On our second full day in Ho Chi Minh City, we took another tour. This time we booked with Les Rives for their Cu Chi Tunnels Tour by Boat. It was $87 per person and I booked and paid online a few weeks before the trip, again to minimize the amount of cash I needed to bring with me.

We were picked up at the Park Hyatt at 7:10am after an early breakfast. Our guide for the day was Kha, whose English was excellent and sounded a bit like he was from Louisiana or Texas. Apparently, he had previously worked in the oil industry alongside some Americans from those areas.

We made a couple of more stops and had 13 people total in our group, including an American family of five, an elderly couple from the UK, a couple from Switzerland, and a Canadian/Filipino couple who live in Saudi Arabia. We arrived at the dock, which is on the river in District 1.

Our boat was large enough for us all to have plenty of room. There was also a cover from the sun. After a safety briefing, we put on life jackets and left around 7:30. Besides Kha, we had a boat captain and another employee who helped with food and drinks.

We were offered coffee and pastries, although we were both full from breakfast. We enjoyed the ride up the river with a nice breeze and the scenery while Kha explained a bit about the history of the city and the river.

After about an hour and twenty minutes, we arrived at the Cu Chi Tunnels. The bus ride for a similar tour takes around two hours, so not only was the ride pleasant and relaxing, it was faster.

The benefit of arriving earlier was a less crowded walk around the site. We started with an overview of the site and the history. Kha explained how the tunnels were dug and why they were necessary.

From there, we walked around the site, seeing the different types of tunnels, the traps that were laid for the US soldiers, the cooking methods and other interesting displays.

There is also a shooting range there where you can shoot anything from a pistol to a M-16 to a machine gun. You just have to buy the bullets. I decided to pass as the cost was prohibitive. It was very loud near the gun range.

We had the chance to go into the tunnels for 15, 30 or 60 yards, but I declined as they did not recommend doing it if you have a cardiac issue and I have a history of heart issues. A few people did it and even though the tunnels have been widened and heightened since the 1970s, it was still pretty tight in there, except for little kids.

After the tour, we were led to a large outdoor seating area for lunch. Frankly, we were still full from the Park Hyatt breakfast so we just nibbled. The food was fine, but nothing special. I probably enjoyed the soup the best.

Around noon, we boarded the boat for the ride back to the city center. Although the Cu Chi Tunnels are pretty far out, they are still technically just within the city limits.

We arrived back at the dock around 1:30pm and rather than get the included ride back to the hotel, we ordered a Grab and did our own thing for the afternoon.

My wife was a bit skeptical of this tour before we went, both because of her ankle boot and because she’s not a big fan of group tours. In the end, we both enjoyed it greatly. Getting there ahead of the tour buses and having an excellent guide really made the tour.

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