High in the Andean mountain range, nestled on a ridge between two mountains high above the valley floor below sits the amazing city and archaeological site of Machu Picchu. Machu Picchu is about 1400 kilometers south of the Equator on the eastern slope of the Peruvian Andes. The site lies near the head waters of the Amazon River and is on the ridge between two prominent mountain peaks – Machu Picchu and Hauyna Picchu – about 500 meters above the valley bottom (Wright and Kenneth, 2-3). Machu Picchu, believed to be the royal estate of the Inca ruler Pachacuti, is the most well-known of all the Inca archaeological sites. Professor Hiram Bingham discovered the site in July of 1911 and excavated it with the help of National Geographic and Yale University (Bingham, “The Story of Machu Picchu,” 172). When Professor Bingham discovered the Incan city it was hidden by a thick layer of forest vegetation, but after years of excavation, he uncovered and documented the findings of Machu Picchu (Bingham, Lost City, 223). Now, 94 years later, thousands of tourists fly from around the globe to visit the sacred and awe-inspiring site each year.
The effect of tourism on the people of Peru, the site, and the countries economy is staggering. More than 300,000 people a year go to Peru to make the trek to Machu Picchu where they marvel at the 500 year old structures built from blocks of granite chiseled from the mountainside (Roach). Tourists travel by helicopter, train, foot, and bus and the reasons for visiting the site are variable and many in number – to fulfill a romantic dream, a spiritual quest, or simply because they want to visit one of the world’s must-see sights to name a few. The question that needs to be asked and researched is: How is tourism affecting the archaeological site of Machu Picchu? The reasons for visiting Machu Picchu are not as important as is to understand the impact that the tourists and tourism industry is having on the site, the people, the country, and the environment. It is also important to investigate the possible implications of what will happen in the future and whether Machu Picchu will be preserved for future generations to come.
There are both costs and benefits to the impact of tourism on Machu Picchu and to the community.
Social Costs and Benefits
The social costs and benefits to Machu Picchu are an important part of the puzzle when inv...
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...ilders. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson.
Bingham, Hiram. “In the Wonderland of Peru.” National Geographic Magazine. April,
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Bingham, Hiram. “The Story of Machu Picchu: The Peruvian Expeditions of the
National Geographic Society and Yale University.” National Geographic Magazine. February, 1915: 172-217.
Brown, Jeff L. “Landslides may threaten Machu Picchu.” Civil Engineering. May,
2001: 16.
Carlotto, Victor and Jose Cardenas. “Machu Picchu: A Giant Built on a Fragile
Foundation.” Geotimes. August, 2001: 22-24.
Hadfield, Peter. “Slip Sliding Away.” New Scientist. 10, March, 2001: 20.
Roach, John. Machu Picchu Under Threat From Pressures of Tourism. National Geographic News, April 2002. Available online at: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/04/0415_020415_machu.html. 13 March 2005.
“The Americas: Road to Ruin; Tourism in Peru.” The Economist. 21, July, 2001: 29.
Wright, Kenneth R. and Alfred Valencia Zegarra. 2000. Machu Picchu a Civil
Engineering Marvel. Virginia: American Society of Civil Engineers.
