Carcassonne, France

There's a fee for entrance to the château - €8-9 as I recall - which we thought was worth the money. It's true that much reconstruction work has been done, nevertheless it is still a very interesting place with much history.

Yes, one of several such cities and fortified towns.

Definitely. Often referred to as Europe's best preserved (read: rebuilt) medieval town. One caveat, if you going in tourist season, your strolling will be shoulder to shoulder with the tourists and they're sword bearing knight children (one of which is mine). Our last trip to carcassonne was a quick one. In at about 4pm on tuesday, out by 11am wednesday (early may). Plenty of time to stroll the ramparts, have dinner, and walk outside of town a bit to see it lit up a night. Spectacular. Visited the castle in the morning, then headed out. Never felt crowded and have a spectacular memory of that trip.

We were there two years ago-spent one night. Most of the tourists were day trippers and the town was quiet by 5 pm or so. Carcassone was mildly interesting but I would not go out of my way to see it. Can't think of a comparable town although Mont St Michel comes to mind and Carc would not measure up to it.

Everybody has to see Carcassonne once, but it doesn't deserve a lot of time. Arrive late in the day, eat cassoulet for supper, wander a bit, and be done with it. It's a hokey tourist trap that dates from around the 1100s and has been being 'improved' since the mid 1800s but not in a manner true to it's original form. Its most prominent feature, the clown-hat tower roofs have no realtionship to either the geography or the era. The guy that started the mess (Viollet-le-Duc) was largely a product of his own imagination and managed to sneak in the third tower (the spire on the south side) of Notre Dame de Paris at about the same time. France has a batch of better examples of fortified cities: Caen, Aigues-Mortes, Fougres, Avignon, Arles, Boulogne-sur-Mer, La Couvertoirade, Dinan, Perouges, Langres, Saint-Malo (restored after WWII, but true to the original), many of the bastide towns, and the slew in Nord/Pas de Calais.

I agree. One night is great but that's all you'll need in good ol' Carc.

The "cité" of Carcassonne is separate from the modern town. Don't confuse the two. Whatever the feelings about the renovations 160 years ago which saved the place from total demolition, it is a stunning site and if you are in the area, missing it would be a mistake. Try and see it at night while floodlit. Roger

Actually we have had some nice times staying in the 'citi' ' in Carcassonne. The local wines are very good and the Enoteca's show them off nicely. the Fitou and Minervois are favorites. Carcassonne itself can be cheesy, but we have always enjoyed spending a night or two there because it has a nice feel to it at night. Plus, I got Hale-Bopp on video, taken from a vinyard just outside the city walls, with the city in the foreground. Quite a sight!. The year that Hale-Bopp was visable just on the horizon in the U.S., it was clear every night in Europe.

Thank you for all the replies. We will go to Carcassonne and stay one night and day. I enjoy fortified cities and remember this one from history.