A Guide to Les Puces de Saint-Ouen, the Famous Flea Market

“Once upon a time, the Marché aux Puces de Saint-Ouen was a must-stop for antique lovers and curious visitors looking for a memento. But on a sunny Saturday in late March a pleasantly uncrowded market testified to just how deeply eBay, the economic crisis, and competition among Paris’s neighbourhood markets and bargain fleas have eroded Saint-Ouen’s mystique. Nowadays there are fewer bargains and a starker contrast between the market’s high-end vendors and its tiny stalls brimming with bric-a-brac. Still, with 15 independent markets and more than 1,500 sellers there’s nowhere else in the world where you’ll find this concentration and variety of vintage and antiques. So if you’re willing to comb the stalls, which is what it’s all about, you can bet you’ll be amply rewarded.”