High quality Vietnam travel attractions and holiday tips and tricks? Located north of Greater Ho Chi Minh City, the Cu Chi Tunnels provide a more interactive historical experience for all ages (although claustrophobics should perhaps miss this one). Stretching for 100-plus miles towards former Saigon, this immense network of connecting underground tunnels was the secret HQ for the Viet Cong’s military operations during the Vietnam and Indochina wars. Of immense strategic value, the Cu Chi Tunnels played a major role in the Northern Vietnamese victory, regarded as one of their proudest wartime achievements. These historic tunnels have now been preserved and transformed into a war memorial park and hugely popular attraction. Visitors can enter two short sections of the original tunnel network, at either Ben Dinh or Ben Duoc villages, which have been restored, slightly widened and cemented. Led by guides, crawl along the deep tunnels and get a rough idea of what conditions were like and see former subterranean facilities, like the conference rooms. See extra information on https://danangopentour.vn/tour-ba-na-hills-1-ngay.html.
The Cu Chi Tunnels are basically a huge war museum offering visitors a sneak peak at the underground life of Viet Cong-era soldiers. Comprising more than 120km of tunnels, they were first started around 1948 when the Viet Cong were fighting the French. The work never stopped and resulted in a massive collection of tunnels. Today, it is one of Ho Chi Minh’s most iconic attractions where visitors can enjoy activities such as following the claustrophobia-inducing routes of the underground army, firing an M16 assault rifle, as well sampling meals that the underground soldiers had to live with years ago.
The formerly little-inhabited beach south of the fishing village of Mui Ne has seen some serious development in the last 15 years. Due to strong sea breezes it is a popular destination in Vietnam for kite- and windsurfing. No trip to Mui Ne is complete without a trip to the famous sand dunes located a short distance north of the town. The vast sandy expanse provide some great panoramic views especially during sunset.
The karst seascape of Halong Bay is one of the world’s most spellbinding sea views and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Thousands of limestone islands sit within this bay in the Gulf of Tonkin, eroded into jagged pinnacles by wind and water action over millennia. With the bay’s scenery best seen by boat, this is prime cruising territory. Opt for at least an overnight tour to see Halong Bay’s iconic views as a day trip doesn’t do it justice. There are plenty of caves in the bay that can be entered including the Hang Sung Sot, with three mammoth caverns, and the Hang Dao Go, with superbly weird stalagmites and stalactites. For most people though, the highlight is simply cruising amid the karsts and soaking up the changing scenery of pinnacles as you pass by.
Wartime legacies are prominent attractions in Ho Chi Minh City and these two museums are the most popular, equally fascinating, and a must-do experience. The imposing Independence Palace (or Reunification Palace) is of great symbolic importance in the nation’s history. Formerly, the South Vietnam government’s HQ and official presidential residence, this was where North Vietnamese Army tanks crashed through the main gates on April 30, 1975: the defining ‘Fall of Saigon’ moment and the start of Reunification. Now a ‘National Cultural and Historical Relic,’ museum and VIP function space, this landmark monolith building, ensconced in pretty grounds, stands frozen in time from that fateful day. Take a guided tour through five floors and rooms preserved in the 1960s and 1970s time-warp: highlights include the bomb-proof basement, with secret tunnels and war command room, kitschy cinema and casino, and glittering reception halls.