9-Nights Southern France Self-drive: Bordeaux, Lourdes, Carcassonne & More

Montpellier

The city of Montpellier is gorgeous, shining and welcoming one, with a history kept within each stone. Founded from the 10th to the 12th century by Jews, Muslims, and Christians, it values tolerance and fraternity and has since developed a very special Mediterranean "art de vivre". The culture year in Montpellier is marked by numerous festivals and plenty of artistic events. Come discover its museums, temporary exhibitions and 18th century follies.

Carcassonne

Carcassonne is a French town in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of southern France. The fortified town sits at a rocky hilltop. Settlement was first discovered in 3500 BC however by the 6th century during the Iron Age, when the Romans were conquering Europe, trade became rampant that the Romans decided to secure the hilltop for better defenses. The fortress is designed with two outer walls and 53 towers to prevent sieges or attacks.

Visitors can stroll across the castle drawbridge through the medieval rustic town of La Cite. The walls within the stoned walls have centuries old of stories upon which may be watched at the theater grounds. This spectacular fairy-tale fortress in the French countryside is waiting to be explored!

Lourdes

In the heart of the Pyrenees, Lourdes receives more than 5 million visitors from all over the world every year. Spirituality, whether belonging to history or legends, is part of the present through the depth and beauty of the sight, the marks of the past, the serenity of the Sanctuaries. Lourdes was just a small market town in 1858, when Bernadette Soubirous met, along the River Gave, the “Lady” that made the town a Marian city. Bernadette saw many more of these apparitions. Many now come on religious pilgrimages. Today Lourdes has the second greatest number of hotels in France with 270 establishments. Its geographical position, at the foot of the mountains, makes it an ideal starting-point of excursions to the Pyrenees. The Fortified Castle rises at the middle of the city, leaning on the escarpment. Visit the Sanctuaries, Fortified Castle, Pyrenan Museum and more while visiting Lourdes.

Bordeaux

Surrounding Bordeaux are world-renowned vineyards and châteaux. Visitors from all over the globe come here to learn about the winemaking process - from growing grapes to harvesting, fermenting and bottling these top-quality wines. Here in the wine region the title of château can mean anything from a palatial residence to a basic winery. There are thousands of châteaux that rank from very modest family establishments to large famous properties where grapes are raised, fermented and then matured to produce the area’s famous wines. Visit Rue Ste. Cathérine - a half-mile-long pedestrian street leading through the Old Town’s major shopping area and marking the beginning of the elegant 18th-century city. - and Musée des Beaux Arts -- a museum with a large collection of 17th-century paintings by Flemish, Dutch and Italian masters as well as works by Delacroix.