In the north of Peru, just 10 km away from the border with Ecuador, lies Tumbes with just under 110,000 inhabitants. After the dry deserts, Tumbes and its surroundings are a veritable explosion of diverse landscapes: from beautiful sandy beaches to swampy mangroves to lush rainforests, variety is a top priority.
But strangely, Tumbes is not so much a tourist attraction as the “gateway to the sights”. Through its airport, which is mainly served by Lima, Tumbes has a reputation as a “stopover on the way to more exciting places” – wrongly, because the town holds a lot for visitors in petto.
Exciting story in the fight for Peru
The soil around Tumbes already has an exciting and sometimes very bloody and turbulent past behind it. Even before the establishment and expansion of the Inca Empire, a town called Tumpis lived here, and for weddings with more than 170,000 tribal members! But even after taking control of the Incas, Tumbes was an important fort for the empire, especially politically.
Under the influence of Inca Emperor Huayna Capac, the importance of Tumbes has expanded and much has been invested in the construction of new buildings and streets.
But everything was about to change, like so many times in the history of South America, when the Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro set foot in Tumbes. His first visit to the city took place in 1528, but only four years later he was going to invade his men to conquer Tumbes in the battle for the Manglars. It is said that Pizarro had established a great cross as a sign of his victory.
In 1740, Tumbes declared his independence from Spain and officially wanted to join Peru, although it should take until 1998, the eternal dispute over the affiliation between Peru and Ecuador should finally be resolved.
