Peru expands access to the famous Inca ruins of Machu Picchu
In September, three areas of Machu Picchu were closed due to the consequences of the high number of visitors.
The former Inca city is located around 130 kilometers from the city of Cusco. It was built in the 15th century on the orders of the Inca ruler Pachacutec at an altitude of around 2500 meters. Machu Picchu is considered an architectural masterpiece and was declared a World Heritage Site by Unesco in 1981. The long-forgotten Inca city was rediscovered in 1911 by the US explorer Hiram Bingham, who is one of the role models for the adventurer film character Indiana Jones.
Tourism is an important economic sector for Peru. It has still not recovered from the coronavirus slump in 2020. While around 4.5 million tourists came to the South American country every year before the pandemic, this year the figure is expected to be just 2.2 million, i.e. not even half as many.
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Source: www.stern.de
