The Chinchero Airport will accommodate both domestic and international flights, boasting a long runway, greater passenger capacity, and other modern features. It will also help relieve congestion at Lima’s Jorge Chávez International Airport. Tourism plays a positive and essential role in the development of countries around the world—and for Peru, it is one of the most powerful engines of national progress.
Airports, among many other factors, are crucial to tourism. More than just hubs for planes, they are strategic gateways that determine how efficiently tourism operates.
Currently, Peru has 13 airports distributed across cities such as Lima, Arequipa, Iquitos, Cusco, Trujillo, Piura, Chiclayo, Tacna, Ayacucho, Huánuco, Pucallpa, Puerto Maldonado, and Tarapoto. A new and highly anticipated airport will soon rise in one of the seven districts of Urubamba, in the Cusco region.
This is the long-awaited Chinchero International Airport, which, according to Peru’s Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism, Eduardo Ferreyros, will eventually handle over 7 million passengers, greatly boosting tourism across southern Peru.
“All the staffs held by local mayors and community presidents, placed together in front of the platform, symbolize Cusco’s collective agreement to move forward with this project—a gesture of ancestral community governance carried on since ancient times,” he emphasized.
The new Chinchero International Airport will not just be another regional hub—it is set to become Peru’s second largest and most modern airport, after Jorge Chávez International Airport in Lima.
Beyond strengthening commerce and job creation, it will significantly benefit the community of Chinchero, who have awaited this project for over 40 years.
The importance of Cusco for Peru cannot be overstated. The vast majority of international tourists come to see iconic destinations such as Machu Picchu and its surroundings. That’s why this new airport carries such profound importance for the country’s tourism industry.
“This new airport will mark a before-and-after moment in the economic development of Cusco and southern Peru. The people of Cusco have every reason to celebrate this major achievement, but they also carry the responsibility of preserving their homeland.”
“They must prevent urban disorder, keep the area clean and welcoming, and offer warm hospitality to the tourists visiting the Imperial City—one of the region’s primary sources of income,” Ferreyros added.
While tourism brings tremendous benefits to Peru, several key factors determine its success: infrastructure quality, gastronomy, service, safety, cleanliness, pricing, diversity of attractions, and access to new destinations.
Among these, accessibility is one of the most critical factors in tourism development. Airports—often taken for granted by travelers—are the invisible nodes of a well-functioning tourism system, making the flow of visitors smooth and effective.
The Chinchero Airport is poised to become a vital artery in Peru’s tourism infrastructure and a symbol of progress for the Cusco region.
