Washington, D.C. Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! === Tourism === [[File:World War II Memorial Wade-47.JPG|thumb|The [[National World War II Memorial]] is among the many popular tourist sites located on the [[National Mall]].]] Tourism is the city's second-largest industry, after the federal government. In 2012, some 18.9 million visitors contributed an estimated $4.8 billion to the local economy.<ref name=tourism2012>{{cite news |url=http://washingtonexaminer.com/d.c.-sets-tourism-record-with-19m-visitors-in-2012/article/2529134 |title=D.C. sets tourism record with 19 m visitors in 2012 |first=Matt |last=Connolly |date=May 7, 2013 |access-date=May 8, 2013 |work=[[The Washington Examiner]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131103040727/http://washingtonexaminer.com/d.c.-sets-tourism-record-with-19m-visitors-in-2012/article/2529134 |archive-date=November 3, 2013}}</ref> In 2019, the city saw 24.6 million tourists, including 1.8 million from foreign countries, who collectively spent $8.15 billion during their stay.<ref name="tourism2019">{{citation|url=https://washington-org.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/2019_washington_dc_visitor_statistics.pdf|title=2019 VISITOR STATISTICS WASHINGTON, DC|date=2019|work=Discover DC|access-date=February 28, 2022|archive-date=September 22, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200922034448/https://washington-org.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/2019_washington_dc_visitor_statistics.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Tourism helps many of the region's other industries, such as lodging, food and beverage, entertainment, shopping, and transportation;<ref name="tourism2019" /> it also supports the city's world-class museums and cultural centers, most notably the [[Smithsonian Institution]].{{citation needed|date=June 2023}} The city and wider Washington region has a diverse array of attractions for tourists, such as monuments, memorials, museums, sports events, and trails. Within the city, the [[National Mall]] serves as the center of the tourism industry. It is there that many of the city's museums and monuments are located. Adjacent to the mall sits the [[Tidal Basin]], where several additional memorials and monuments lie, including the popular [[Jefferson Memorial]]. [[Union Station (Washington, D.C.)|Union Station]] is a popular tourist spot with its multitude of restaurants and shops.{{citation needed|date=June 2023}} Among the most visited tourist destinations is [[Arlington National Cemetery]] in nearby [[Arlington County, Virginia]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://travel.usnews.com/Washington_DC/Things_To_Do/Arlington_National_Cemetery_64632/ |title=Arlington National Cemetery |access-date=March 4, 2022 |work=U.S. News & World Report |archive-date=February 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220228195042/https://travel.usnews.com/Washington_DC/Things_To_Do/Arlington_National_Cemetery_64632/ |url-status=live }}</ref> This is a military cemetery that serves as a burial ground for former military combatants. It is also the location of President [[John F. Kennedy]]'s tomb, marked by an [[John F. Kennedy Eternal Flame|eternal flame]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/Explore/Monuments-and-Memorials/President-John-F-Kennedy-Gravesite |title=President John Fitzgerald Kennedy Gravesite |access-date=March 4, 2022 |work=Arlington National Cemetery website |archive-date=July 6, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220706061416/https://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/Explore/Monuments-and-Memorials/President-John-F-Kennedy-Gravesite |url-status=live }}</ref> President [[William Howard Taft]] is also buried in Arlington.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/Explore/Monuments-and-Memorials/President-William-H-Taft-Gravesite |title=President William Howard Taft Memorial Grave |access-date=March 4, 2022 |work=Arlington National Cemetery website |archive-date=November 20, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211120154556/https://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/Explore/Monuments-and-Memorials/President-William-H-Taft-Gravesite |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (Arlington)|Tomb of the Unknown Soldier]] is located in the cemetery and is guarded 24/7 by a tomb guard. The changing of the guard is a popular tourist attraction and occurs once every hour from October through March and every half-hour during the rest of the year.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/Explore/Tomb-of-the-Unknown-Soldier |title=The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier |access-date=March 4, 2022 |work=Arlington National Cemetery website |archive-date=February 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220222092129/https://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/Explore/Tomb-of-the-Unknown-Soldier |url-status=live }}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! 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