More than 300,000 Peruvian and foreign tourists visited the Andean city of Cusco over the recent Christmas and New Year holidays, a record high for the ancient capital of the Incas.
Jose Altamirano, head of the Cusco Chamber of Commerce and Tourism, said that this figure represents a 15 percent increase from the 250,000 visitors for the same period in 2012.
Altamirano credited Cusco’s magical reputation as attractive for year-end tourists looking for positive energy to start the new year.
"[People] who come here will be able to enrich themselves with that energy, and that force is going to give them power," he explained.
Altamirano said that Machu Picchu continues to be the main attraction in the Cusco region; therefore, he made a call for improved infrastructure for easier and expanded access for tourists.
More than 1 billion soles (US$ 355.8 million) is needed to improve Cusco's tourism infrastructure, he added.
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