The remnants of the Inca Empire, which from 1200 to 1532 AD grew to encompass the Andean highlands from Chile to Ecuador, lure most tourists to Peru. Perhaps 400,000 people visit the iconic Machu Picchu each year. For us it was the northern-most point of a tour of the highlands that started at Lake Titicaca in the south, crossed the Altiplano and Abra la Raya pass to the city of Cusco and from there traveled north down the Sacred Valley of the Urubamba River, eventually reaching Machu Picchu rising above the gorges that the river inhabits as it makes its way to the Amazon basin.