sad news, but to be expected the way that marvel gets abused for profit - i have been obsessed with seeing it for myself since i was a kid... guess i'd better hurry http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040629/ap_on_sc/peru_machu_picchu anybody been? id love to hear about it (and any local tips you might have)
I'll have to get out there, and to Patagonia, among other places. Does the Peruvian government make any attempt not to wh0re it out completely? One can only hope tourists won't destroy these amazing landmarks.
I was there earlier this year. I'm sure that the tourism is taking its toll, but it still looks great. It's a huge complex, and it's already ruins, so it's probably hard to notice any damage that's currently being done by the daily tourist traffic, unless you're an archaeologist (which doesn't mean it's not significant). Landslides are a concern, but I'm not sure how much effect visitors have on that, or how big the risk is. The government has taken some steps to reduce the negative impact of tourism in the area, such as limiting the number of hikers on the Inca trail that leads to the site. They don't allow people to stand on the walls, although I doubt there are enough guards around to enforce that. There's an obvious and strong incentive to conserve it, since it's one of the main reasons that people visit Peru, and part of the national identity. On the other hand, there's also a lot of incentive to milk it for everything it's worth, and possibly potential for corruption. I don't really have a clear sense of how effective and responsible the government's preservation efforts are likely to be, it might depend on who's in the government at the time. The site itself still comes across as pretty pristine. It gets really crowded during midday, but it was almost deserted an hour before closing time when I was there. There's an expensive hotel and a snack bar outside the ruins, but almost all the tourist crap is down below in Aguas Calientes, which is a bizarre place. There's been talk of putting in a cable car to the ruins, which is a terrible idea, and would definitely effect the site in a major and negative way. As far as I know, that plan is on hold indefinitely - I doubt it'll ever get accepted, but if it does I'd definitely recommend visiting before they start construction.