Củ Chi tunnels Area

Address: Củ Chi Tunnels (Củ Chi District), Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam - main sites: Ben Dinh and Ben Duoc

Hours: Daily (typical hours ~07:00-17:00 at visitor sites)

Admission: Paid entry at visitor sites (Ben Dinh / Ben Duoc)

The Củ Chi tunnels are an extensive underground network in Củ Chi District, built and used by Viet Cong forces during the mid-20th century. The tunnels served as living quarters, supply routes and bases for guerrilla operations during the Indochina conflicts.

Construction began during anti-colonial struggles and expanded significantly during the 1950s and 1960s; the network supported communication, logistics and shelter for guerrilla units through periods of conflict. After the wars the sites became places of memory and tourism.

The tunnel sites are in Củ Chi District, northwest of central Ho Chi Minh City and reachable by road from the city in a few hours depending on traffic.

• Tunnel access: Sections shown to visitors have been enlarged for safety; original wartime tunnels were much narrower and lower.

What to See#

• Ben Dinh (tourist tunnels): The most-visited exhibition area where tunnel passages have been widened, with displays of traps, cooking pits and living chambers, designed for tourist access and interpretation.
• Ben Duoc: A larger tunnel complex with more preserved earthworks, memorials and a less-commercial presentation of the tunnel system and wartime history.

The Củ Chi tunnels are northwest of Ho Chi Minh City and are commonly visited on day tours from District 1. The tunnel sites are reached by road (National Highway 22/QL22 is the main route out of the city toward Củ Chi) and the drive from central HCMC typically takes about 1.5-2 hours. Many travel agencies in District 1 run shared‑van or bus tours that include round‑trip transport.

• Choose the Ben Duoc site if you want a less-commercialized visit; Ben Dinh is more touristy and busier because of half-day tour circuits from Saigon.
• Book the earliest departures from Ho Chi Minh City so you arrive at the tunnels at opening and avoid midday coach crowds and heat in the crawl sections.
• Allow time to explore the memorial displays around the complexes-many visitors focus on crawling galleries and miss the contextual museums and lookout points nearby.