2 hot spots in Languedoc

France has been and is still one of the favourite destinations for Britons to settle in just for the holiday or permanently as they are retired or want to change their lifestyle. In fact, it is the most popular destination. According to official French figures, more than 500,000 Britons now own homes in France compared with just 350,000 in 2000. That changes the nature of the main question: it is not about whether to buy in France or not, but rather about where to in France to buy. Languedoc-Roussillon is one of the most popular regions in France. We are going to discover it through the presentation of two cities of the area, Limoux and Carcassonne.

Limoux:
Limoux is located around the Aude river and a bridge is linking the districts of the two towns on either side. Limoux is famous for its vineyards and in this town occurs the “Toques et Clochers” wine festival, which is the largest wine festival in the south of France around Chardonnay and brings together the big names in international gastronomy with an auction. The town is attarctive, with the entire wine producing network of cooperative and individual wine makers.
Limoux is perhaps best known for its winter festival called “Fecos”, often reffered to as “Carnaval de Limoux”. It takes place between January and Easter and is conducted in Occitan, the area’s traditional language. It is through the original tradition of carnival time that the community’s spirit and the town’s identity are expressed.
The café scene is dominant in Limoux where food and drink represent the major cultural pastime. The town’s traditional dishes are “les pebradous”, biscuits with pepper which are eaten with a blanquette, the pork fricassee with white beans and the Limoux gateau (batter lightly flavoured with orange flower and candied fruits) which is better known as galette des rois.
The “place de la Republique” is the heart of the town, where there is some stone arcading and numerous framed houses. There is a weekly market every Friday, an antique market the first Sunday of each month and evening markets on Tuesdays in July and August. The cultural places are the Musee Petiet, the Musee du Piano and the CathaRama which relates the history of the Cathar movement.
 Limoux is worth visiting in itself, but it is also an excellent place to discover the history of the region or to explore the coast and the mountains. The town of Limoux is not far from the ski slopes and many locals spend their week-end in the Pyrenees during the winter.

Carcassonne:
Carcassonne is a medieval fortress, unique in Europe for its beauty and its size, and was classified at the World heritage of the humanity by the UNESCO in 1997. The bastide Saint Louis, modern city built by King Saint Louis in 1247 offers a rich architecture, with Saint Michel Cathedral, buildings dating from the XIV to the XVIII century, Carnot square and the church Saint Vincent. The town is crossed by the Canal du Midi, with its peaceful waters and its old trees full of history. On July 14th, the Cite of Carcassonne offers beautiful colours with a unique pyrotechnical spectacle. In July, there is the Festival of la Cite and in August, you can watch a medieval spectacle. But the town is also famous for its vineyards; one of them has more than 3000ha around la Cite. The wine comes with the special traditional dishes, such as goose and duck confit or cassoulet.
Around the Medieval city, there is the lake of La Cavayere, a place where you dispose from entertainment equipments, picnic tables and mini golf.
Carcassonne is one of the most important economic centres in the south of France and the major part of its income comes from the tourism connected to the fortifications and the boat cruising on the Canal du Midi. The city receives about three million visitors each year.
You can access the city by its international airport, the train, the highway A61 or the Canal du Midi.

These two historic and cultural cities, Limoux and Carcassonne, reflect on their own the whole cultural heritage and the traditions of the region of Languedoc-Roussillon. Furthermore, the easy access to these cities, their lively atmosphere and the importance of nature make of them two of the most interesting places to enjoy holidays or to settle in. If you want to change from the stressful and the oppressive atmosphere in which you live in your city, these are the right places for you.