grimmy

Will be visiting Carcassonne area in May.
We are looking at:
Hotel Montmorency which is just outside the walls or the option of staying in Caunes Minervois at L'ancienne Boulangerie.
Anyone have any experience with either of these accomodations?
Also plan to stay 2 nights. Is this going to be enough time alloted to this area?
TIA

Patrick

To be brutally honest, I think that's about 2 nights too long. While I tend to make lemonade out of lemons, Carcassonne was a challenge to me. I had wanted to go for years and we were excited to be staying inside the walls. Yet the "charms" of this city crammed full of tourists and tacky shops seemed to escape me. I will say, at least at night when many had left, there was a bit more charm walking the ramparts and looking out. But overall, I felt Carcassonne is best observed from a distance as you drive by looking at the magnificent walled city up on the hill.

Sorry, not to be of any help, and of course, this is just one person's opinion.

grimmy

Patrick,
I have read that its best to be there early morning and late evenings to avoid tourists. Is there anything in the area which would warrant sticking around and taking day trips to. By the time we arrive there we will have been to St. Remy(return visit) Tarn Gorges area, Dordogne region, Pyrenees near Lourdes and Collioure. We are doing a loop from Marseille.
Any tips you can add will be appreciated.We are still in preliminary stages. Thank you for your honest opinion.

Patrick

Well, we all have different opinions. I recently commented how much we enjoyed an overnight stay in Cordes, which we found to be scenic and delightful. Yet others slammed the place as being totally touristy and seemed as turned off by it as I was of Carcassone.

Your choice of destinations sounds wonderful. I don't know how long you plan to stay in Collioure, but we stayed in Montpelier for the better part of a week and loved Perpignon, Collioure, Narbonne, and Sete. Allow yourself plenty of time in that wonderful little corner of France.

Yes, all those places could be visited as day trips from Carcassonne, so maybe your idea of escaping during the day is a good one.

Underhill

We had planned to spend the day in Carcassone but found that an hour or two was plenty of time for a visit. So we decided to head up to Albi and ended up staying the night at the Château de Montlédier, near the wool town of Mazamet. The château was a very nice place to stay, and the food in the small restaurant was excellent.

Randy

I have been to Carcassonne and I really enjoyed my visit. I also agree that two days is not necessary. Unless you have some special interest we are not aware of, I think 2 to 4 hours would be enough time for this walled city. We did not stay at Carcassonne.

cigalechanta

I too preferred Cordes over Carcassone and we loved the drive around the Tarn gorge.

Underhill

I see I forgot to say why we decided to visit Albi: the magnificent pinkish cathedral, and the Toulouse Lautrec museum is nice too. Albi itself is a pleasant town, and there are beautiful sunken gardens next to the cathedral.

StCirq

I think one night in Carcasssone is plenty, and I LIKE Carcassonne. I do NOT like Cordes, except for a brief stop. I think Albi is an excellent suggestion. Or, if you are coming from the Dordogne, Cahors, a wonderful town. And in between Cahors and Carcassonne are lots of smaller places with considerable charm like Gaillac and Revel and the lakeside resort of St-Férréol.