I saw the headline- Peru to tourists: “Stop getting naked at Machu Picchu” from CNN Travel a couple of weeks back and had to find out more about the article.
Machu Picchu is one of Kim and my favorite sites that we’ve visited (from just about anywhere in the world that we’ve been). There is something magical about the place, from the train ride there to the bus ride up the switch back road, until finally setting sight on Machu Picchu itself. If you haven’t been there, it should be at the top of your list of places to visit! Some day I hope to revisit Machu Picchu with Lucas.
According to CNN, incidents of naked tourism are on the rise and Peruvian official aren’t happy about it.
A bunch of recent naked incidents have recently taken place:
- March 14- Four Americans were detained for stripping down for photos at Machu Picchu
- In other separate & recent incidents 2 Canadians and 2 Australians were also detained for taking nude photos.
CNN says that these recent naked photo-shoots follow an incident from 2013 where a naked couple were recorded streaking across Machu Picchu’s grass field and bounding down a stone staircase like a pair of adolescent antelopes.
Park rules listed on the back of the entry ticket warn visitors about being nude in public. Guards at Machu Picchu and other historic sites in the Cusco region plan to keep better watch and crack down on naked tourism.
What are your thoughts related to these naked escapades? I for one don’t need to see some sloppy, naked people running by and ruining my photos while I try to enjoy historical sites! (Although the photos would probably make for a hilarious post!)
Find out more about naked tourists at Machu Picchu in the CNN article HERE.
Pun intended?
“…plan to keep better watch and crack down on naked tourism”
Bill- I agree for the most part with your comments. I see no place in tourists stripping down at cultural sites but I don’t see why this is a reflection on Americans? Do you generalize all western tourists with being from the US?
ArkansasTraveler- I respect you’re opinion but can’t agree with MP being over-rated. To each their own!
When it comes to anti-American sentiment I completely agree with you. I’ve been to 59 countries & counting and can only think of one situation where this (kind of) existed. When I was in Paris years back a Finnish girl was bashing the US for no good reason.
I find people always happy to hear that we are Americans and chose to visit their country!
While I couldn’t care less about nudity this is a matter of when in Rome do as the Romans… The tourist’s views on nudity are completely irrelevant because they are, well, tourists. It’s all about respecting the destination and its culture. If the Peruvians explicitly forbid the nudity then simply respect their wishes. To do otherwise is simply to show arrogance and contempt for the host country. It is exactly this kind of arrogance ( “I paid to enter the site so I can do whatever I want”) what fosters the dislike for Americans abroad…
I have been to Machu Picchu, and I believe that it is overrated; however, I believe that public places are not the place for nudity, especially with children. I may be Puritanical in my views, but I really don’t care to see naked folks when I am out taking in the sites. As to Bill’s comment that is too oft repeated that it is taken as truth, there were three incidents in this article and only one mentioned Americans, but it seems to give one liberty to bash on Americans. Where Bill travels may be different than me (only 24 countries thus far), but I do not find a broad dislike of Americans. Instead, I find most people around the world welcome Americans genuinely, and appreciate our culture and presence. I tire of hearing of this great dislike for Americans. Maybe you can tell me where this exists, so I can either experience it first hand or avoid those places in my travels.
You’re right bill. This is completely unacceptable and embarrassing- a disgrace to the reputation of whatever countries’ tourists behave like this. This sense of “entitlement” is one thing at home, another thing altogether abroad. All those visa waiver agreements that we have come to take for granted will be at risk. Now it is true that Americans don’t do this kind of stupid behavior any more than other countries, but still it needs to be remedied. As to anti-american sentiment, I believe I can safely say that our foreign policy has a lot more to do with that than attitudes of tourists.