Why go
The Cité’s layered walls explain why visitors come, but the lower bastide gives the day a different shape: a regular street grid, Place Carnot and the present cathedral. A river crossing ties the two together, while the Canal du Midi adds another line through the city.
The full story
Carcassonne grew at a strategic crossing of routes between the Atlantic and Mediterranean, with the Aude separating the upper fortified settlement from the lower town. Begin by identifying the Cité on its hill, then locate the Bastide Saint-Louis on the other side of the river. That simple map makes the walk easier to understand. The Cité’s walls were substantially restored in the nineteenth century under Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, so the view is both medieval and the result of later preservation. For a first visit, pair the fortress streets with a lower-town stop such as Place Carnot or Carcassonne Cathedral. The Canal du Midi near the station gives a quieter alternative to another hour inside the walls. Pont Vieux is a useful pedestrian link between the two halves. From the bridge, look back at the walls before continuing into the straighter streets of the bastide.