Carcassonne

Carcassonne is one of France's most emblematic cities — Europe's largest fortified medieval city, UNESCO-listed since 1997. With its 3 km of ramparts, 52 towers, double concentric wall (two parallel walls with lices between them), and central Comtal Château, the Cité welcomes 4 million visitors per year — it's France's 5th tourist site.

The Cité's origins go back to Antiquity (Gallic oppidum then Roman city), but it took its current face in the Middle Ages. Cathar fortress in the 13th century, captured by crusaders (Albigensian Crusade), then frontier of the Kingdom of France against Aragon, it lost its strategic importance in the 17th century (Treaty of the Pyrenees) and fell into ruins. It was Eugène Viollet-le-Duc who restored it in the 19th century, sometimes with historical inaccuracies (pointed slate roofs that did not exist in the medieval South) but with a spectacular result that made it an icon.

The Cité comprises two concentric walls separated by the Lices (space between the walls, free access, ideal for panoramic walks). At the centre, the Comtal Château (12th century, paid visit €9.50, 1h30 route with audioguide). The Saint-Nazaire Basilica (11th-14th centuries) offers exceptional Gothic stained-glass. The medieval lanes are commercial but retain their preserved charm. The Bastide Saint-Louis (lower town, created in the 13th century after the Cité's capture) is often forgotten by visitors but deserves a stroll: Place Carnot, markets, gastronomy.

Nearby: Lagrasse Abbey (40 km, one of France's Most Beautiful Villages), Cathar castles (Peyrepertuse, Quéribus, Aguilar, Termes — spectacular vestiges of the Albigensian Crusade), Minervois and Corbières vineyards, UNESCO Canal du Midi (Toulouse-Sète, 240 km, accessible by bike from Carcassonne).