How many people visit carcassonne

I made the mistake of driving down from Sarlat with the intention of going back North right after Carcassonne. We visited Carcassonne three times, each time magical.

During the day we took the tours; the one in French was by far the best —we saw different sites than in English. We enjoyed the food — salade gesiers gizzards became a permanent favorite.

The highlight was early morning photo walks — I have almost photos of all that lovely stone and light. So be jaded if you like, but it is a very special place.

I visited somewhere around 25 castles on a 30 day trip to England and never got bored of them. There was nothing to them, mostly just a shell, albeit some of them in very good shape. So long as you can still get dinner and do some shopping I could easily see spending the day there. Or am I that odd guy that just loves castles? Love the candor and the thoughts…. We lived in the small town of Limoux for a month last year, and took the train several times from Limoux to Carcassonne. It is a short track train, cost 1 Euro each way, an you can catch it in the morning and return in the evening.

Yes, we did the requisite castle visit once! The old town, the quartiers around it are wonderful to stroll through…. Your fellow diners will be a bit older, well dressed, regulars who are greeted and served with familiarity. We were treated to a wonderfully sincere service delicious cassoulet as it was appreciated that we had found our way here.

The parks in Carcassonne are beautiful, as they line both sides of the river banks with great walking paths. Just outside the train station is a mooring basin for the Canal…you can hope a Canal tour, or rent a bike for a few Euros and head off down the Canal you can go either direction. We had a wonderful ride from Carcassonne to Homps and back….

Glad to see I am not the only non-fan of Carcassonne. In , I did a trip to France. I had always wanted to visit Carcassonne, so I made it a stop. Yes, it was beautiful from afar, and yes, I enjoyed walking around it for maybe 30 minutes, but I made the mistake of staying overnight. Wish I had hopped the next train! Your article is interesting … And it is your right not to like Carcassonne, but problem is that your article is filled with inexactitudes.

What about the canal du Midi, the abbeys and medieval fortresses of the Cathar country, some of them only 15 mn drive from Carcassonne, the old city of Narbonne, the Languedoc vineyards, etc…???? You hope you never come back to Carcassonne, so we invite you to come abnd visit the area around it, called Cathar Country : Please take contact with us communication audetourisme. I visited Carcasonne about 15 years ago. That story stuck with me for a long time, and made it worth the side trip.

Love your honesty! We were in Carcassonne in April. As another poster commented, we loved hearing 4 Russian a cappella singers filling the church with beautiful music.

Arrived one evening and walked up to the Cite. Restaurants all full. Finally got into one and ordered the cassoulet and a funghi pizza. A memorable meal. Delicious duck, foie grais, and whatever else was in there.

Funghi was fresh, flavorful. Walked around the ramparts and right outside the walls with the evocative lighting and shadows. Hardly anyone else around. Very enjoyable. Next morning walked back up, admiring the variety of old windows. Tried to find a restaurant with cassoulet but, alas, none opened. Lots of tourist shops.

Soon crowded with tourists along the small streets and the main roads. I was just in Carcassonne at the end of May and I loved it. We walked around the outside perimeter of the castle and found very few people doing so. Yes, the inside main walk is full of very touristy stuff for sale, but so what.

I was happy to find a booklet on the history of Carcassonne and bought some delicious nougat candy that is impossible to find in the U. It is worthwhile wandering around the streets of the inner city to find the Saint Nazaire basilica which is a combination of Romanesque and Gothic art styles. We had lunch in the courtyard of the inner city and all six of us had wonderful food. In fact the cafe creme there was the best I had in all of France.

If you are heading towards Narbonne consider making a stop at the Abbaye de Fontfroide which is just off the A It was been lovingly restored by a private family and has a extensive garden as well.

Come on Cammeron. Carcassone is not the 3rd most visited site in France for nothing! Yes in peak summer season it is very crowded with tourists. Yes it does have the tacky shops that you describe but what top tourist destination in Europe does not have those things?

We recently moved to France and just had our first family members visit us. We took them to Carcassone and while it had been several years since we had visited it, the tour of the Castle with audio which took well over an hour was fascinating.

The streats outside of the castle are a pleasant walk and there are some actually attractive garden restaurants that will get you some shade, some very decent food, and a very nice place to relax. Just, when picking a restaurant I would avoid the main square establishments as they are just packed. The Basilica is also a wonderful spot to visit within the walled city.

We too were lucky enough to catch the Acapella choir which made that visit even more enjoyable. As for being in the middle of nowhere, I would recommend other Cather castles and sites in the area along with winery tours. Its a fasciniting place and should not be overlooked!

Wow, a bit sad to see such a bashing of a place we enjoyed exploring so much! We actually found the castle and entire medieval city quite by accident. We were road tripping from Switzerland to Spain and just needed a place to camp for a night. We landed at Camping de la Cite in the evening, pitched our tent, and enjoyed dinner with views of the twinkling castle.

The next day, we spent hours exploring the medieval city, walking the ramparts, and learning about the castle inside its many towers, most of which we had to ourselves. Nah , this Cameron guy never set foot in the region probably. I thought tourists like you had disappeared since the 70s. Your email address will not be published.

Currently you have JavaScript disabled. In order to post comments, please make sure JavaScript and Cookies are enabled, and reload the page. Click here for instructions on how to enable JavaScript in your browser.

Tourists wander the old moat of Carcassonne…seeking an escape, I imagine. I am reading those now and planning a visit to Carcassonne and that region in oct. Amazing places.. I wish to visit this place and not just the main city which I did always. Thanks so much for sharing this treasure! We were lucky enough to stay in a hotel inside the fortress. It certainly is worth visiting.

Great photos! It was many years ago that I visited Carcassonne and found it absolutely enchanting. Thank you for this beautiful tour of a truly magnificent city. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Sign me up for the newsletter! Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Notify me of new posts by email.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. Hi, I'm Audrey. By using our site, you agree to our use of cookies. Start Here. January 6, You may also like. Toulouse, during a pandemic. Marseille Guide — Part 3. Karen Guastavino January 7, - pm Very soothing. Audrey January 7, - pm Thank you Karen! Joanne January 11, - am Simply breath taking! Audrey January 11, - am Thank you! Jasmine January 7, - pm You must have really appreciated having this place all to yourself….

Audrey January 7, - pm Thank you! Joyce January 7, - pm Your pictures were fantastic! Audrey January 7, - pm thank you!

J January 7, - pm I so enjoyed this post having visited Carcassonne many times it was good to see it again, really appreciate these travelogues. Audrey January 7, - pm Thanks so much! Select personalised content.

Create a personalised content profile. Measure ad performance. Select basic ads. Create a personalised ads profile.

Select personalised ads. Apply market research to generate audience insights. Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. By Kelby Carr Kelby Carr. Kelby Hartson Carr is a former resident of Nice, France who has written multiple guides and articles about French tourism.

TripSavvy's editorial guidelines. New York University. Rutgers University. Erin Medlicott is a fact checker and researcher with a background in lifestyle and finance. She earned a. TripSavvy's fact-checking.