Tourism in Peru tourism forms the largest sector of the tourism industry in Peru. Pre-Columbian civilizations – most notably the Inca Empire, Chavín, Moche, and Nasca – left a large archeological and cultural impact on the nation. The ruins of Machu Picchu are the most internationally recognized of all the ruins of Peru and therefore receive the most tourists. The other popular ruins are those of Chan Chan, Sipán, Kuelap, Nazca Lines, Ollantaytambo, Caral, Sacsayhuamán, and Sillustani. Tourists also visit the Spanish colonial architecture in many cities in Peru. Some of the most outstanding examples of Spanish colonial architecture are in the cities
Military history of South America empire. Further north along the Andes, into modern-day Ecuador, later cultures included the Quitus, who formed the city of Quito in the first millennium. The Quitu were ultimately conquered by the Caras tribe, who founded the Kingdom of Quito about 980 AD. Under their kings, the "shyris", the Caras formed a powerful military state that would survive and dominate the Ecuadorian highlands up until the Inca period. The Inca Empire was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The Inca Empire arose from the highlands of Peru sometime in the early 13th century; from 1438 to 1533, the Incas used a