Cu Chi Tunnels & Mekong Delta: Full Day Ho Chi Minh City Tour

Underground Wartime History & Palm-Lined Canals in One Day

You crawl through the Cu Chi Tunnels' underground network, watch a war documentary, eat a traditional Vietnamese lunch, then row a sampan through Mekong Delta canals while visiting a honey farm and coconut workshop with live music. Hotel pickup and all fees are included, and the whole day takes about nine hours.

Step-by-step itinerary

• Watch 3D movie on Vietnam War
• Discover underground Cu Chi Tunnels
• Try tiny tunnel hiding entrance
• Explore tunnel maze and facilities
• Watch documentary on tunnel system
• Crawl inside the tunnels
• Eat cassava, popular war food
• Enjoy Vietnamese lunch at restaurant
• Row sampan through Mekong canals
• Try exotic tropical fruits
• Visit coconut candy workshop
• Visit honey farm
• Enjoy live local folk music

The Experience

Crawling into a tunnel entrance no wider than a foxhole, you're suddenly in the dark, moving the way soldiers did between 1961 and 1972. The Cu Chi Tunnels stretch 250 kilometers beneath the forest floor outside Ho Chi Minh City—a hidden city of command centers, hospitals, kitchens, trap doors. Your guide walks you through the 3D film first, explaining the largest American ground operation of the war, then you're down there yourself, touching the walls, understanding the geometry of survival. It takes maybe two hours to move through the complex, and by the end your clothes are dusty and your sense of what people endured has shifted.

After lunch at a local restaurant—Vietnamese dishes, cassava root the way soldiers ate it, vegetarian options if you've arranged that—the tour pivots. You leave the tunnels and drive south toward My Tho and the Mekong Delta. The landscape opens into water and palms. A motorboat takes you out first, then you transfer to a hand-rowed sampan, the kind locals use to navigate the narrow canals that branch like veins through the delta. Your guide rows while you sit low in the boat, passing houses built on stilts, watching the water move slow and brown. It's quiet except for the oar and the birds.

The honey farm comes next—you taste the tea they make from it, watch how they keep the bees in this heat. Then a coconut candy workshop where women are actually working, shaping and wrapping sweets by hand, and you can buy some if you want. There's a live performance of traditional folk music from villagers, tropical fruit tasting depending on the season, and somewhere in there wheat cake and hot tea. The whole day runs about nine hours from your hotel pickup in District 1, 3, or 4, and it includes everything—entrance fees, transport by motorboat and sampan, the guide who speaks English, bottled water, travel insurance. You don't arrange any of it yourself.

What’s included

Hotel pickup and drop-off from central Ho Chi Minh City (Districts 1, 3, and 4), all entrance fees to Cu Chi Tunnels and Mekong Delta attractions, professional English-speaking guide, Vietnamese lunch with vegetarian options available, bottled water, honey tea and coconut juice, coconut candy and wheat cake, tuk-tuk or electric car village tour, motorboat and hand-rowed sampan cruise, honey farm visit, coconut candy workshop, live traditional music performance from villagers, seasonal tropical fruit tasting, and travel insurance.

Good to know

Easy physical levelPublic transport nearbyNot for back problems

Operated by KIM TRAVEL

Is this one for you?Best for travelers who want to see both Cu Chi's wartime history and the Mekong Delta's rural life in a single day without arranging transport, tickets, or timing—the fixed itinerary and small group size mean you move through both in one seamless journey.

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Top questions

How deep do you go into the Cu Chi Tunnels?

You explore the tunnel system at ground level and crawl into real tunnel sections. The tunnels run 250km total, but you walk and crawl through accessible portions with your guide, seeing trap doors, storage areas, hospitals, and command centers.

Is the sampan ride difficult?

No. You sit in the boat while a guide rows it through the canals. It's a slow, flat-water experience suitable for all fitness levels.

What's included in the lunch?

Vietnamese cuisine at a local restaurant. Vegetarian options are available if you request them when booking. Cassava root, a popular wartime food, is often served.

How long is the full day?

About nine hours total, including hotel pickup and drop-off from central Ho Chi Minh City (Districts 1, 3, or 4).

Are children allowed?

Yes. Children under 5 are free but must be accompanied by an adult. Children of all ages can participate in the tour.

What's the group size?

It's a small group tour, though the exact number isn't specified. Hotel pickup is included, so you'll meet your guide and other travelers at your accommodation.

Is there a 3D movie about the war?

Yes. The tour begins with a 3D film explaining the largest American ground operation of the Vietnam War before you enter the tunnels.

What drinks and snacks are provided?

Bottled water, honey tea, coconut juice, coconut candy, wheat cake, Vietnamese hot tea, and seasonal tropical fruit tasting are all included.