Tribe Carcassonne

The only real downside was that the hotel restaurant and bar were closed on Sunday and Monday. There are nice restaurants nearby, but I would have liked the option to eat at the hotel. My mobility issues weren’t too much of a problem: I could just about walk between the hotel, the Citè, and the Bastide, and both are easy to reach on foot for anyone without mobility problems. Our room was clean and comfortable, with a perfect balcony view of the medieval city. The staff were friendly and patient with my attempts to speak French. I definitely picked the right hotel.

We booked this hotel hoping for a good night’s sleep and were very disappointed. Our ground floor room was right by the street, and the windows did little to block the noise. The AC rattled loudly on and off all night, and we couldn’t turn it off. We could also hear toilets flushing in the adjacent rooms very clearly. When we mentioned these problems at checkout, the response was underwhelming. The hotel itself seems nice, and the location is great, but we didn’t use any of its other facilities. I’d strongly advise against booking a ground floor room, which certainly didn’t feel worth 4 stars.

The location and views are hard to beat, but I found the hotel overpriced and no more than 3 star quality. Roadworks and reconfiguring made it difficult to find with a SatNav, which wasn’t the hotel’s fault but is worth knowing. The website mentions parking but not the €15 per day charge. The underground garage has no lift to the main floor, which a receptionist explained was because it’s underground and near the river. Carrying bags and cases up is a struggle. Reception is a tiled area in the hotel café, staffed by people who seemed rather indifferent and worked from a laptop. Our booking said courtyard view, but what we saw was a tarmacked lot belonging, apparently, to the next block. That’s not what I’d understood by courtyard, and the description felt disingenuous. The tiny bathroom had nowhere to put toiletries, and the over-bath shower felt treacherous for an older traveller, with no handrail or non-slip surface. The pool also has quite steep steps and no handrail for anyone who’d prefer support entering the water. Breakfast was okay, but not 4 star standard compared with other hotels I’ve stayed in in France. I was disappointed with what the hotel offered, though not with Carcasonne or La Cité. Both are unmissable, unlike this hotel.

We didn’t sleep well, and I’m not sure we’d choose this hotel again if we return to Carcassonne. Our room was right opposite the elevator, so we heard it running and guests coming and going all night. Although the room technically had a medieval city view, it faced the street, where delivery trucks caused a lot of noise in the evening and early morning. The air conditioning was very loud too. The hotel does have some positives: the location is convenient, with a short walk over the bridge to the restaurant area and easy access to the medieval city. Staff were kind and welcoming, and breakfast was decent.