Bed and breakfast accommodation in Carcassonne Monasteries

This city is famous for its medieval fortress, Cité de Carcassone, which was added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 1997. The citadel of Carcassonne is the largest medieval city in Europe with its city walls still intact.

The astounding walls of Carcassonne’s citadel protected the city for centuries, you can now walk inside those streets just as they did during the middle-ages. There’s an engaging lack of symmetry to the old stone buildings, some with exposed timbers and others clad with ivy. 

Still inside the citadel, the medieval Château Comtal was built in 1150 by Bernard Aton on the remains of a Gallo-Roman building. Originally, it consisted of two main buildings as well as the watch Tower of Pinte, over 30 meters high. The building served successively as a stately home, the home of the King of France, military space and a prison before becoming a lapidary museum,  which houses a beautiful collection of statues, sarcophagi and other artifacts found in the region, dating from antiquity and the Middle Ages.

And to finish your visit in the citadel, the museum of the Inquisition is the perfect attraction to enjoy and not to take seriously some tools exposed, such as the torture tools used in the medieval times up to the Revolution. 

Events

Carcassonne Festival: The festival is one of the most anticipated musical events in the region, partly thanks to its varied line-up featuring very sought-after international artists.

Throughout the month of July, the medieval city offers around a hundred performances (80 free) of contemporary music, theatre, opera and dance.

How to get around? 

It is rather easy to get around the city, from the citadel to the city centre it only takes 20 minutes to walk. 

In July and August there’s a little tourist-train shuttle (on wheels) between the Ville Basse and the old city.

For short journeys in Carcassonne city center, the bus company Agglo runs a free service.

If you're traveling by train, you can leave from Paris to Carcassonne, which is 385 miles (620 km) away, you can either get on a train or drive south. Trains leave from both Paris' Gare de Lyon and Montparnasse train stations and require a stop in either Toulouse, Bordeaux, Montpellier or Narbonne.If you are travelling by plane, you can fly into Carcassonne's airport (Aéroport Sud de France Carcassonne). Once arrived at the airport, a shuttle service to the city center leaves the airport 25 minutes after the arrival of each flight.

Carcassonne is a French fortified city in the region of Occitanie, located in the south of France. 

In the citadel, an acclaimed monument is the Basilica of Saints Nazarius and Celsus, the first church was built from the 800s to the 1300s, the Gothic-Romanesque style building boasts sculptures, stonework, and a marvellous stained glass windows in the choir from 1280.  

The Cathedral of Saint Michel, located in the city centre, is a 20 minute walk from the Medieval city. Firstly built as a church in the 13th century, the edifice resembles a fortress. The cathedral plan is characterised by its relative simplicity. It forms a single nave with a 20 metre high vault, lined with several lateral chapels. The choir screen has retained its 14th century stained glass.

Not too far from Carcassonne, the small village Caunes-Minervois, 20 minutes north of Carcassonne.

This medieval village was built around the abbey founded in the 700s, one of the most cherished parts of the building is the apse, which is from the 1000s and epitomises the modest romanesque style.