Tour of Carcassonne

Carcassonne is the largest surviving medieval walled city in Europe, now a UNESCO world heritage site, incorporating: a Medieval Cité, the Château Comtal, and the spectacular Basilica of Saint Saint Nazaire and Saint Celse.

Tour Options
Tour Access Difficulty Rating
Scheduled Tour Dates
What You'll See
What You'll Learn About
Tour Start Point
Your Tour Leader

Tour Options

One-day scheduled tours
One day of one-Week scheduled tours
One day of Private tours

This tour is usually a full day.

We now offer a short self-guided tour, using the VoiceMap App, just click on this link

Difficulty Rating

Very easy walk on the flat, but with steps

Scheduled Tour Dates & Times

Available as scheduled and private tours

Times for the day tour: 9.45am - 5 pm.

What You'll See and Do

The largest surviving medieval walled city in Europe, now a UNESCO world heritage site, incorporating:

Medieval Cité: The vestiges of the medieval walled city, reflecting Roman, Visigothic, Moorish, Frankish, Occitan and French phases of building. The double curtain walls and lists in between.

Château Comtal (Count's Castle) : exterior and interior of the medieval castle constructed by the Viscounts of Carcassonne within the Cité walls.

Basilica of Saint Saint Nazaire and Saint Celse: Exterior and interior, including the tomb-stone of Simon de Montfort.

What You'll Learn About

Oppida, Castra and Bourgs.
The Counts and Viscounts of Carcassonne - The Trencavel family.
Crusading.
Carcassonne and Catharism
Cathar v Catholic Theology
Carcassonne and the Albigensian Crusade
Medieval siege warfare and siege engines: siege techniques and counter techniques.
The Siege of 1209, including lead-up and consequences
The cathedral, now a basilica + Simon de Montfort and Saint Dominic
The siege of 1240, including lead-up and consequences
The Inquisition at Carcassonne
19th century restoration of the Medieval Cité, Château Comtal (Count's Castle), and Basilica of Saint Saint Nazaire and Saint Celse