The Vinh Moc tunnels lie on the coast about 30 kilometres north of Dong Ha. Built between 1965 and 1967, they sheltered around 300 villagers continuously for almost six years as American B-52s pounded the coastal strip north of the DMZ. Unlike the more famous Cu Chi tunnels near Saigon, Vinh Moc was a civilian shelter rather than a fighting tunnel system, and the layout has been preserved more or less as it was when the village emerged in 1972.
Visitors walk through a section of the lowest level, which leads out to the sea. There is a small museum at the entrance with photographs and salvaged artefacts. The tunnels are taller than most — a Vietnamese woman could stand upright in them — but still tight; not a good visit for the strongly claustrophobic.