‘The current situation couldn’t continue’: What needs to happen for Machu Picchu to remain a New 7 Wonder of the World

Jean-Paul de la Fuente from Now7Wonders explains why Machu Picchu is at risk of losing its status, saying ‘tourism terrorism’ is happening.

An organization that’s considering taking away Machu Picchu’s recognition as one of the New 7 Wonders of the World is starting to feel more optimistic after meeting with national representatives in Peru.

In 2007, the Peruvian Inca sanctuary was included in the New7Wonders, a global voting campaign to designate the title based on number of votes. The historic site received more than 100 million votes at the time.

But organizers are considering revoking that title because of what it calls “tourism terrorism” at the attraction.

Jean-Paul de la Fuente, director of New7Wonders, told CTV Your Morning on Tuesday that recently the situation has been terrible.

“Basically, tourists have been held hostage,” he said. “There’s price gouging. There’s a risk of basically what we call tourism terrorism, and we’ve been saying to them for a while. There’s better ways of doing this.”

He said few people can cause problems for “millions of Peruvians because it’s such an impact on the economy.”

However, he added that his organization met with representatives of the national government last week and that they’re “doing things.”

“We’re very happy about that, because clearly the current situation couldn’t continue, and we’re hoping to set up a working group to deal with it very practically,” de la Fuente said.

When asked whether the site could be replaced with another wonder of the world, should short or long-terms solutions not materialize, de la Fuente stressed it’s too early to say.

“We do feel that the energy should be focused now on fixing it,” he said. “That’s our objective, that’s where everything is aligned and hopefully will work out.”

In a Sept. 21 post on X, Peru’s Ministry of Culture said it had come up with a new safety plan for tourism operators to allow thousands of visitors back to Machu Picchu.

In 1983, Machu Picchu was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, a separate designation unrelated to the New 7 Wonders.