After the Second World War mass tourism has increased worldwide and has affected almost all countries. Mexico has become a ‘major tourist destination’ and also ethic tourism has taken off, because tourists became more interested in the indigenous cultures and search for authenticity. Nowadays ethnic tourism makes up ‘10% of Mexico’s tourism sector’ (Van Den Berghe 568). This essay will especially examine the commoditisation of the Maya identity; Maya was ‘a highly developed Mesoamerican culture centred in the Yucatán peninsula of Mexico’ (McKay et al 307). Over the last two decades Western tourists have become interested in Indian cultures, traditions and artefacts and they would like to see ‘living Maya culture’, therefore tour guides, tourees, middlemen and artisans have started to work in the ethnic tourism sector. According to Medina ‘The commoditization of culture for tourism may involve the utilization of new channels to access cultural traditions of great antiquity’ (354). To illustrate this: only 20.5% of the inhabitants of San Jose Succotz identifies with the Maya culture (Medina 360). Maya culture is less available through lived experience, because Maya languages and rituals disappear, therefore villagers working in the ethnic tourism sector have to gain knowledge by utilizing other, new channels. Ethic tourism often develops around archaeological sites; tour guides will take tourists to Maya ruins and transfer knowledge that they had gained from the ethnographers, archaeologists, and epigraphers (Medina 362). Some people argue that this ‘staged culture’ is not similar to the ‘authentic culture’. It might be possible that the culture transferred to the tourists at the moment is different from the way Mayans used to do. H...
This alluring and fascinating book written by Mark Adams thoroughly connects his readers to the words written on the page. With his use of humor and knowledge, readers easily relate to Adams and follow his adventure throughout the book. Turn Right at Machu Picchu is full of passion and determination that motivates its readers
Did you know that Peru is one of the top ten countries to visit in the world? (UNWTO) Peru has unique music and energetic dances that are fun to see. The people are friendly and charming; they would be happy to help one find their way if they need help. But, the main reason Peru appears on the top ten list is because of its unique geographical features. Some examples are the Andes Mountains, Machu Picchu and Cusco. The art and culture of the Peruvians, as well as the people themselves,and the popular places to go, are what tourists like to see in Peru.
On July 24, 1911 an antiquity site located in the mountains surrounding Cusco, Peru, was rediscovered by explorer Hiram Bingham almost half a century after it was constructed. Since 1911 Machu Picchu has come into prominence as a tourist site because of its interesting history and its mysterious abandonment. Much of Machu Picchu has been restored since its discovery to give tourists a window into what it would have been like to live there at its prime. Machu Picchu was built by the great Inca civilization in 1450 and it is believed that it was used as an imperial retreat for the Inca Emperor. Historians now believe that the abrupt abandonment of Machu Picchu was a result of the Spanish conquest, but one of the reasons that it is so well preserved is that the Spanish conquistadors never found it. Despite its location, only 43 miles from the Peruvian capital of Cuzco, for almost half a century it remained a mystery to all, but a few. Via advanced construction techniques the Inca were able to keep the inherent problems at Machu Picchu checked and by doing this they were able to expand the infrastructure at Machu Picchu to keep the population sustainable.
The Moche, Inca Empire left behind some amazing architectural designs which makes this city a beautiful place to visit, one can also see some of the ruins in this country like the Nazca Line and Sillustani. Visitors can also go to some famous museums in the country to have a better knowledge about the history of Peru.
Our group presentation is on Andean South America and my part is on subsistence. Machu Picchu was controlled by the Inca empire in the southern Pole of Altiplano. In the northern side of the Lake Titicaca basin, they had both alpaca and llama herding as well as potato and quinoa agriculture. The puna grasslands of the higher altiplano were used to graze alpaca and llama. In the coastal regions the Pacific shore yields, millions of small schooling fish such as the anchovies. However, it is surrounded by a dry landscape which can only be cultivated with large irrigation systems and long canals. Only 10% of this land can be farmed and the people relied mostly on the fishery of the Pacific. Maize agriculture and irrigation were introduced to the coast in 2500 B.C. Mollusks and large fish were vital sources on the coast. But, Anchoveta could be netted throughout the year from small canoes. 90 percent of the coastal food came from the ocean.
Peruvian culture is a beautiful mix of hispanic roots mixed with many other native cultures. According to research, its civilization is the oldest in all of South America. Human life in Peru can be traced back as early as the eighth millennium B.C. Nonetheless, it must be noted that it wasn’t until 1500 B.C that physical Peruvian culture emerged. Archeologist findings, left
Machu Picchu is a site built by the Inac who happened to live their until invaded and soon conquered by the Spaniards in the Sixteenth century. Since, this act took place here it draws attention out to not only tourists and new residents but also geologists who can analyze the structure. To this day, many tourists and residents are amazed by how advanced the Inca were who happened to build a structure that was 2,340 meters above sea level. Machu Picchu is known for being scientifically most attractive mountainous territory of the Peruvian Andes. Would you like to visit Machu Picchu?
