The South's Friendliest Towns 2018

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the word 'friendly' is defined as "showing kindly interest and goodwill, cheerful, and comforting"—which is exactly the quality we were looking for when we asked our readers to name the absolute friendliest towns in the South. It was quite a search. Every town has pockets of friendliness, of course, but we were looking for the places in which friendliness is the most important quality and generosity is an everyday occurrence. What resulted is a list of towns so friendly that the people who live there never want to leave. These communities are tight-knit, but they're also always open to newcomers, and visitors are welcomed in with open arms. They're the sorts of places where new neighbors are greeted with big smiles and dishes upon dishes of welcome-to-the-neighborhood casseroles. In these towns, the quality of hospitality is palpable. Warmth and kindness are always on the menu, and even on cloudy days, these friendly towns are filled with sunshine. From Aiken, South Carolina, to Taylor, Mississippi, these are the towns you've named the friendliest.