Open more night tours at Cu Chi Tunnels

Tourists watch a 3D film introducing the history of Cu Chi tunnels.

Mr. Nguyen Minh Tam, Deputy Director of Cu Chi Tunnels Relic Site, said that the first 3 night tours in March had 350 participants. Having received many positive responses from visitors, the relic site continued to open ticket sales for the second phase in April on April 12, April 19 and April 26. In the second tour opening, Cu Chi Tunnels expects to welcome about 400 participants.

According to Mr. Tam, the relic site will base on the number of visitors and closely follow the feedback to open more tours in the near future. It is expected that after 2-3 months of implementation, the program will be renewed, changing the script of the play in the tour so as not to bore visitors.

The representative of the relic site said the tour is aimed at domestic tourists. Currently, domestic visitors to the tunnels mainly visit during the day, the number of visitors is less than 50% of international visitors. The tunnels welcome an average of 3,000 international visitors per day, and about 1,000 domestic visitors.

Scene recreating the nightlife of Cu Chi people after Dong Khoi 1960

In addition, night tours are currently difficult to reach international visitors because most of the content of the program is dialogue. The dialogue uses dialect, combined with real context, when translated into another language, it will be difficult to convey the message. "Foreign visitors will not feel the historical atmosphere recreated through the play," said Mr. Tam.

The relic site representative added that one of the biggest difficulties in implementing the Cu Chi night tour is the problem of tourists' transportation. The tunnels are about 2 hours away from the center of Ho Chi Minh City by car, and the tour is organized in the evening, which is inconvenient for many tourists who do not have personal vehicles.

The scene of digging tunnels at night is realistically recreated.

Some travel companies in Ho Chi Minh City believe that Cu Chi night tour has the potential to be exploited long-term. The tour is currently organized for just over 2 hours from 6pm to 8:40pm, a travel company suggests designing a 2-day-1-night tour schedule connecting Cu Chi - Tay Ninh. The car will pick up tourists from the city center to the tunnels for sightseeing, then move to Tay Ninh, staying overnight there. The next day, tourists will explore Tay Ninh and return to Saigon.

"This program is in the design phase so there is no estimated cost yet," said a representative of a travel company in Ho Chi Minh City.

Cu Chi Night Tour is a product that enhances the experience for tourists when visiting the tunnels in the dark. The tour takes moonlight as the main theme, recreating the night life of Cu Chi people living in the liberated zone with activities such as digging tunnels, weaving under the moonlight, young people signing up to join the army to fight the enemy, milling rice, pounding rice, boys and girls calling each other in the fields, holding markets, performing arts for soldiers, guerrillas and people mixed with the sound of bombs, artillery, and enemy planes patrolling.

The program is divided into two main parts. From 6:00 p.m. to 6:50 p.m., visitors will see a model and a 3D film recreating the 1967 Cedar Falls raid. From 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., visitors will enjoy an art program themed "Moon in the War Zone" and enjoy free food and drinks at the night market. Ticket price is 399,000 VND per person.

The Deputy Director of the Cu Chi Tunnels Relic Site said that if the tour develops well, he will propose that the local government open more accommodation services in the district.

TH (according to VnExpress)

Source: https://baohaiduong.vn/mo-them-nhieu-tour-dem-tai-dia-dao-cu-chi-378227.html