Mountain Lodges of Peru and Huacahuasi Community – A Joint Venture in the Sacred Valley

Abstract

Summary Incorporating local communities into tourism is key to the sector’s sustainable development. In some Andean communities of Peru, initiatives have been implemented to promote local development, protect the environment, and diversify the tourist offer, directly involving traditional communities in regions close to the trails that lead to Machu Picchu. One example is the partnership between the Huacahuasi community, located in the Lares region, and Mountain Lodges of Peru (MLP), a family-owned Peruvian company created in 2005. The joint venture between the Huacahuasi community and MLP gave rise to the Huacahuasi Lodge. The activities related to the lodge play a significant role in the social and economic development of regional residents. This case study aims to shed light on the MLP integration and profit-sharing model with the Huacahuasi community, addressing the inception of the luxury lodges to the participation of the community, challenges, partnerships, initiatives, and prospects for the enterprise, the community, and tourism in Peru. The content of this case study is the result of material obtained from interviews with MLP’s Sales and Marketing Manager in North America, Nadia Le Bon, who was happy to be named in this case study, research on the Adventure Travel Trade Association and Mountain Lodges of Peru websites, and other sources mentioned in the references. Information © The Author 2023