get in

A multitude of tour buses leave Ho Chi Minh City for the Cu Chi tunnels daily. Expect to pay around US$5 for a half day guided trip, with 90 minutes travel and about an hour and a half touring the area. If you're making the trip independently, admission is 65,000 dong, but you may be required to wait (and possibly pay extra) for a tour, as visitors are not allowed to roam the site by themselves.

There are actually two locations frequented by tourists:

  • '''Ben Duoc''' This is further out from Ho Chi Minh and many local Vietnamese go there. Tour companies can organize a day tour on demand, but you would be better off hiring a motorbike. Entrance is 70,000 dong and a motorbike should cost about $1-2 per hour. The round trip is about 6 hours. The tunnels feature enlarged tunnel segments for you to crawl through and demos of the sleeping, medical and command quarters underground. The ticket office also features two Mig-29s. The guides here were lethargic and spoke little English. There are many dioramas including a mock village. A starch lunch is served for which a donation box is provided.
  • '''Ben Dinh''' This is the touristed tunnels and you'll be in good company. Note that all the tunnel sections at this site have been specially created for tourists and were never part of the real network. Also note that bats can be found roosting in some of the tunnels, so make sure you've had your rabies shots.
  • See

    A well defined walking track loops around the area, with things to see spaced at regular intervals, including examples of how people lived and what they ate. There is a 30m section of tunnel which visitors can crawl through (not recommended for the claustrophobic), examples of traps used during the war, and the remnants of bomb craters.

    Do

  • '''Shoot guns''' - choose between AK-47, M16 rifle, and M60. Great fun, if you can put from your mind what these "toys" were really designed for! As of June 2006, firing an AK-47 costs 25,000 dong per bullet.And Magnum!
  • Buy

    There are numerous souvenir shops at the end of the walking track. Given the location there is some focus on war memorabilia, as well as the traditional Vietnamese souvenirs found elsewhere.

    Eat

    There are a number of stalls selling food and drinks near the entrance. Mid-way around the walking track is a kiosk/restaurant selling drinks and food and ice-cream at reasonable prices, and at the end there are samples of traditional "potato" to try.

    Sleep