Hotel De La Cite Carcassonne

Stained-glass windows throw colored light across rooms furnished with antique pieces and ornate woodwork, and a few open onto balconies overlooking the medieval ramparts directly below. This MGallery hotel sits inside the walled citadel of Carcassonne, with a Gothic basilica as its nearest neighbor. Modern bathrooms and air conditioning are the only clues that you haven't actually gone back several centuries. A library bar with piano accompaniment handles the evenings.

One honor, in evidence: