Peru - the unexplored tourist destination

Alvaro Silva-Santisteban, Director of PromPeru, the Trade, Tourism & Investment

Office of Peru in Dubai, seems to be a good salesman for his country. He not only offered me the spicy fish but also informed me that Peru is a big exporter of asparagus, avocados, grapes and mango. The country is the gastronomic capital of Latin America and is home to many fine restaurants.

Soft Peruvian pima cotton is another famous export. And cotton textile products are now making their way to the UAE. The UAE also imports gold from Peru. I was told that the reason why most people currently travel to Peru from the region is primarily trade. But Alvaro wants to change that.

Peru’s first official tourism promotion effort in the Middle East was launched with their recent participation in the Arabian Travel Market exhibition in Dubai. The multicolored Peru stall with its distinct logo looked familiar. I had seen the same multicolor pavilion at the World Travel Market in London. Alvaro informed me that this is their new look and variations of it will be displayed at every Peru tourism pavilion.

Peru is a country that remains elusive to most tourists from the Middle East. It is not because it wants to. It is because it is so far away. With no direct links yet with the Middle East (Alvaro confirmed that he is trying to get both Qatar Airways and Emirates Airlines to fly to Lima), it takes over 24 hours to get to Lima from Dubai. About 6,000 GCC nationals made the trip in 2012 – but mainly for business. Alvaro hopes that many will go back with their families to enjoy the rich tourist heritage of the Inca civilization.

Getting to Peru is not easy. You have to fly to Sao Paulo and then take a flight to Lima. More than 24 hours and about Dh 10,000 later you will arrive in the capital city of Lima. This Pacific coast city of 9 million people has modern restaurants, shopping malls and museums which showcase an extraordinary collection of gold, silver, textile and ceramic artifacts from ancient Peru.

While Lima represents the modern side, the ancient Inca capital, Cusco, and nearby Machu Picchu is where you can see the most amazing urban creation of the Inca Empire at its height. Its giant walls, terraces and ramps seem as if they have been cut naturally into the side of the mountains. Machu Picchu is one of the New 7 Wonders of the World and is a UN World Heritage site.

Another famous archaeological landmark and a designated UN World Heritage site is the Nasca Lines. These are a series of ancient geoglyphs located in the Nazca Desert in southern Peru about 400km south of Lima.

The Amazon rainforest, the Andes mountains, hiking trails, luxury Amazon cruises, sea, snow and shopping malls, all highlight the diversity of what can be found in Peru. The country’s tourism slogan says it all - “there is a Peru for everyone.”

Alvaro’s job is not just promoting tourism. He also looks after the country’s trade and investment interests. In a world where most economies are struggling to avoid a recession, Peru’s over 6% growth rate has already attracted investment from the Middle East. The UAE’s largest private equity firm, the Abraaj Group, has taken a 40% stake in Condor Travel – the country’s biggest tour operator. Hopefully this will help increase tourist arrivals into Peru from the GCC.

Peruvian chefs got a good opportunity to learn to cater to the culinary requirements of travelers from the Arab world when last October, Peru hosted the III Summit of Heads of State and Government of South American and Arab Countries –ASPA. While there are very few Muslims living in Peru, there are some mosques in Lima and a halal shwarma shop also exists to give a homely feeling to travelers from the Middle East.

If you seek adventure and want to be the first among your friends to add pictures of Machu Picchu in your Facebook or Twitpic collection, you have to endure the long journey to get there. But remember, the diversity of Peru will leave you enthralled – after all, there is a Peru for everyone!