Killarney has been named as one of the five Best Places to Live in Ireland 2021 with competition judges praising its stunning location, vibrancy, and culture of friendliness.

The other places to make the Top 5 are Clonakilty, Galway City, the village of Glaslough in Co. Monaghan and Waterford City.

The Irish Times ‘Best Place to Live in Ireland’ competition, began in June when members of the public were invited to nominate their favourite place to live for the award.

Over the course of the summer, more than 2,400 members of the public nominated 470 locations in every county in Ireland for the title.

Two weeks ago the long list of Best 20 Places to Live in Ireland was published and now Killarney has made it through to the best five short list. The overall winner will be named next weekend.

Each place was judged on criteria including, natural amenities, buildings, community initiatives and spirit, presence of clubs, societies and activities, good local services, diversity, a welcome for outsiders, transport links, employment opportunities, the price of property and housing supply, cost of living, digital links for distance working, safety and security.

While the number of nominations was a factor in the selection of the top locations – Killarney received 31 - the quality of the place itself was the chief consideration.

DECISION

The panel of five judges – which includes Mayo County architect Simon Wall, Monaghan GP Dr Illona Duffy, RTE Nationwide TV presenter Zainab Boladale, and Irish Times journalist Rosita Boland – spent hours reading and debating the entries, before selecting the Top 5.

“In a stunning location, Killarney is a lively, bustling town, full of cafes, restaurants and bars. And because it is accustomed to visitors, it is part of the culture to be extra helpful to strangers. Everyone speaks to each other on the street. All the amenities, both natural and man-made, are impressive. It’s easy to see why people are proud of the area,” the judges said about Killarney.

And this is what Sandra Dunlea said about the town in her nomination.

“Killarney is a unique place to live, we have a wide range of schools, job opportunities and access to very good transport links, train, airport and great primary roads for bus and car. We live in the midst of 26,000 acres of protected national parkland, have a beautiful art school, a variety of dance and stage schools, GAA, soccer and water sports. We have a lovely town which has visitors through the year. We have a huge number of volunteers who dedicate their time to keeping our town and park clean and beautiful.”

With the average house price of the last 50 sales in Killarney €266,000, the Chair of the Judging Panel, Conor Goodman, said that while property prices are just one of several measures the judges are applying in choosing the Best Place to Live in Ireland, in the midst of a housing crisis, they are an important consideration.