Independence Palace, Saigon Special Forces' weapons bunker, Pho Binh, Cu Chi tunnels are places for visitors to visit and learn about national history.
Ho Chi Minh City still has historical vestiges of the war, collectively known as red addresses. These places used to be secret bases, old administrative buildings, and tunnels, now open to visitors.
Weapon bunker of Saigon Special Forces
Address: 287/70, Nguyen Dinh Chieu Street, Ward 5, District 3
The weapons bunker covers an area of about 70 square meters. Photo: Quynh Tran
In 1966, Mr. Tran Van Lai (aka Nam Lai), a hero of the Saigon Special Forces, bought a house to hide weapons for the battles against the Independence Palace during the Mau Than Spring 1968 general uprising. He used the excuse of repairing the house to hide from the enemy, brought his wife and children to Go Vap, stayed alone, and dug a tunnel. The tunnel was completed after 7 months, 2 m long, 1.2 m wide, 2.5 m high, with 4 exits. The walls and floor were made of thick, waterproof cement.
The total number of weapons hidden in the basement during the period 1966-1968 was more than 2 tons. Today, the iron door of the house still has bullet holes. This place has been open to visitors since 2018, operating as a cafe, displaying many artifacts related to the activities of the Saigon Special Forces. This is a National Historical and Cultural Relic.
Pho Binh
Address: 7, Ly Chinh Thang Street, District 3
Pho Binh address was recognized as a National Historical Relic in 1989. Photo: mvid
The restaurant used to be the forward command post of Division 6 during the Mau Than Spring Offensive. In 1966, revolutionary Ngo Toai bought the house under the direction of Mr. Nguyen Van Tri (Hai Tri) - one of the officers in charge of the combat support unit of the Thanh Special Forces. This was the place for communication between the commander and the bases.
In order to deceive the enemy, the owner disguised himself as a pho restaurant, and the commandos were servants. The restaurant was crowded with customers every day, so the enemy did not suspect anything. After the attack, the pho restaurant was discovered, and some soldiers who had not escaped were arrested. Mr. Ngo Toai and his wife were later arrested and exiled to Con Dao. In 1988, the room located in the pho restaurant was recognized by the Ministry of Culture as a National Historical Relic. After more than 50 years, the pho restaurant is still in operation.
Secret mailbox and Saigon Special Forces bunker (Korean broken rice)
Address: 113A, Dang Dung Street, Tan Dinh Ward, District 1
Inside the coffee shop, Com Tam used to be a liaison station for Saigon's special forces. Photo: daily.photo_diary
Before 1975, this was one of the secret bases of the Saigon Special Forces. Since 1946, the house was assigned to Mr. Do Mien and his wife to sell broken rice and coffee, but in reality it was a place to store and transfer secret letters and documents to the war zone.
This was a familiar morning gathering place for residents, including many Korean soldiers (Korean soldiers who came to participate in the Vietnam War) in the engineer housing opposite. Therefore, the restaurant's broken rice was served with spinach and kimchi to suit the taste of Korean soldiers at that time. Today, this broken rice cafe is still open to welcome guests to dine and learn about history through the artifacts displayed in the house. The menu still has the old-fashioned broken rice with kimchi.
Saigon - Gia Dinh Special Forces Intelligence Museum
Address: 145, Tran Quang Khai Street, Tan Dinh Ward, District 1
Tourists watch short films about Saigon special forces displayed on the wall. Photo: Quynh Tran.
The vestiges of the Saigon Special Forces are still preserved in a museum located in a house over 50 years old on Tran Quang Khai Street, District 1. The house was also a secret base of operations of the Saigon Special Forces under the management of Mr. Nam Lai. The museum welcomed visitors from December 24, 2019.
The museum covers an area of over 100 square meters, displaying over 100 artifacts of the special forces. The entrance has a touch screen that summarizes information about the history of formation, development, battles, and remaining relics of the Saigon Special Forces. Objects such as tables, chairs, cabinets, etc. in the house are still intact and arranged almost the same as before. Visitors can watch short films about the Saigon Special Forces.
Independence Palace
Address: 135, Nam Ky Khoi Nghia Street, Ben Thanh Ward, District 1
Independence Palace overlooking Le Duan Street. Photo: Henry Duong
Located in the center of Ho Chi Minh City, this place is known to many domestic and foreign tourists. On holidays such as April 30, the Independence Palace is always full of visitors lining up to buy tickets to visit.
The Independence Palace is open every day of the week and on holidays, except for some special cases. Ticket sales hours are from 8:00 to 15:30 and visiting hours are from 8:00 to 16:30. There are two types of tickets with the price of 40,000 VND for only visiting the Palace, not visiting the "From Norodom Palace to Independence Palace 1868 - 1966" exhibition and 65,000 VND for visiting both the Palace and the exhibition. For the first time visiting the Palace, visitors should experience visiting the exhibition to learn more about the history.
Historical relic of Sac Forest base
Address: Can Gio District
Scenery in the Sac Forest war zone. Photo: chin_chick
The Sac Forest Special Zone is nearly 2 hours away from the center of Ho Chi Minh City by car. The site was once a "floating base" for the army and people of the South during the two resistance wars against France and the United States. This is a mangrove and scrub forest area, and at the same time, a gathering place for hundreds of large and small rivers and canals, creating floating islands.
The site, once called Lam Vien Can Gio, with an area of over 2,000 hectares, has been recognized as a National Historical Site. The base recreates the entire scene of the heroes' activities and battles in the past. Coming to the Sac Forest Special Zone, visitors can see the model of the guard house with an outer ring consisting of mangrove stakes, spikes, mines and long-range interception fire. The inner ring is arranged with pre-placed mines to repel enemy troops approaching the base. In addition, there are A-shaped, T-shaped, H-shaped shelters, a military medical area, and a military weapons factory.
Cu Chi Tunnels
Address: Cu Chi District
Inside the Cu Chi tunnels. Photo: Quynh Tran
About 70 km northwest of Ho Chi Minh City center, Cu Chi tunnels have a tunnel system longer than 200 km, and are a solid base of the Military Region Party Committee and Saigon - Gia Dinh Command.
Today, the relic is preserved in two areas: Ben Duoc (Phu My Hung commune) and Ben Dinh (Nhuan Duc commune), attracting tourists when coming to Ho Chi Minh City. Some tunnels have been renovated and opened wider for tourists.
The tunnel system was dug in 1946 and lasted for more than 20 years. This is a place with laterite clay, so it is durable and less prone to landslides. The tunnels and underground bases are 3 to 12 meters deep, with 3 floors, and can withstand the destructive power of many types of heavy bombs. The ticket price is 60,000 VND per person, each area has a tour guide.
Bich Phuong
Source: Ho Chi Minh City Youth Union, Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism
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