Thanks Underhill.....one of these days I will understand it all..

It has been more than five years since we were in Carcassone so maybe the rules have changed - but at that time cars were not allowed to drive into the walled city between 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. However, you could leave at any time. In fact, we parked just outside our hotel. I also had some wonderful cassoulet there, which I tried to duplicate at home with less than wonderful results - so enjoy it there!
Everyone has different recommendations, but I thoroughly enjoyed our visit there and am glad that we made the effort to see it.

So should we get to Carcassone in the morning????...or late afternoon to avoid crowds and see it all the next day?..your opinions are welcome.

I was happy to hear they would come get our luggage at Hotel Donjon.

If you're coming from Sarlat (or are you now coming from Albi), you won't be ABLE to see all that neat stuff Stu and I described and get to Carcassonne in the morning.

Even coming from Albi, if you want to enjoy the many things along the way, you'd probably land in Carcassonne at lunchtime at the earliest. And if you're coming from Albi, doesn't that mean you're driving from Sarlat to Albi the previous day?

Again, there is loads to do and see on the way from Sarlat to Carcassonne, so if you can, take three days from the time you leave Sarlat to the time you leave Carcassonne.

There is a lot of neat stuff to see between the Dordogne and Carcassone. I would drive the roads & visit the towns St Cirq & I described - especially a visit to Albi.

I would plan my visit to Carcassone just like I would plan my visit to Mont St Michel, St Paul de Vence, San Gimignano, Rocamadour, and other places that draw a lot of tourists - get there late in the day (6-7:00), wander through town & enjoy the shops & architecture without the crowds, and then take the very first tour of the castle in the AM, & then "get out of Dodge". If you arrive before 6:30PM in June to Sept, you might catch the last tour of the day.

I think the town is worth a 2 hr. visit, plus the 45 min tour, if you are stayng overnight.

Don't miss Albi & make sure you are not there during the lunch closing.

Stu Dudley

Mazamet is only aboaut 50 kilometers from Carcassone; it's at the intersection of the N112 and the scenic D112, running south to Carcassone. Took me a while to find the Michelin map for the area, as we haven't used it in a while.

I loved it so much that I spread my wife's ashes in the cemetery! Tourist stop? Absolutely but...well worth the trip there. The cassolet is to die for (seems like I'm into dying). Not really! This area of France as St. Cirq raves about is truely special. The beaches in Sete are very nice and I only wish I had more time there.

Mont St. Michel is incredible from a distance, but we found Carcassone to be a much better experience. We stayed at Hotel de la Cite which is a very nice property. The restaurant Barbacaine is excellent and has a Michelin star if that is important to you.

I think St Cirq and Stu Dudley give great advice and I would heed their suggestions. We particulary liked Albi, which has great red brick and half-timbered architecture and a stunning church. And if you're a Toulouse Lautrec fan, the museum qualifies as a pilgrimage site.

Carcassone was the highlight of one of our trips to the southern part of France. We stayed 2 nights at the Hotel Cité which was marvelous with an enclosed private garden and a starred restaurant. The location is adjacent to the ancient basilica. The hotel has parking on site, but it was quite interesting trying to drive the medieval lanes amidst the tourists to get to it. IMO this is a must see for this part of Europe.

The Hotel Domaine d'Auriac is a few kilometers outside the city and is just gorgeous (Relais & Chateau). One star Michelin restaurant and beautiful gardens.

I found the ride from Carcasonne to Albi to be a bit of a bore -- lots of traffic on a two lane road. Be careful of rush hour!

My wife and I took a road southwest out of Carcassone and just wanted to "get lost". We wound up on a small road thru the Pyrenees and the views were just magnificant. Stopped at a local farm that made their own goat cheese and ate it with some bread we bought along the way.

Outside many small towns are hypermarkets (combination supermarket and department store). Stop in, buy some food, drink, and fruit to go for your road trip.

Recommended reading for the history of that part of France is, "The Perfect Heresy: The Revolutionary Life and Death of the Medieval Cathars" by Stephen O'Shea.

We exchanged houses several years ago with a family that lived on the outskirts of Carcassone. It does look a bit like Disneyland from afar with its turrets and waving pennants; it's especially charming in the evening when all the ramparts are lit up.
I found it very helpful to study up on the Cathar religion, after spending some time in Carcassone--the Cathars were a fascinating religious group and fomented much dissension from the more established, conservative ranks of the Church. You might also want to consider a drive over to neighboring Menerbes, a city which is built in an incredible gorge area and also rests upon significant Cathar history.
I'm not sure that the natural landscape of the Carcassone area is as beautiful as Dordogne or Provence, but it has its charm.