Tourism is a major part of the economy in the area which contains half of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park as well as the Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests.
In 2003, Appalachian North Carolina- which included most counties of Western North Carolina and two counties in central North Carolina- had a three-year average unemployment rate of 6%, compared with 6.2% statewide and 5.5% nationwide.