Marche aux Puces de Saint-Ouen are famous flea markets in Paris. The markets were founded in the late 19th century and people say they are the largest in Europe with more than 2,500 stalls that are grouped into a dozen marchés (market areas), each with its own speciality (i.e. sneakers, army fatigue wear, fashion, taxidermy, antique furniture, vintage lots, jewelry, coins, etc.). The day we went was a bit cold and rainy but we were prepared to spend some time.
We took the metro to the Clignancourt stop and followed the crowd. A friend had given us sage advice beforehand: do not waste any time at the fringe but instead to walk right past it, under the overpass, and to just keep walking. Once we saw the stalls start to sell things different from their neighbors, we slowed down and started perusing.
My lack of photos in this post should be indicative of how enthralled I was at Marche aux Puces. We barely made a dent in exploring the different specialties but I was able to find vintage jewelry and accessories as well as antique furniture and art so I consider the day successful. While I don’t count haggling as one of my strengths (I envy people who do!), I still walked away with a vintage Balenciaga necklace and an authentic army fatigue jacket (to wear as a trench coat) for under 30€ total. This is huge considering how overwhelming it felt to be surrounded by so much stuff, but next time I plan on being more prepared.