As the first passage states, “Bingham was not the first white man to examine the Inca civilization. After its takeover by the Spanish conqueror Francisco Pizarro in the 1530s, men like Pedro Cieza de León, a soldier, and Father Bernabé Cobo, a Jesuit missionary, recorded their impressions of Inca rituals, social structure, and engineering.” and, “This city was the secret stronghold built by the Inca ruler Manco II after he fled the Spanish Conquest in 1535.” The reader can infer that, Machu Picchu played an important part in Inca and Spanish history. The city was taken over by the Spanish conqueror. The city was used as a hideout for Manco the second and could have saved his life. The city has deep roots to Spanish and Inca history. Hiram Bingham was searching for Vilcabamba the last capital of Inca, when he discovered Machu Picchu. After Hiram discovered Machu Picchu he returned and discover more artifacts relating to Inca history. With so much rich history it makes Machu Picchu a great place for historians and curious travelers. Another reason why Machu Picchu is a significant travel destination is because, of its rich
Scientists can surmise about who built it, who lived there, and why it was abandoned and forgotten, but they still are not one hundred percent sure. Machu Picchu was used for religious observance, astronomical observation, a royal retreat, and a secret ceremonial city. Therefore, I have partially proved my thesis. I said that Machu Picchu was created by the Inca culture for religious observance. Machu Picchu was used for that and many other things and that is why it is such an amazing civilization.
It is the economic effects of tourism which bring the most benefit to the host nation. Tourism is a low import user which means more of the money earned here stays here. The government is earning money through tourist taxes such as the airport tax, increased export earnings and income tax revenue from people employed by the industry. A balance must be struck between these benefits and associated negative impacts on the community and the environment.
We talked about the first type which is the economic effect on the local community and the second type that is the social effect on the host community. In this part of our essay we will represent the last kind of effect on the local community by tourism. It is the environment effect on the local community. Tourism has positive and negative aspects in term of its impact on the host community. First point, tourism can help to protect the environment through reinvest some of profits, that generated by tourism, to the preservation of local environment and make it popular destination for holidays. However, it can cause pollution and damage in the environment through overuse of natural resources, such as water supply, beaches and coral reef. It also account for increased pollution through traffic emissions and littering. Additionally, tourist accommodations in general dump waste and sewage into seas and rivers. Second point, it might reduce some problems such as over-fishing by creating another source of employment. According to Tourism Concern, tourism account for more than eight per cent of jobs in the world wide and there are approximately two hundred million people work in the tourism sector on all sides of the world. (Tourism Concern, 2004). As a result a lot of people will abandon works in fishing and deforestations and tend to works in tourism industrialization. On the adverse side, it can harm the environment through polish off grass cover, harmful to wildlife and forests and grave local habitats. (BBC,
Tourism is an important and intricate element to society. It affects economical, social, cultural and environmental elements. Tourism can be argued to have a negative impact on the environment and decrease our already depleting resources, but tourism can also be argued to be a major contributor to strengthening economies, spread cultural traditions and improve people’s lives. Tourism
The uncontrolled tourism increase is threatening many natural areas around the world.with the uncontrollable levels of tourism this can put great deal of pressure on an area, andthis could end up leading to negative environmental impacts on the air and the water quality, thevegetation,the soil.the wild life and the possible job opportunities.
Recently, climate change has narrowed down the potentials for tourism and declined agricultural activities which resulted to a major economic problem. Though significant attractions and destinations are still operating and being patronized by foreign and local tourists, the potential of the Philippines’ natural wonders and rich