Southern Vietnam · Day tour
Ho Chi Minh City & Cu Chi Tunnels
The city in the morning and the tunnels in the afternoon: Independence Palace, the Central Post Office and the War Remnants Museum, then ninety minutes north to Cu Chi.
- Length
- Full day
- Approx. 8:00 AM – 7:00 PM
- Pick-up
- Ho Chi Minh City
- From your hotel
- Guide
- English-speaking
- Group or private
What you see
The day in short
Everything below is covered by the programme. The order can move with the traffic and the weather; the list does not.
Where it goes: Ho Chi Minh City
Highlights
- Independence Palace, left as it was the day the war ended
- Notre Dame Cathedral and the Central Post Office, side by side
- The War Remnants Museum, which covers both Indochina wars
- The Cu Chi tunnel system: kitchens, field hospitals, weapons workshops, command rooms
- The trap doors and booby traps built into the maze
- Tea and cassava, the food the tunnels ran on
Hour by hour
The running order
Approx. 8:00 AM – 7:00 PM. These are the timings operations work to; your guide confirms the pick-up the evening before.
Want it privately?07:30 – 08:00 AM
Hotel pick-up in District 1. The exact time depends on where you are staying.
Morning
Independence Palace, then Notre Dame Cathedral and the Central Post Office.
Late morning
The War Remnants Museum.
Midday
Lunch at a local restaurant.
Afternoon
An hour and a half north to Cu Chi, a short introduction and the archive film, then into the tunnels.
Late afternoon
Tea and cassava, and free time for the shooting range if you want it.
Approx. 07:00 PM
Back in Saigon.
What's included
- Air-conditioned van pick-up and drop-off at a central District 1 hotel
- English-speaking tour guide
- Entrance fees for everything in the programme
- Lunch
- Bottled water
What's not
- Travel insurance
- Drinks
- Tips and personal expenses, including the shooting range
- Tax
Before you book
- Notre Dame Cathedral is under restoration, so it is seen from the outside only.
- Pick-up and drop-off cover centrally located hotels in District 1.
- Drop-off time moves with traffic and weather, so it can run later than planned.
- Infants travel at the infant rate as long as they do not take a seat. Tell us at the time of booking.
- The order of the stops can change with weather, traffic or opening hours. The full programme is still covered.
The route
- 1Independence Palace
- 2Notre Dame Cathedral
- 3War Remnants Museum
- 4Cu Chi Tunnels
Map is schematic and not to scale for travel times.
Our own camera roll
From this day
Good to know
Questions
Is one day enough for both?
It is a long day and a long drive, but it works: the four city sights sit within a few streets of each other, so the morning moves quickly and the afternoon belongs to Cu Chi.
How small is the group?
Four to twelve people. If you would rather not share it at all, it runs privately with your own guide and van.
Where does pick-up happen?
From your hotel in District 1, between 7:30 and 8:00 AM. Give us your hotel name and address when you book and we will confirm a time the evening before.
Can we combine this with other days?
Yes — most guests string two or three of these together, or add them either side of a multi-day journey. Send us your dates and we will lay them out in a sensible order.
Book the Ho Chi Minh City & Cu Chi Tunnels
Give us your dates, your hotel and how many of you there are. We confirm availability the same day and pick you up from the door.