By Cecile Mantovani

KUESNACHT, Switzerland (Reuters) - Well-wishers gathered outside the lakeside home of Tina Turner on Thursday to pay tribute to the music legend who had made Switzerland her home for nearly three decades.

Flowers and cards lay outside the house in the picturesque town of Kuesnacht, on the shore of Lake Zurich, where Turner died on Wednesday at the age of 83.

A steady stream of visitors came to the gates of her estate to light candles and leave messages for the singer whose hits included "What's Love Got To Do with It?" and "Simply the Best."

Locals described her as a popular neighbour who appreciated the lack of fuss from fellow residents when walking around.

"When she was passing by, she was smiling, she could feel that we were looking at her, but was always very discreet," said Christine, who would only give her first name.

"Everyone loved her. I grew up with Tina Turner and she was a great woman to me, with a lot of sorrow too due to life's hard knocks but absolutely someone we could admire."

Turner moved to Switzerland with her longtime partner Erwin Bach in 1995. In 2013, shortly after marrying Bach, she became a Swiss national and gave up her U.S. citizenship.

Another resident called Kosta came to pay his respects.

"She's been a part of my life for over 35 years now and she was a good neighbour, she showed up in town, she was very well liked," he said.

Below a sign at the gate asking for no deliveries before midday, he left a written message with a single red rose.

"I think it's okay to show up early today," it read. "Thanks and goodbye Tina. You were simply the best."

(Reporting by Cecile Mantovani and Denis Balibouse, writing by John Revill, editing by Andrew Cawthorne)