Gates of Cité de Carcassonne
From the town of Carcassonne the citadel or Cité de Carcassonne looms large. There is a hill by the River Aude and the Romans recognized the importance of the location. This was where the Cité de Carcassonne was established. It is considered to be the largest walled city in Europe and it is one of the France’s most visited tourist destinations. Because of its importance, the Cité de Carcassonne was also listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site, one which I have never heard about. Fortunately, there weren’t a lot of people here at the citadel since it was New Year’s Day. I figured that there would be tradeoffs in terms of places I wouldn’t be able to visit but I think the much smaller crowd is reward enough.
Walls of Cité de Carcassonne
The most prominent feature of the Cité de Carcassonne are the city walls. They are amazingly intact and surround the entire citadel. This is what visitors would first encounter when visiting the citadel. There are different paths going up the citadel, some more worn than the others but always ending up in the same place. Along the way, visitors can see a view of the town of Carcassonne as well as the surrounding area. It does give a good idea if there would be invaders approaching.
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