NATCHEZ — Whenever Anna Byrne sees a fresh face walk into the Natchez Visitor’s Reception Center, she doesn’t wait for them to say a word. The unspoken rules of Southern hospitality doesn’t allow for one to leave a guest to find their way around.

“We like to make people feel as welcome as possible,” Byrne said. “We try to speak to them before they speak to us, to make them feel at home.”

The goal is to make a friendly first impression as people make their first stop in town and even the state, Bryne said.

But beyond that first interaction after they stop to stretch their legs after crossing the Mississippi River bridge, people are apparently continuing to get that same friendly impression wherever they go in town. In an article published in Condé Naste Traveler this week, Natchez was listed as one of the top 10 friendliest cities in the United States.

The designation — which ranked Natchez as No. 7 in a tie with Jackson — was determined by a survey of the magazine’s readers.

The Condé Naste Traveler article praised Natchez for its “very beautiful antebellum homes,” “slower pace of life” and “a sweetly Southern resident community”

Natchez Tourism Director Connie Taunton said she was excited about the designation.

“We pride ourselves on making everyone feel welcome, and are always eager to roll out the red carpet for new and returning visitors,” she said.

“We speak to people, and you go to other cities and you walk down the street, people won’t speak to you. But here, our locals will speak with people, visit with them and find out where they are from and maybe tell them about something about the city they won’t find in the visitor’s guide.”

Natchez Mayor Butch Brown said it only makes sense that Natchez would be considered friendly because those who are raised here are taught social graces early on because the city is always on display.

“From Holy Family school to the the children in Tableaux in Pilgrimage, our children are taught a genteel way of living that includes being confident, open and appreciating the things around us, and with that kind of attitude and that kind of surrounding, it is easier for somebody to smile than to frown and to learn how to communicate,” Brown said.

“When people come from other parts of the world and our country and encounter everybody from young to old in our community who was raised like that, it is easy for them to perceive that we are friendly.”

And even though Natchez wasn’t listed as No. 1, Taunton said the Convention and Visitor’s Bureau wanted to make a friendly gesture of thanks for the listing — they sent Conde Nasté Traveler a fruit basket.

The No. 1 spot on the list of friendly cities went to Charleston, S.C., while Natchez beat out Telluride, Colo., Sonoma, Calif. and Branson, Mo., in the Top 10.

The magazine also ranked cities in terms of unfriendliness. At No. 1 on that list was Newark, N.J.

The article can be read online at http://cntrvlr.com/13X9G0F