Nashville is known as Music City, due to its musical history. Tourism gives a huge boost to the Nashville economy. Over 50,000 Nashville residents work in the hospitality trade. In 2002 Nashville received over 10.5 million visitors.
Nashville has live music being played everywhere. Visitors should follow the city signs for live music venues, shaped like guitar picks on the signs. Singer/songwriters from every musical genre have adopted Nashville. In addition, classical music fans may hear professional performances at the Nashville Symphony Orchestra.
Belmont Mansion is the largest house museum in Tennessee and one of Nashville's top attractions. Carnton Plantation and Battlefield is another popular plantation site which hosts civil war battle reenactments at weekends. Belle Meade is another local plantation, situated six miles out of Nashville.
Nashville offers other tourist attractions besides its well-known sites for music and history. Nashville Zoo is a popular tourist destination and is open almost every day of the year. Wave Country is another popular destination, that children will particularly enjoy. Wave Country has a number of massive water slides and flume features and a number of pools, including a wave pool. The Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park is one of Nashville's premier tourist attractions and preserves the view of the State Capitol. This park is a 19-acre open space located in downtown Nashville and hosts a number of local events and programs.
