Ho Chi Minh City to Cu Chi Tunnels: Speedboat & War History

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Free cancellationTravelers' pick

1/14

Duration8h

GroupUp to 16

LanguagesEN

PickupAt your hotel

One hour by speedboat from Saigon to the tunnels that changed a war

You travel by speedboat along the Saigon River to Cu Chi Tunnels, crawl through the underground network with your guide, eat a traditional lunch, and choose your own return stop — War Remnants Museum, Ben Thanh Market, or your hotel. Hotel pickup and all entry fees are included, so you don't arrange transport or tickets yourself.

Step-by-step itinerary

Speedboat trip and Cu Chi tunnels visit

Board speedboat in Ho Chi Minh City
Cruise along Saigon River to Cu Chi Tunnels
Explore underground tunnel network
See traps and crawl through tunnels
Enjoy cassava snack at Cu Chi
Return by speedboat to city
Drop off at War Remnants Museum or Ben Thanh Market

The Experience

The Saigon River opens in front of you at dawn, and the speedboat engine turns over. You're heading out from Ho Chi Minh City toward Cu Chi Tunnels — a one-hour cruise that takes you past the busy riverbanks, colonial villas, and the working life of the city before it all falls away. Your English-speaking guide is already pointing out landmarks, the water spray hitting your face, and you realize this isn't a bus ride with a dozen other tourists crammed into a minivan. It's faster, it's quieter, and the river route shows you a side of Saigon most visitors never see.

When you arrive at Cu Chi, the tunnels are right there — a 75-mile network that once sheltered fighters, stored weapons, and held field hospitals during the war. You crawl through the narrow passages yourself, crouch under the trap doors, and stand in the command centers carved into the earth. It's claustrophobic and strange and nothing like reading about it. Your guide walks you through the logic of it: the kitchens with their hidden chimneys, the storage rooms, the way the whole underground city was built to survive. After the tunnels, you eat cassava — the staple food soldiers ate here — and it tastes like nothing you expected, starchy and simple and somehow grounding.

The return trip is your choice. The speedboat can drop you at the War Remnants Museum if you want to keep going, or Ben Thanh Market if you'd rather see where locals actually shop, or straight back to your hotel in District 1. The whole day takes about six to seven hours from pickup to drop-off, and by the time you're back on the river heading home, you've moved through three different Saigons — the one on the water, the one underground, and the one waiting for you on the other side.

What’s included

Your day includes hotel pickup from centrally located hotels in Ho Chi Minh City, the one-hour speedboat cruise along the Saigon River, an experienced English-speaking guide, entry tickets to Cu Chi Tunnels, a set-menu lunch with cassava, mineral water throughout the day, and travel insurance. You'll return by speedboat and can choose to be dropped at the War Remnants Museum, Ben Thanh Market, or your hotel in District 1.

Good to know

Easy physical levelPublic transport nearbyNot for back problems

Operated by KIM TRAVEL

Is this one for you?Book this if you want to see Cu Chi Tunnels without arranging your own transport or tickets — the speedboat route also saves you from a long bus ride and gives you river views most day trips skip.