Private Cu Chi Tunnels and Ho Chi Minh City

COSTS AND QUOTATIONS

PRIVATE CU CHI TUNNELS AND HO CHI MINH CITY ONE DAY TOUR

• Tour duration : 09 hours (8.00 am – 5.00 pm)
• Type of tour : Private
• Group tour: NONE

Timing: 7.30 AM – 6.00 PM (reference only, you can adjust). It is suggested that you leave the hotel at 7.30 AM so as to have enough time to see everything in the itinerary.

Introduciton : Vietnam – meaning the Viet people in the south (Nam) of China- has a very bloody history with 1000 years of Chinese consecutive supervision, 96 years of French control, 21 years of civil war and 4 years of Khmer Rouge terrorism. (111 BC to 1979 AD). When we refer to the term VIETNAM WAR, we mean 2 wars : one against France and the other against the US.

SAIGON – HOCHIMINH city has always been the most wealthy and modern city of Vietnam especially it was considered AS the PEARL OF THE FAR EAST during the civil war between North and South (1954-1975). During this bloody period, CU CHI DISTRICT (around 60kms away from Saigon) was the most important stronghold for VC soldiers (Vietnamese soldiers in South but supported North). Cuchi tunnel system (3 vertical levels in total) was manually dug by VC soldiers during the civil war of Vietnam. Ten thousand people lived away from the sunlight for 20 years with one COMMON GOAL : forcing Saigon to surrender and American government withdrawal.

Today, visitors of all ages come to Cu chi with diverse purposes such as to find out how come VC could win the war, to see how much VC and locals had to suffer, to witness and admire the creativeness of the VC soldiers and LAST BUT NOT LEAST to experience being a VC soldier.

DETAILED ITINERARY: You will be picked up at your hotel (8,00 am or your chosen time by our friendly guide and driver. Then everybody spends 2 hours in the car with our guide’s introduction about Saigon and the war in an interesting way. You can also enjoy the lively life of today’s Saigonese during the drive to Cu Chi district.

When arriving at the tunnels, you will be intensively led into the tunnels for about 1.5hour with our guide. You don’t have to crawl into the tunnels if you don’t want to, instead just walk on the surface under shady trees and on easy paths. During the walk, our guide will point out and tell you lots of interesting and touching stories about the war related to the Cu chi area.

Things that you will surely see and get told during the visit:

Secret entrances – Personal fighting bunker – Booby traps / Bamboo spikes – Termite mounds, camouflaged finely as a ventilation hole – Display of self-made traps from bomb shells by VC soldiers – Shooting range – where you can buy real bullets to experience shooting – Models of VC soldiers – Fighting trenches – Military workshops – Military uniform bunker – And more

Enjoying Tapioca with salt and peanuts – a special food for Vietcong during the war

Lunch is served from 12.00 PM 1.00 PM at a local family style restaurant with Vietnamese speciality

After lunch, get back to our bus and drive 2 hours back to Saigon city downtown.

3.00 PM, reach the city and start exploring the city’s highlights as follows:

Independence Palace to witness the ups and downs of Saigon’s history. It’s where 4 presidents of South VN ruled the country. In case the palace is closed, we will replace by the War Museum.

Make a pleasant walk (only if you are fine) around the Old Saigon Territory to have some short visits to symbolic Saigon’s landmarks as follows:

• Notre Dame cathedral and Central Post Office : showing great architecture of the French supervision period over Saigon.
• Opera House – City Hall and Nguyen Hue walking street where the city’s most important events are celebrated
• Ngọc Hoang Pagoda is where people wish for love and children.

Enjoy a one hour XICH LO (3 wheel pushing bike) around the heart of the city in rush hour back to the hotel.

Tour ends when we get off at the hotel by 5,00 PM

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE TOUR:

• Gain deep understandings of the Vietnam war.
• Get to know how VC soldiers struggled but won the war such as Walking without Footprints, Cooking without smoke and Talking without noise.
• Witness different bunkers like Sleeping, Meeting, Fighting, Kitchen and Dining Bunker in the ground with great creativity.
• Witness how VC soldiers created their traps and weapons for American soldiers.
• Experience being a VC soldier by crawling inside (only if you want)
• Experience shooting real guns at the shooting range (on your own account, guns are stabilized on the stand) to understand how severe the war was like.
• Guide’s excellent services of knowledge, skills and caring attitudes.

TOUR INCLUSIONS:

• Private 7-16 seater new car with air conditioner
• Hotel pick up and drop off (only hotels within District 1 and 3)
• 02 bottles of water per person
• Entrance tickets to all places mentioned in the itinerary
• Great English speaking guide who is always caring, helping, knowledgeable, and gentle.
• Intense visit of tunnel system with guide’s leading and clear explanation.
• Taste tapioca potato – common food for VC in war.
• Crawl into the tunnels with our guide if wanted.
• One hour 3 wheel pushing bike ride around the city center
• Set menu Vietnamese food lunch (can be adjusted by your food dietaries)

TOUR EXCLUSIONS:

• Ordering drinks during lunch
• Tips for guide and driver (suggested 20 USD for guide and 10 USD for driver per group) if they do a good job. Please don’t be stressed about it, you can give whatever you feel happy with or none.