Archaeological heritage ‘on-the-rise’: detecting emerging tourist attractions in Peru using machine learning and geotagged photographs

A novel approach using machine learning and geotagged photographs from Flickr identifies emerging archaeological tourist attractions in Peru, many of which are unmonitored due to their open-access nature. This study highlights 'on-the-rise' sites accessible from five Peruvian cities, offering a scalable method for global application. By analyzing large-scale internet photo datasets, researchers detected patterns that could predict future over-tourism risks, such as pollution and destruction, at these lesser-known heritage locations. The findings underscore the need for targeted conservation efforts and sustainable tourism planning to mitigate potential damage as tourist itineraries expand beyond traditional sites like those in Cuzco.

Payntar, N. D. (2021). Archaeological heritage ‘on-the-rise’: detecting emerging tourist attractions in Peru using machine learning and geotagged photographs. Journal of Heritage Tourism, 17(2), 222–244. https://doi.org/10.1080/1743873x.2021.2007254