Meals: Lunch at local restaurant
Accommodations: at hotel
Transfer: Private vehicle
Activities for today: During Vietnam-American War, the Ben Hai River was demarcation line between North and South of Vietnam. It makes a Demilitarized Zone of 5km each from the river. During the war, the Southern area of DMZ was one of the most bloodiest battlefield. Visit Ben Hai River, Hien Luong Bridge, Vinh Moc Tunnel, Khesanh Combat, Hochiminh Trail, Dongha Town, Rock Pile and visit Ethnic minorities people in the Central of Vietnam. Back to your hotel, end tour.
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+ Hien Luong Bridge crosses the Ben Hai River at the middle of the DMZ and marks the former border between North and South Vietnam from 1954 to 1972 when the North Vietnamese Army captured Dong Ha town in the 1972 Easter Offensive and pushed the border to the Thach han river in Quang Tri town, some 20 miles further south. During the partition of Vietnam, the bridge was painted with the two different colours. There is a monument on the north side.
+ Vinh Moc Tunnels where an entire village lived for two and a half years. 17 babies were born in the tunnels. There is a small but informative museum here, with photos of the construction of the tunnels, and of daily life underground.
+ Khe Sanh Combat Base, just east of the Lao border, was the site of a U.S. base which fell under attack in early 1968. The attack of the NVA on Khe Sanh was a diversion for the 1968 Tet Offensive in the south. The old airfield of red dirt still remains.
+ Truong Son National Cemetery is Vietnam's national war cemetery.
+ Dak Rong Bridge is midway along Highway 9, and is the starting point of Highway 15, one of the main branches of the Ho Chi Minh Trail, which leads south to the A Shau valley and the infamous "Hamburger Hill". Though not entirely legitimate, there is a monument commemorating it as a point on the Ho Chi Minh Trail
+ The Rockpile was a Marine outpost built on top of a huge outcropping. Though it's inaccessible, it's a prominent sight from the highway.
