Ironically, the sacred burial site has become one of
the world most popular tourist attractions,
visited on most days by an average of 5,000 people, with peaks of nearly 10,000 a day. That figure is expected to rise to 25,000 per day by 2015.
"Massive tourism is a danger," Hawass explained. "Even the most
respectful tourists can damage these monuments,
as their breath and sweat leave behind a lot of
water. This moisture becomes salt, which erodes
the plaster and paint of the murals."
At present, a ticket to the Valley of the Kings
allows only three tombs to be toured out of nine
tombs that open to visitors every six months
on a rotating system.
The number of
visitors to King Tut's tomb, which once saw an
average of 6,000 tourists a day, is now limited to 1,000.
According to Hawass, such restrictions are not
enough. Crowds need to be diverted to less
popular sites, he said, unless they are willing to pay more.
Indeed, the currently closed tomb of Nefertari
in the Valley of the Queens, where fragile paintings cover a surface of over 1,600
square feet, can be visited by private parties willing
to pay $5,000 for a group of 20 and a maximum visit time of 20 minutes.
