Cu Chi Village Biking and Tunnels Tour Experience with ActXplorer.com
6 min readCu Chi Village Biking and Tunnels Tour Experience with ActXplorer.com
When everyone travels to Ho Chi Minh or Saigon Vietnam, the Cu Chi Tunnels have been part of the tour itineraries for decades. There are people who loves that tour and some said it is overrated. For those who didn’t know about Cu Chi Tunnels. It is the tunnels used by the locals to fight against the Americans during the Vietnam war. The Cu Chi Tunnels is not just mere attraction but part of the history of Vietnam. That is the main reason why we wanted to see and experience the Cu Chi Tunnels when we were in Ho Chi Minh. Prior to this trip, we visited the Malaysian Communist tunnels in Southern Thailand so it is interesting to see and compare both tunnels.
I was in Ho Chi Minh with Mynn Lee of SheWalksTheWorld.com. We went there for a few days of traveling and sight seeing.
Many people join the Cu Chi Tunnels Tour but not the Cu Chi Village Biking Tour. We wanted something different to add on the Cu Chi Tunnels Tour. Since we are in Cu Chi, why not a bike tour?
This is something we found at ActXplorer.com. Actxplorer.com is a travel platform that provides unique local travel experiences in South East Asia. On top of that, they work closely with locals and NGOs to offer experiences like workshops, farm stays, food tours and volunteer initiatives.
What is so special about Actxplorer is they want to create more job opportunities to the locals by introducing them to the tourism industry so they can earn more and at the same time they get additional benefits such as knowledge and training. This will bring tourists to have a closer understanding with the locals and also generating income for them.
That is the main reason why we select Actxplorer.com than the other websites. They help and enrich the lives of the locals instead of exploiting them. That is another reason why the travel packages they offer is rather unique compare to other travel websites.
You can actually book it at http://actxplorer.com/tripDetails/155453 and hit the PROMO CODE WILSONKNOWSBEST and you will get 10% discount off the tour.
The entire Cycling Through History: A Cu Chi Experience takes around 6 hours including transportation from Ho Chi Minh to Cu Chi. It is almost a day tour.
The bike tour takes around two hours and it is quite an easy track to cycle. This is how you can see and experience like the locals.
The bike tour is inclusive of guide, safety gears and bicycles. You will be guided for the entire bike tour. The bike route is very safe and there will be stops to see some of the local farms and sceneries.
Remember to put on the safety gear like helmet and stay close with the group. This is an easy cycling route so not an adventurous type.
The scenery is mainly paddy fields. Something that city folks can’t experience any more except you travel to up north to places like Kedah or Perlis.
Next stop is quite unique. Pig farm. I heard a lot from my mom as her family used to rear pigs. This is my first time visiting a pig farm (a mini version). It is quite a sight as there are small pig farms in Cu Chi Village.
Like the movie ‘Spirited Away’, the pigs are noisy as ever. However, the farm itself is clean. The smell wasn’t that bad but just that the squealing pigs’ noises are unbearable.
Then, we stopped over to a ‘duck farm’. It is just a small farm in the middle of the river in the village. It is quite interesting how they trapped the ducks in the river and converted it to a ‘farm’.
After the bike ride, we took a pit stop in one of the local restaurants to have coconut juice. I noticed that the Vietnamese like to chill and resting on a hammock. We have seen quite a number of restaurants offering hammock resting places, something you don’t see in other ASEAN countries.
Next is the Cu Chi Tunnels, the tour is inclusive of the entrance fees. You get to see many tourists in Cu Chi Tunnels so don’t be surprise if the place is over-crowded. Lucky for us, the place was quiet when we were there and it started to fill up as the tourists from tour busses coming when we left.
Expect to spend at least an hour here at Cu Chi tunnels. This place is huge and you get to see some of the weapons, guns, bombs and items from the Vietnam War.
The highlight of Cu Chi Tunnel is the tunnels for sure. It stretched kilometres from here during the Vietnam War. Like I mentioned earlier, I have been to the Malaysian Communist tunnels in Southern Thailand.
In comparison, the Cu Chi tunnels are smaller in size and the complexity of the tunnels are greater than the communist tunnels. The southern Thailand tunnels are short and mainly in the mountains for a group in hundreds. Most of the communists in southern Thailand hides in the tunnels while at the Cu Chi tunnels, the locals use it to fight against the Americans.
One of the reasons the American soldiers couldn’t enter the tunnels is the size. It is really small and only can fit a normal Asian lady size. Please take note that the Cu chi tunnels have been enlarged so tourists can squeeze in.
Another reason of the advantage of the Cu Chi tunnels is how they camouflage it with the jungle. It could be behind the bush or any part of the jungle. That’s why the locals win most of the Guerrilla ware and fights during the war. You simply don’t see where are they located.
Like many other tourists out there, we tried to sneak into the tunnels. It is a fun thing to do, get your hands dirty and try to experience the tunnels ourselves.
You can also check out the variety of traps created by locals during the Vietnam War. This is something you get to see now.
There is also an old tank in the jungle which is now more like a prop for photo opportunity. You can see many tourists will come up with many great ideas taking picture with the tank including us.
You might here sound of the gunshots in the background while you are here. There is a shooting range and you can choose your guns and types of bullets. Of course, you have to pay for it. If you never shot a gun or a machine gun before, you can try it.
Like we mentioned before, you pay per bullet so if you want to shoot the machine gun, make sure you bring enough cash. Use the machine gun and spray the bullets like ‘The Rock’ in Fast and Furious movies and remember to record videos of it. You might not look like The Rock but you feel like The Rock.
Lastly, you get to see how the locals used to stay within the tunnel, where they cook, eat, sleep and so on. This is something you won’t see anymore and you are actually revisiting the history.
Overall, we thought the Cu Chi Village Bike Tour is enlightening and eye opening. Cycling through paddy fields, duck farms and pig farms are something we didn’t expect.
The Cu Chi Tunnels on the other hand is a walk to the past. It is something you will do once in your lifetime and probably not twice. Hiding and trying to fit into the tunnels was fun and we enjoyed the tour and the experience.
We know there are like hundreds of Cu Chi Tunnels tours out there but with the biking tour, probably a few. Like we mentioned earlier, you get to help out the locals when you book with ActXPlorer.com and that is something we are supportive to.
Book the Cycling Through History: A Cu Chi Experience at http://actxplorer.com/tripDetails/155453 and hit the PROMO CODE WILSONKNOWSBEST and you will get 10% discount off the tour.
If you are staying in Ho Chi Minh, you can also read Ho Chi Minh Bike Food Tour Experience in Vietnam
