One Donegal hotspot makes the 12 Picturesque Towns to Explore for a Minibreak list

One town in Donegal has made the Top 12 Picturesque Towns to Explore for an Irish Minibreak.

Dunfanaghy has been placed at joint 11th alongside Enniskerry in Wicklow and one place behind Mullaghmore, on the mouth of the Donegal Bay, in north Sligo.

The popularity of each beach location was measured by a unique index score - based on the number of hashtags and views each coastal gem has racked up on Instagram, as well as Trip Advisor rankings - with the lower the overall index score the higher the ranking.

From the variables, Dunfanaghy top scores with five out of five in TripAdvisor Ratings, where it is stressed that the town is great for outdoors with the likes of Hornhead, The Workhouse, Narosa, Dunfanaghy Bay, the Gallery and the WW2 Memorial, as well as its bars, and food and drink.

With the help of Betway, Kilkenny bags first place - while Dingle and Doolin beat bustling Cork and Carlingford village in Louth.

Top 12 beautiful towns in Ireland (index score created using figures from Google rating, Tripadvisor, and Instagram):
1 - Kilkenny, County Kilkenny; 2 - Dingle, Kerry and Doolin, Clare; 3 - Cork City, Cork; 4 - Dun Laoghaire, Dublin; 5 - Aran Islands, Galway and Lahinch, Clare; 6 - Adare, Limerick; 7 - The Burren, Clare; 8 - Kenmare, Kerry; 9 - Kilkee, Clare; Roundstone, Galway; Dunmore East, Waterford and Carlingford, Louth; 10 - Mullaghmore, Sligo; 11 - Enniskerry, Wicklow and Dunfanaghy, Donegal; 12 - Bunratty, Clare

Index score created using data from Google, Instagram and Tripadvisor. Tripadvisor data taken from attractions rated 5*. Index score ranked 1-50 (with 1 being the highest)