Private Tour: Cu Chi Tunnels, Cao Dai Temple and Wildlife Rescue Station
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Rating: 
Trip Type: Private Day Trips
Duration: 8 hours
This private day trip from Ho Chi Minh City takes you to three intriguing locations: Cao Dai Temple, the Cu Chi Tunnels and Wildlife at Risk (WAR) Rescue Station. Accompanied by an informative private guide, you’ll learn about the Cao Dai sect during a ceremony inside the colorful temple. After a restaurant lunch, discover the labyrinthine underground system of the Cu Chi Tunnels, which served as military quarters during the Vietnam War. Following your subterranean exploration, get up close to some of the amazing animals residing at the wildlife shelter.
More About This Activity All Private Day Trips →
This private day trip from Ho Chi Minh City takes you to three intriguing locations: Cao Dai Temple, the Cu Chi Tunnels and Wildlife at Risk (WAR) Rescue Station. Accompanied by an informative private guide, you’ll learn about the Cao Dai sect during a ceremony inside the colorful temple. After a restaurant lunch, discover the labyrinthine underground system of the Cu Chi Tunnels, which served as military quarters during the Vietnam War. Following your subterranean exploration, get up close to some of the amazing animals residing at the wildlife shelter.
After hotel pickup in Ho Chi Minh City, hop in your air-conditioned private vehicle for a comfortable 2.5-hour drive through the countryside to Tay Ninh, located near the Cambodian border.
Your private tour begins with a visit to the awe-inspiring Cao Dai Temple, home of the distinctive Cao Dai religion, which combines the teachings of Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism and Christianity, including a belief in the occult. You will have the opportunity to take part in a colorful midday ceremony and take photos as your guide offers insight into the unique rituals.
After a Vietnamese lunch at a local restaurant, you’re taken to the Cu Chi Tunnels, an elaborate network used as a strategic military base by the Viet Cong because of its proximity to the southern capital of Saigon. Containing schools, hospitals, hidden kitchens, meeting rooms and living quarters during the Vietnam War (known in Vietnam as the American War), the underground labyrinth connected several villages and is now preserved by the government as a memorial park.
See a short film about the historical importance of the Cu Chi Tunnels before walking with your guide into the forest where the tunnels are located. Discover what life was like down below as you crawl into narrow passageways that each cover a distance of 98 to 328 feet (30 to 100 meters).
Today the remaining channels offer visitors a real feel for what life was like for guerrilla fighters and their families who lived belowground during the war. After your exploration, take a break in the forest with some hot green tea boiled with pandan leaves, accompanied by steamed tapioca.
It’s a short walk back to your vehicle for the drive to the Cu Chi Wildlife Rescue Station, an animal shelter run by Wildlife at Risk (WAR), a nonprofit organization based near Ho Chi Minh City. On a tour of the center, discover how experienced staff engage in wildlife conservation and resource management, and rescue local animals from mistreatment.
Learn about fascinating native animals like the pygmy loris, Indochinese leopard, sun bear and pangolin as well as an array of birds, snakes and small mammals that were kept as pets or fell victim to the illegal wildlife trade. You’ll be warmed by these local efforts to save and rehabilitate endangered animals and, in some cases, return them to their natural habitats.
After your visit, your full-day private tour ends with drop-off at your hotel.
Please note: Itinerary is subject to change. If the Wildlife Rescue Station is unavailable you'll get to visit the Cricket Farm, Handicapped Factory.
Please note: Itinerary is subject to change. If the Wildlife Rescue Station is unavailable you'll get to visit the Cricket Farm, Handicapped Factory.
« Go Back