Sarah Slater
Kilkenny has been voted one of the most lavish cities in the world according to a new International study.
The Marble city has been placed seventh on the list of most luxurious cities by size in the Money.co.uk study.
It is the only city in Ireland to make the top 20 which includes other well-known spots such as Athens, Dubrovnik and San Francisco out of over 140 cities around the world.
The study analysed the number of luxury venues in a city to find out where in the world is truly the most lavish by square kilometre.
To qualify as a luxury venue, the city had to have a minimum of a Michelin restaurant, one of the top 10 designer label stores and a 5-star hotel.
Those involved in the study said it was the "size and quality on offer that stood to Kilkenny" making the list.
They found Kilkenny is home to six Michelin restaurants, a 5-star hotel and a Rolex retailer, all within 3.74 sq km.
Paris topped the list, followed by Phuket, Brussels, Geneva, Cannes and Lyon.
The French capital offers a total of 427 Michelin-star restaurants, 108 stores of the top 10 luxury designers and 95 hotels with a five-star rating.
Thailand’s Phuket boasts 48 Michelin-star restaurants in the 12 sq km that it covers, followed by Brussels in third place, offering 4.2 luxury venues per its 32.6 sq km size.
