Carcassonne Nightlife

OMG - did the streets in Carcassonne roll up after 9 PM or what. The Cite, the Lower Town, it did not seem to matter. There were some lights on and people milling at a hotel/hostal by the Old Stone Bridge on the East side of the Aude River. but other than that, the place was dead.....I guess you could always spend an evening staring at the Castle. Apparently there is a confusion between nightlife and nightlight....

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The main reasons for spending one or more nights inside the Cite are to eat a dinner with cassoulet and then walk it off seeing the town after dark when its medieval feel is unimpeded. The fortifications after dark are minimally lit and hopefully there will be a clear and moonlit night. The fortifications are more impressive this way: the Narbonne Barbican (the pictures of pick-up cars leaving after restaurant closures may no longer be permitted?), the twisting path to the Aude Gate past its Seneschal Gate is mysterious, as are views of the upper lists. You are alone.

Dress Code: Dress for the weather

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Carcassonne at night is simply magical. All of the outer walls are floodlit, and look as if they are bathed in golden light.

Before going to Carcassonne I was concerned about the safety of a single woman walking around at night. When I went in August 2005 there were lots of couples and groups walking around after sunset. I felt perfectly safe wandering around the old city, and outside it, at night. I felt very sorry for the day trippers who would miss this experience.

Dress Code: Good walking shoes, due to all the cobblestones.

The night, the medieval city is illuminated generously. Visible of very far (and even since the freeway, of which a rest stop offers a very beautiful point of view on this monument) the battlements offer at this hour another spectacle.

The night, the medieval city is illuminated generously. Visible of very far (and even since the freeway, of which a rest stop offers a very beautiful point of view on this monument) the battlements offer at this hour another spectacle.

At night, most tourists have left, and you can walk the citadel, which is floodlit. We snapped this photo of a cross near le Chateau Comtal. We found it to be very romantic.

Dress Code: comfy shoes!