NArbonne Info

Narbonne

Narbonne is dominated by it's cathedral, the tower of which can be seen long before you reach the town, rising up way over the rooftops. Narbonne was once the capital of the Roman province of Narbonensis. It flourished as a port from ancient times into the middle ages and was home to an important Jewish university in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. In the mid-1300's things went awry, the plague struck and the Black Prince burnt the town down, the dykes of the Aude burst and the port silted up. This period of economic disaster only came to an end in the late 1800's with the birth of the modern wine industry which brought prosperity to the town and continues to support it today, and for which we are very very thankful! Narbonne is big on theatre and has a good carnival and festivals which are timed to coincide with the grape harvest. Narbonne is a small town, the whole of the 'old town' and home to all of the sights is only 1km by 750m rectangle, either side of the Canal de la Robine. The eastern half is home to the main attractions, the Archbishops' Palace, it's museums and the Cathedral plus a number of nearby medieval attractions. In the middle of the Place de l'Hotel de ville there is an uncovered section of the Roman Via Domitia which is surrounded by cafe's and a very pleasant place to stop and watch the world go by. The facade of the Archbishops' Palace which is decorated with Gothic looking flourishes is another of Viollet-le-Duc's (responsible for Carcassonnes'; Cite restoration) imaginative repairs. The Palace, now the town hall is a rambling complex which houses the two major museums and the Cathedral entrance. Through the Palace main doors is the entrance to the donjon a 42 metre tall defensive tower commissioned in the late thirteenth century by Gilles Aycelin the town's lord and archbishop. It is a good example of late thirteenth century military architecture with its splayed out base, which is constructed over the remains of the previous Roman wall, designed to prevent battering and help to withstand efforts to undermine the keep. There is not that much of interest to see inside but if you can manage the 162 step key-stone staircase you will enjoy excellent views of the Cathedral and the countryside.

If you venture west of the Canal de la Robine there is the parish church; Basilique de St-Paul on rue Dupleix, it is a tall thirteenth-century construction, inside is a pleasant mix of Romanesque and Gothic Architecture. The main interest here is the crypt built over a paleo-Christian necropolis which dates back to the fourth century, the towns first archbishop was buried here. Outside the crypt around the far side of the church at the junction of rue de l'Hotel Dieu with rue Quinet is the impressive facade of the sixteenth-century Maison de Trois Nourrices. Next left will take you rue Belfort and more medieval dwellings, at the end of the street a place busy with cars opens up right in front of the former abbey church of Notre-Dame-de-la-Mourguie. Undergoing restoration it will open as the lapidary museum with a large collection of over 1,000 statues, tombstones and sarcophagi many dating back to days of Roman glory. Narbonne has a wonderfully restored nineteenth-century covered market beside the church on the banks of the canal, where you can purchase all manner of food and drink, or stop for a glass of something whilst you are there.

There is a small department store in the centre of town, mono-prix which sells mainly cheap clothing and has a food store in the basement and lots of smaller boutique shops where you can even purchase designer labels such as Jean Paul Gaultier. There are a couple of internet cafes the largest and most central one is just along from the main square, and has enough monitors so that you shouldn't have to wait too long.

There are quite a few places to eat, restaurants, brasseries and bistros, where you can eat well; 3 courses for € 15, situated along the cours de la Republique on the southern side of the Canal de la Robine and running east from there the boulevard Gambetta also has places to eat and drink. Narbonne has a surprisingly good nightlife with a copious number of lively bars and clubs. A good place to start off the evening is the small corner cafe, Cafe le Soleil Noir in place de l'Hotel de la Ville which is open until 2am in July and August. Livelier late night places include Le Cyrano on boulevard Gambetta, a bar with pool table and Le Galion on avenue Anatole France which is open until 2am and has different nightly themes and dancing. For the cool crowd go to the cocktail bars, Why Not Cafe and Le Bal Masque both on rue Marcelin-Coural. The former has live music and DJ's who play mainly sixties music and the latter more variety music wise and salsa on Fridays. If a quite drink is what you are after then pop along to the pub Chez Fred which is in the Hotel Dorade.

There are many hotels to stay in from the larger chains which are on the edge of the town to more central hotels like La Residence 04 68 32 19 41 which is an early nineteenth-century converted house in a good location with the added bonus of having it's own garage which is much needed as parking can be hard to find and limited to certain times. Another nice hotel is La Dorade 04 68 32 65 95 which was founded as a hotel in 1648 and a favourite of visiting nobility. This hotel was completely renovated in 1990 and occupies a lovely position facing out to the canal and also has it's own garage.

Wine Makers of Narbonne

BENET ODILE - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 32 00 48

CAVE COOPERATIVE DE NARBONNE ET DU QUATOURZE - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 42 28 30

CAVE COOPERATIVE DE ST CHARLES DE QUATOURZE - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 41 01 52

CAVE COOPERATIVE DE VINIFICATION DE LA REGION DE NARBONNE - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 42 28 30

CELLIERS DE L'ARCHEVECHE - 11100 NARBONNE

CHATEAU AURIS - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 45 19 43 -

CHATEAU DE CAPITOUL - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 49 23 30

CHATEAU DE PECH REDON - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 90 41 22

CHATEAU DE PRAT-DE-CEST - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 42 20 68

CHATEAU DE RICARDELLE - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 65 21 00

CHATEAU DE VIRES - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 45 30 80

CHATEAU JONQUIERES - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 42 85 00

CHATEAU LES OLLIEUX ROMANIS - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 42 75 37

CHATEAU LUNES & TAPIE - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 41 58 92

CHATEAU MOUJAN - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 65 24 71 - Mail - Site

CHATEAU NOTRE DAME DU QUATOURZE - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 41 58 92

DOMAINE CRABIT ST AUGUSTIN - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 42 32 80

DOMAINE DE COUDERC - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 42 52 04

DOMAINE DE FIGUIERES - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 90 45 07

DOMAINE DE L'HOSPITALET - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 45 34 47 -

DOMAINE DE LA ROCHE VIVE - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 42 83 65

DOMAINE DE MOYAU - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 42 20 68

DOMAINE DES KARANTES - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 49 84 72

DOMAINE DES MONGETTES - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 32 10 05

DOMAINE DU GRAND QUATOURZE - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 41 57 12

DOMAINE LE PETIT ROMILHAC - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 41 06 75

DOMAINE MONTFORT - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 49 59 46

DOMAINE MOUTON SCEA - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 32 05 96

DOMAINE ST REGIS DU QUATOURZE - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 32 43 01

DOMAINE STE JOHANNES - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 42 51 00

ESCANDE IRENEE-JOSEPH - 11100 NARBONNE

ESCANDE JEAN - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 41 01 03

HORTAL ROBERT - 11100 NARBONNE - TÈl.: 04 68 32 06 68

VIGNERONS DE SEPTIMANIE - 11000 NARBONNE

Market Days:

Narbonne--- Sunday ---General

Narbonne ---Thursday ---General

Narbonne--- Tuesday ---2nd hand clothes

Narbonne ---Wednesday ---General

http://www.reserveafricainesigean.fr/ Zoo/safari park between Narbonne and Sigean

http://www.mairie-narbonne.fr Narbonne Mayor's site, with info for visitors