Asheville is a city located in Buncombe County, North Carolina GR6, and is its county seat. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 177,000. It is the largest city in western North Carolina, and continues to grow - as of 2004, the Census Bureau estimates that Asheville's population is 192,400.

Attractive to hip and creative young people as well as to hip and creative retirees, Asheville has been listed in both Rolling Stone and Modern Maturity as an ideal place to live or visit. The open and accepting character of the city is evidenced by the many lifestyles and beliefs that coexist peacefully there. The art scene is especially active, and Asheville has become a mecca for potters, painters and musicians, with much of the current creativity inspired by the folk art and old ballads of early Scottish, English and Scots-Irish settlers. Since the publication of Joshua P. Warren's book Haunted Asheville, in 1996, paranormal investigators from the around the world have flocked to the city's famed mysterious sites like Helen's Bridge and Barley's Taproom and Pizzeria.

Asheville is home to University of North Carolina at Asheville, or UNCA, a liberal arts college in North Asheville of about 3500 students and part of the University of North Carolina System.

The city is home to the French Broad Food Coop, as well as the Asheville Community Resource Center.