The best budget accommodation is the modern and friendly MJC Centre International de Sejour , in place Salengro (tel 04.68.32.01.00, fax 04.68.65.80.20; under 160F/€24). A couple of reasonable hotels are Will's Hotel , 23 av Pierre-Semard (tel 04.68.90.44.50, fax 04.68.32.26.28; 220-300F/€34-46), a homely backpackers' favourite near the station, and the spruce Hotel de France , 6 rue Rossini (tel 04.68.32.09.75, hotelfrance@bigfoot.com ; 220-300F/€34-46), beside the attractive market hall. A fancier option is the plush La Residence , 6 rue du 1er-Mai (tel 04.68.32.19.41, fax 04.68.65.18.48; 300-400F/€46-61), in a nineteenth-century renovated house, but the best is the magnificent La Dorade , 44 rue Jean-Jaures, (tel 04.68.32.65.95, fax 04.68.65.81.62; 220-300F/€34-46), facing the canal and set in a spectacular building built in 1648. The nearest campsite is Les Roches Grises , on the route de Perpignan to the southwest of town; take bus #2 from the Hotel-de-Ville.

As for food , the best choice in Narbonne is L'Alsace , at 2 av Pierre-Semard (tel 04.68.65.10.24; closed Tues; menus from 110F/€16.78), with a great decor and mammoth servings of good, simple terroir and northeastern French dishes. Alternatively you'll find a string of alfresco snackeries and brasseries along the terraces bordering the Canal de la Robine in the town centre, while L'Estagnol (tel 04.68.65.09.27; closed Sun; menus around 100F/€15.25), across the canal on Cours Mirabeau, attracts the crowds with its good-value, simple fare. For something a little fancier, try Aux Trois Caves , at 4 rue Benjamin-Cremieux (menus 120-240F/€18.30-36.30), with terroir dining in a medieval cellar, or the elegant La Petite Cour , north of the canal at 22 bd Gambetta (tel 04.68.90.48.03), in a high-ceilinged room decked with seascape murals; seafood is the order of the day, with a good choice of menus around 75F/€11.44 at lunchtime, and 125F/€19.06 in the evening.