Peru: part of Machu Picchu closed to tourism due to erosion

It’s a big blow for Peru’s most visited monument. Visits to parts of the famous Inca citadel Machu Picchu have been suspended due to erosion which weakens stone structuresannounced Thursday September 28 the Ministry of Culture of Peru.

Visits to the Temple of the Condor and the Temple of the Sun, as well as the “Intihuatana”, a carved stone structure sacred to the Incas, are “temporarily closed to visitors“, said Maritza Rosa Candia, delegate of the ministry in the city of Cusco.

The high number of visitors causes the deterioration of the stone structures in these three emblematic sectors of the citadel, hence the need to close them for maintenance, she specified, because “the damage is irreversible” and “we must protect our heritage”.

The citadel, Peru’s main tourist attraction visited daily by 3,800 people, was built in the 15th century at an altitude of 2,500 meters on the orders of the Inca ruler Pachacutec. She is considered to be a marvel of architecture and engineering and was listed as a UNESCO world heritage site in 1981.