{"id":646638,"date":"2026-10-06T16:40:09","date_gmt":"2026-10-06T16:40:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/646638\/"},"modified":"2026-10-06T16:40:09","modified_gmt":"2026-10-06T16:40:09","slug":"ireland-tops-conde-nast-poll-for-friendliest-country-in-europe-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/646638\/","title":{"rendered":"Ireland tops Cond\u00e9 Nast poll for friendliest country in Europe \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Ireland has topped the 2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irishtimes.com\/tags\/conde-nast\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.irishtimes.com\/tags\/conde-nast\/\">Cond\u00e9 Nast Traveller <\/a>reader\u2019s poll for friendliest countries in Europe.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">The poll, which had 300,000 voters, saw Ireland score 98.39, while runner-up Portugal scored 96.67.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Other countries featured on the list include Italy, Greece and Spain.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">\u201cConsistency seems to be key for Ireland, as this is their third year within the top three. After two years in second place, Ireland claims the title of the friendliest country in Europe for 2026,\u2033 Cond\u00e9 Nast Traveller said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">The travel publisher went on to say that Ireland is filled with \u201csoulful musicians and pioneering writers, and they warm the hearts of all they touch with their infectiously good craic\u201d. <\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">\u201cWander into a traditional pub and, within seconds, find yourself striking up conversation with jolly strangers, proving these cosy bolt-holes are so much more than simply a place to drink, or to visit during <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irishtimes.com\/tags\/st-patricks-day\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.irishtimes.com\/tags\/st-patricks-day\/\">St Patrick\u2019s Festival<\/a> to witness communities turn green in a hearty celebration of their beloved home,\u201d the publisher said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Also topping the list for Ireland in the readers\u2019 choice awards was Ballyheigue Strand in Co Kerry, which was crowned a winner of one of the best beaches in the world along with Sperlonga in Italy, Llanddwyn Beach in Wales, Arugam Bay Beach in Sri Lanka and Hanauma Bay in Hawaii.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Ballyheigue received a score of 95.39. Other Irish beaches named were Barleycove, Co Cork, with a score of 93.33 and Sherkin Island, Co Cork, scoring 90.67. <\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Another acknowledgment of Irish tourism in the readers\u2019 choice awards went to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irishtimes.com\/tags\/ballyfin-demesne\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.irishtimes.com\/tags\/ballyfin-demesne\/\">Ballyfin Demesne<\/a> in Co Laois, which was named among readers\u2019 favourite hotels in Europe with a score of 98.77.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Cond\u00e9 Nast Traveller\u2019s Ballyfin review, published in April 2026, described the luxury hotel where rooms start at \u20ac710 per night as \u201cthe most considered grand house stay in Ireland\u201d. <\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">The 2026 awards survey was conducted between April 1st and June 30th. The questionnaire contained lists of candidates in various categories and must receive a required minimum number of responses and a minimum overall rating to be eligible for a readers\u2019 choice award. <\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">The readers\u2019 awards come a few months after the publisher <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irishtimes.com\/life-style\/travel\/2026\/04\/09\/conde-nast-traveller-reveals-its-seven-wonders-of-ireland-for-2026-and-theres-no-dublin-or-galway\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.irishtimes.com\/life-style\/travel\/2026\/04\/09\/conde-nast-traveller-reveals-its-seven-wonders-of-ireland-for-2026-and-theres-no-dublin-or-galway\/\">revealed its seven wonders of Ireland<\/a>, featuring \u201cless instantly recognisable places to visit\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Among the spots highlighted in April\u2019s list were Waterford\u2019s greenway and Copper Coast, Fermanagh\u2019s Lakelands, northwest Donegal and Tory Island.<\/p>\n<p>The 2026 Cond\u00e9 Nast Readers\u2019 Choice Awards: <\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Friendliest countries in Europe <\/p>\n<p>Ireland PortugalItalyGreeceSpainTurkey EstoniaSloveniaCroatiaAustria<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Best beaches in the world<\/p>\n<p>Europe: Sperlonga, ItalyUK: Llanddwyn Beach, Anglesey, WalesIreland: Ballyheigue, County KerryAsia: Arugam Bay Beach, Sri LankaThe Americas: Hanauma Bay, Hawaii, US<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Favourite hotels in Europe<\/p>\n<p>Paris: Le Bristol ParisRest of France and Monaco: Airelles Le Grand Contr\u00f4le, Ch\u00e2teau de VersaillesIreland: Ballyfin, Co LaoisRome: Corinthia RomeFlorence: Il Tornabuoni HotelVenice: The Gritti Palace, a Luxury Collection HotelRest of Italy: Grand Hotel Timeo, a Belmond Hotel, Taormina, SicilyGreece: Canaves Epitome, Canaves Collection, SantoriniSpain: Finca Cortes\u00edn, M\u00e1lagaPortugal: S\u00e3o Louren\u00e7o do Barrocal, AlentejoTurkey: The Peninsula IstanbulNordics: Storfjord Hotel, \u00c5lesund, NorwayRest of Europe: Botanic Sanctuary Antwerp, Belgium<\/p>\n<p class=\"c-paragraph paywall \">Top 10 hotels in Ireland: Readers\u2019 Choice Awards 2026<\/p>\n<p>Ballyfin Demesne, County LaoisKillarney Royal Townhouse, Co KerryThe Westbury, Co DublinCashel Palace Hotel, Co TipperaryThe Morrison Dublin, Curio Collection by Hilton, Co Dublin Anantara The Marker Hotel Dublin, Co DublinThe Lodge at Ashford Castle, Co MayoThe Killarney Park, Co KerryThe Shelbourne, Autograph Collection, Co Dublin The Fitzwilliam Dublin Hotel, Co Dublin <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ireland has topped the 2026 Cond\u00e9 Nast Traveller reader\u2019s poll for friendliest countries in Europe. The poll, which&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":646639,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[3115,7243,46,61,60,7727,43,2888],"class_list":["post-646638","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-ballyfin-demesne","tag-conde-nast","tag-cork","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-kerry","tag-news","tag-portugal"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/646638","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=646638"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/646638\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/646639"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=646638"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=646638"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=646638"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}