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While cities like Charleston, Memphis and Atlanta make excellent destinations, there's something simply charming about the South's smaller towns and villages.
For the last four weeks USA TODAY 10Best readers have been voting daily for their favorite Southern small towns in the 10Best Readers' Choice awards, and now the results are in!
It was a very close race between the top two finishers, but in the end, Natchitoches, La. (population 18,275) took home top honors. “Nack-a-Tish,” B&B Capital of Louisiana and quaint setting for the ensemble-cast classic, Steel Magnolias, is the oldest town in the state of Louisiana.
Runner up for Best Southern Small Town is Abingdon, Va. (population 8,206), located in the Blue Ridge Mountains and home to the Barter Theatre and Virginia Creeper Trail.
The top 10 winners in the category Best Southern Small Town are as follows:
- Natchitoches, La.
- Abingdon, Va.
- Bardstown, Ky.
- Dahlonega, Ga.
- Natchez, Miss.
- Eureka Springs, Ark.
- Beaufort, S.C.
- Berkeley Springs
- Floyd, Va.
- Fredericksburg, Texas
A panel of experts picked the initial 20 nominees, and the top 10 winners were determined by popular vote. Experts Larry Bleiberg (LarryBleiberg.com), Tanner Latham (AuthenticUsStories.com) and Lacy Morris (10Best Editor) were chosen based on their extensive knowledge of travel in the American South.
Additional nominees for Best Southern Small Town included Apalachicola, Fla.; Destin, Fla.; Leiper’s Fork, Tenn.; Marfa, Texas; Middleburg, Va.; Monroeville, Ala.; Mooresville, Ala.; Sanibel, Fla.; Tybee Island, Ga. and Wimberley, Texas.
10Best and USA TODAY extend their congratulations to all the winners. The contest was promoted on 10Best and USA TODAY.
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The Experts
Larry Bleiberg
Larry Bleiberg, a veteran journalist with... Read More
Larry Bleiberg, a veteran journalist with magazine, newspaper and web experience and a member of the Society of American Travel Writers, has spent much of his career living in, and writing about, the South. The Virginia native is former travel editor of the Dallas Morning News and Coastal Living magazine and founder of CivilRightsTravel.com. He served on a Pulitzer Prize team, is a seven-time Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Award winner, and was honored for producing the best newspaper travel section in North America. Learn more at LarryBleiberg.com or facebook.com/larry.bleiberg.
Larry Bleiberg

Larry Bleiberg, a veteran journalist with magazine, newspaper and web experience and a member of the Society of American Travel Writers, has spent much of his career living in, and writing about, the South. The Virginia native is former travel editor of the Dallas Morning News and Coastal Living magazine and founder of CivilRightsTravel.com. He served on a Pulitzer Prize team, is a seven-time Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Award winner, and was honored for producing the best newspaper travel section in North America. Learn more at LarryBleiberg.com or facebook.com/larry.bleiberg.
Tanner Latham
Tanner Latham is a writer, radio reporter and... Read More
Tanner Latham is a writer, radio reporter and multimedia storyteller. Before becoming a contributor to NPR and other publications, he worked for 10 years as a travel editor with Southern Living. Tanner’s latest book is called Country Music’s Greatest Eats, and he hosts a nationally distributed culture and travel podcast called Authentic US. To listen and learn more, visit AuthenticUsStories.com.
Tanner Latham

Tanner Latham is a writer, radio reporter and multimedia storyteller. Before becoming a contributor to NPR and other publications, he worked for 10 years as a travel editor with Southern Living. Tanner’s latest book is called Country Music’s Greatest Eats, and he hosts a nationally distributed culture and travel podcast called Authentic US. To listen and learn more, visit AuthenticUsStories.com.
Lacy Morris
Perhaps the vast emptiness of the wheat fields in... Read More
Perhaps the vast emptiness of the wheat fields in Kansas or the wooded hollers of the Appalachian mountains, where Lacy grew up, cultivated her deep longing to see the world and experience how others live their life. Lacy followed up her childhood by somehow staying put long enough to craft a degree in journalism, focusing on both travel and photography. A stint as the travel and culture editor for Southern Living magazine took her through every nook and cranny of the South, from glitzy South Beach to the horse farms in Kentucky. Though she is now loving being a fulltime resident of New York City, she sure does miss the friendly faces you’ll find below the Mason-Dixon line.
Lacy Morris

Perhaps the vast emptiness of the wheat fields in Kansas or the wooded hollers of the Appalachian mountains, where Lacy grew up, cultivated her deep longing to see the world and experience how others live their life. Lacy followed up her childhood by somehow staying put long enough to craft a degree in journalism, focusing on both travel and photography. A stint as the travel and culture editor for Southern Living magazine took her through every nook and cranny of the South, from glitzy South Beach to the horse farms in Kentucky. Though she is now loving being a fulltime resident of New York City, she sure does miss the friendly faces you’ll find below the Mason-Dixon line.