New Machu Picchu airport

[RooFlyer]

I stand corrected (again ). The place isn't so much in the Sacred Valley as up on its flanks ...

 

[jastel]

Can’t generalise heights on this forum obviously....

Unless they plan on building another entire town to go with this airport Cusco is still the only place with enough hotels restaurants banks etc for tourists to stay at the moment...let alone the future growth they predict.
Urabamba and Pisac are mud brick market towns for locals...tourists might do a lunch stop at most.
Ollaylantambo and Aguas Calientes exisit for the tourist train to MP only and don’t have much room to grow further either.

If you want to go do it sooner rather than later.

 

[lastrow]

If you want to wreck a place just invite hordes of tourists. The intro mentions a figure of 3.5 million passengers a year expected to arrive at the new airport and we will see a Westfield in the Sacred Valley. I know that tourist dollars are a vital ingredient in many nation's budgets but in locations such as MP visitor limits will be essential. In my home town of Hobart we can get multiple cruise ships visiting in one day with sometimes ten thousand people expecting an instant visitor experience.

 

[tgh]

ten thousand people expecting an instant visitor experience

This phenomena is common worldwide ; reduced cost of travel + increasing disposable income = hordes *3 of supplicants seeking elucidation..
Even the most wild and remote destinations have wi fi…..

 

[OZDUCK]

Interesting article about this in todays 'New York Times'. The author is certainly not a supporter of the project - to put it mildly.

Opinion | Machu Picchu Is in Unnecessary Danger (Published 2019)

A new international airport in Peru would undermine exactly what tourists are coming so far to see.

www.nytimes.com

 

[juddles]

I simply cannot fathom the reasons behind this whole idea. I could understand (even though not liking it) the idea of having a direct airport access to MP. Convenience to time-poor travellers, etc. But this does not do this. MP itself is not somewhere you can build an airport. There simply has to be corrupt agendas behind this.

Mp is the number one tourist destination for international travellers visiting Peru. It is at capacity - numbers are a problem. Minimizing a tourist's time in the rest of the country would seem to me to be a very poor way of utilizing a destination that already is maxxed out. Have they even heard the term "value-add"??

But at the end of the day, this is south america. And remaining in squalour has been a culture for almost 500 years....

 

[Deleted member]

I have not yet visited, but it is on my list. My Great great Grandfather was an engineer who contributed much to the construction of the Peruvian railways. (Information on whether he contributed to the MP section is scarce) none the less a personal connection makes for an interesting trip to become more so.
That said any more engineering to make MP more accessible is IMHO a backward step. I suspect the train ride is about as sophisticated as I want to get for a visit.

 

[juddles]

I have not yet visited, but it is on my list. My Great great Grandfather was an engineer who contributed much to the construction of the Peruvian railways. (Information on whether he contributed to the MP section is scarce) none the less a personal connection makes for an interesting trip to become more so.
That said any more engineering to make MP more accessible is IMHO a backward step. I suspect the train ride is about as sophisticated as I want to get for a visit.

I think the trip is worth it to anyone, but especially for someone with a connection like yours

I enjoyed the machu site itself for what it was, but the most impacting memory I have of the trip is the amazing people that you meet there - it really is a mecca for interesting people from every country.

 

[kpc]

If you visit MP without exploring the Sacred Valley eg Ollantaytambo, Urubamba and Pisac you are missing out on the experience. Even Cusco is a must incl the sites just outside. I regretted that time didn't allow us to visit Lake Titicaca as well. Those with mobility problems may find MP itself difficult to navigate as those Incas built a lot of stairs! The potential of altitude sickness cannot be ignored...it can ruin the whole trip. There are hotels in Cusco (highest point most will reach at 3400 metres) that pipe oxygen into your room which may be worth exploring if you are concerned!

 

[tgh]

Diffrn't Strokes… Imo Lake titicaca was primarily a very well greased tourist trap that was enjoyable enough but quite artificial.
There is a lot of interesting stuff right through the high andes that could hold the attention of an inquiring mind for quite a time