Friday, August 30, 2024 Every year, hundreds of thousands of British tourists visit Vietnam, drawn to its luxurious seaside resorts and vibrant backpacking culture. However, many are also lured by the darker side of tourism. Just outside the bustling Ho Chi Minh City lies the Cu Chi tunnel complex, a site that has transformed into a popular dark tourism destination.
Around 1.5 million people visit the Cu Chi tunnels annually. This morbid attraction offers a stark glimpse into the life of Vietnamese villagers who had to burrow underground to escape relentless US military bombardment.
Originally constructed in the late 1940s during the anti-French resistance, the tunnels were significantly expanded during the Vietnam War, becoming a crucial network for Viet Cong military operations. Visitors to the tunnels can experience the harsh realities faced by those who lived below ground. The tunnels, which served as communication routes, supply lines, hospitals, and living quarters, were a lifeline for villagers known as “human moles.
” Some inhabitants endured weeks in total darkness, only to suffer temporary blindness when they finally resurfaced. Life in the tunnels was grim, with foul air, extreme heat, and infestations of ants, poisonous centipedes, snakes, scorpions, spiders, and rats. Disease was rampant, with one Viet Cong soldier recalling that half of the soldiers in the tunnels suffered from malaria.
After the war, the 75-mile-long Cu Chi tunnel complex was converted into a war memorial park, with two primary tourist sites: Ben Dinh and Ben Duoc. Today, tourists can explore these tunnels for just under £20, gaining a visceral understanding of the war’s impact on those who lived through it. Guided tours offer visitors the chance to see lethal bamboo booby traps, hidden trap doors, and abandoned tanks.
Some tours also include stops at on-site shooting ranges, where tourists can fire weapons used during the Vietnam War. While parts of the tunnels have been widened to accommodate tourists, the experience remains dark and claustrophobic. Visitors must crawl on their hands and knees, squeezing through narrow passageways much like the Vietnamese resistance fighters once did.
This dark tourism spot is not for the faint-hearted, as it demands a strong spirit and a willingness to confront the grim realities of war..
