Hôtel du Château was the first of our Sognidoro on French soil. One can rightly speak of a fairytale landscape with regard to the panorama that can be enjoyed from the external terrace of this charming hotel housed in a building that refers to the iconography dear to French symbolist painting of the late 1800s, at the foot of the imposing walls of the Cité Medieval of Carcassonne.
Charming hotel in Carcassonne
Many contrasts can be found inside, strongly desired by Cécile and Stéphane Rives, which express pure magic, combining historical-artistic testimonies, cultured inflections and a style played on international references.
All under the wonderful city of Carcassonne which, with its walls, towers, churches and medieval palaces, has been declared a World Heritage Site by Unesco.
But if outside the traces of the past are predominant, inside, both in the common rooms and in the 17 rooms divided between classic, superior, deluxe and junior suites, the owners have not renounced to introduce the signs of a modernity that speaks the language of comfort.
The Classic room that we shared with our Otto, small but very refined, cradled our sleep amidst exotic references, 4-star goodies such as a 64 cm LCD TV, air conditioning and free 100 Mbps fiber optic WIFI connection and the plus of the glass door between bedroom and bathroom.
Between walls covered with refined wallpapers, coffered ceilings, stone walls and comfortable beds with precious linens, memories of travels peep out and accompany guests on an exciting journey that can be completed with total relaxation in the Gemmology Spa, flagship of the Hotel du Château.
In the summer you can enjoy the heated outdoor pool, while the jacuzzi is open and heated all year round at 34°c. And at sunset the panoramic bar is perfect for an aperitif where the external light penetrates through the glass walls.
The alternative that we chose thanks to the pleasant spring evening was to taste open air in the hotel lounge bar with a panoramic view of the ramparts open 24 hours a day, our glass of Limoux, the sparkling ancestor of Champagne recommended to us by the exquisite hotel manager Jean Yves Pons, on the terrace impregnated with the scent of the garden bathed in the last rays of the sun.
In the morning we enjoyed a rich breakfast with a wide choice of sweet and savory served directly at the table with our beloved cappuccino, which is not found everywhere in France, and in the company of Pollux and Socks, the four-leggeds of the house, looking for crumbs and caresses.
At the Hôtel du Château everything is pervaded by that taste that we could define as exquisitely French and which knows how to interpret objects and place them in unusual contexts.
Today the Rives family owns and manages three hotels in Carcassonne. The first was the Hôtel du Château which took ten years to become the magnificent and welcoming place it is today. And it was also the first hotel in the city to have a spa with swimming pool, hammam and treatments dedicated to relaxation, well-being and beauty.
A hundred meters away is the Hotel Montmorency and a stone’s throw from the medieval city is the latest acquisition, the Hotel de l’Octroi, expanded and transformed into a contemporary and dynamic space.
Staying in Carcassonne at the Hôtel du Château took us back in time not only to the medieval history of the city, but also to our personal history, when we got married 25 years ago and chose the south of France as destination of our honeymoon. The reason? In 2016, the Hôtel des Remparts in Aigues-Mortes, which we had chosen for our stopover in the Camargue, joined the Rives hotel collection.
Completely renovated, this hotel former barracks, then gendarmerie and prison, while retaining its massive architecture between large halls and stone vaults bathed in the soft light that enters through the high windows, has been transformed into an intimate, welcoming and elegant place.
Will it be one of our next Sognidoro? We would like to come back and stay in the suggestive rooms of the remparts of the walls of a town where you can breathe the Middle Ages and at the same time discover the allure that the Rives family has given to the places. Going there with our Otto, as we did in Carcassonne, would crown the dream!
Hôtel du Château
Camille Saint Saens Street, 2 – Carcassonne – France
Info: +33 (0)468 113838 – contact@hotelduchateau.net
www.hotelduchateau.net
