La Souqueto

In the heart of the Languedoc, a region in France with a unique history and culture, is this effortlessly charming boutique guesthouse. Slap-bang in the centre of a small medieval village and only 30 minutes from Carcassonne, it is ideally located if you both want to be a tourist and also soak up unspoiled local life. The picture-perfect rooms are light and stylish, delicately balancing tradition and modernity: with exposed stone walls and wooden beams in the interiors, artworks hanging on the wall and cooling Mediterranean tiles on the floors. A short walk from the Canal du Midi, you can hire out the hotel's boat, the Bella Mia, and explore the lands that surround the historic canal. Wine tours, too, can be organised via the hotel of the Minervois vineyards in the surrounding countryside, but if you'd rather go your own way, you can rent a bike at reception and traverse the region yourself. After doing so, consider having a drink on the sun terrace and read about the region's dark and incredible history: the rebellion of the Cathars, a wildly "modern" and "liberal" religious movement that saw its downfall on the walls of Carcassonne, a fortified, fairy-tale-like medieval city.