COUNTRY PROFILES
horse-riding and, of course, trekking. Popular outings in the Sacred Valley include a trip to Pisac for its famous Sunday morning market and its Inca ruins, or to the unusual terraced salt pans at Salineras. The town of Ollantaytambo is often incorporated into itineraries thanks to its pretty cobbled streets, Inca foundations and ruins and, on a practical level, the greater number of trains that depart for Machu Picchu. Completing Peru's southern
tourism circuit are Puno and vast Lake Titicaca, stylish Arequipa and the nearby Colca Canyon – twice as deep as Arizona's Grand Canyon – and, closer to the coast, the mysterious Nazca lines. Scenic flights by light aircraft are the best way to appreciate the size and intricacy of the patterns which depict the likes of monkeys and hummingbirds, all carved into the
TOURISM TALK
With Claudia Cornejo Mohme, viceminister of tourism, Peru
How important is tourism to Peru? “Tourism is the third biggest sector of our economy – it is a real priority for the government. Traditionally the south of the country has been the main region for tourism, but now the north is growing fast.“
earth hundreds of years ago. To the east of the Andes, Puerto
Maldonado is a southern gateway to the Amazon and endless ecotourism opportunities, while Iquitos, in far northeastern Peru, plays a similar
role. Following the footsteps of Machu Picchu into the record books, the Amazon rainforest has recently been named one of the New Seven Wonders of Nature – it covers over 60 per cent of Peru's land mass.
What plans does the government have for the tourism industry? “Our strategy is not necessarily just to attract more visitors, but the bigger spenders, and the UK market is a good fit for this. A few years ago people would have thought we were crazy for saying this, but we're not a country for mass tourism – we’re all about culture and nature so we need to protect what we have.“
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