When traveling throughout Vietnam it is hard to escape the fact that this country was divided by the North and South during the Vietnam War during the 1960's and early 70's. The Ho Chi Minh trail was a path that started in Northern Vietnam. This trail also included parts of the bordering countries Laos and Cambodia. This trail was first created for the trading of goods, and later turned into a route that enabled supplies to be easy transported by troops from the North to the South. You can travel the Trail by truck, foot, and bicycle. The trail has paths that are above ground and underground. 
These tunnels can be complex in some parts, and can include sleeping areas, maternity rooms, and bomb shelters. There are two places in Vietnam that you can experience walking through the underground tunnels. You can do this on a tour through the DMZ and then also right outside the southern city of Saigon. The Ho Chi Minh trail is a must see on your visit to Vietnam!
Within the Ho Chi Minh trail there was a system of underground trails that connected to Northern Vietnam down to the Cu Chi Tunnels. These tunnels are located about 60 miles outside of Saigon. All of these underground tunnels were dug by hand, and reached an unbelievable length of 200 KM. These tunnels helped the North Vietnamese Army reach Saigon, and take over Saigon in the early 1970's.
There is a tour that is ran daily at the Cu Chi Tunnels. The tour includes showing you how the soldier's shoes were made, booby traps that were set up to hurt opposing troops, and of course allowing you to go through about 50 m of the actual tunnel. You literally have to crouch down, and almost crawl through these tunnels. The guides will tell you that the soldiers could actually bend down and run through these tunnels. Close to the end of the tour there is a shooting range! You can pay to shoot hand guns, semi automatic guns, and also automatic rifles. This part of the tour actually lets you feels and hear what it was like during the war. The picture above shows you a trap that allows a soldier to hide, and then pop up and 
shoot an opposing soldier, and then hide in the ground again by lowering himself in the ground.
It is very easy to get to the Tunnels. When you are staying in Saigon every hotel/hostel you are stying in will offer you the chance to go out there. The tour offered through the hotel will include a ride in a minivan with a driver and other travelers. The other option is to hire a motor cycle driver. These drivers hang out all day waiting to be hired for the day. They will drive you anywhere that you want to go throughout the whole city (there are hardley any taxi's in the city of Saigon. Everybody drives a scooter or motor cycle) These motor cycle's will getting you out there faster, and it is more fun since they will take you on back roads which allow you to see more of the countryside. You can also bargain with the motor cycle drivers on how much the ride will cost! I would suggest to get some sort of mask (something to cover your mouth) during the ride since there is so much pollution coming out of huge trucks that you are by.
