If there were ever a UNESCO heritage site that needed no introduction, Machu Picchu would definitely be the one. Soaring high more than 2,400 metres above the lands of Cusco, this sprawling ancient city of the Incans now attracts nearly half a million visitors every year, who all make the fascinating trek along the ridges and tracks of the Incan Trail to behold its wonder high in the clouds. The iconic Inca trail itself could easily count itself as one of the world’s best, overseeing subtropical jungles, lush mountains and of course smatterings of Inca icons and tunnels along the way; visitors hoping to do this should check well in advance with their Machu Picchu tourist guide about booking restrictions and requirements.
The particular uses of the ruins are still the point of continued debate; it’s thought that the Incans first raised Machu Picchu’s mountain top walls in the 13th century, perhaps as a royal palace, perhaps an honorific monument to the Incan sun god. But whatever the reasons that linger beneath these mysterious ruins, the fact remains they are among the most alluring and wondrous in the whole world.