Hostel Coeur de Cite

This is the first website review of this hostel because it opened only 2 weeks ago according to the receptionist. I think my experience here was unique but hopefully this review will be helpful to others anyway. I stayed here on Sunday and Monday nights. I think I must’ve been one of maybe 3 travelers max there. I think this is because the hostel is really new (but in an old building). So the hostel was socially dead (although this was fine with me). This may change in the future — in fact, they have a huge kitchen, living room, courtyard and dining room so maybe if more people come, the atmosphere would be more lively. The best part of the hostel is the location. It’s at the very center of Carcassonne’s medieval district. It’s a bit tricky to get to if you have heavy backpacks/luggage because you have to climb many stairs before you get inside the walled district, but it was manageable for me. The staff were nice, although not always available. They told me that they had breakfast in the morning if I asked for 6.50 euro, but when I checked out at 7:15am, I had to ring the bell several times before someone even showed up after 5 min. This was strange, since breakfast was meant to be available between 7-9am. The wifi was only available near the receptionist desk. It seems likely that this will be fixed shortly after I’m gone, but it was a bit irritating. Also, there were no outlets next to the beds. I stayed by myself in a 6-bed dorm, so this wasn’t a problem for me, but it’s worth keeping in mind. Overall I enjoyed my stay at La Cœur de Cite, but I think it would have been better with more accommodating facilities (granted, I didn’t take advantage of the large spaces like the kitchen) a more present staff, and just more travelers around. I do think these factors will change soon, seeing as this hostel is so new and has a lot of opportunities to improve. To be honest, I would probably stay again if only for the location.