Vintage Shopping 101 at the St-Ouen Flea Market

Let’s have it right: shopping in Paris goes far beyond the Champs-Élysées. In fact, (dare we say it), the best shopping in Paris can’t be found on any avenue or in any department store – but at flea markets. The marketplace that you’ll explore on this tour (hosted by Meeting the French) is the cream of Paris’s crop.

Across this three-hour guided tour, you’ll experience St-Ouen like a local. With an expert guide leading the charge, you’ll uncover the best genuine vintage finds – from 20s haute couture to 17th-century antique furniture – learn to bargain the French way, and hear of the intriguing 150 year-old history of St Ouen, which saw the market go from rag-and-bone street peddlers to one of the leading destinations for collectors around the world. Come with comfortable shoes and full wallets – you’ve got a lot of ground to cover.

About your guide

Despite our incessant grilling, there’s not a question that guides from Meeting The French can’t answer (about their chosen subject, that is). Their tours offer an insightful look into many charming facets of French life, and they’re a heap of fun too.

Here’s the plan…

Meet your guide outside those unmistakable golden arches (you know the ones), opposite the Porte de Clignancourt Metro station. From there, you’ll stroll to the St-Ouen Flea Market, just beyond the former city walls of Paris. Here, you’ll explore the largest flea market in the city, learn of the murky circumstances and the rag-and-bone hustlers that brought it to life way back in 1870, and meet the stallholders keeping its spirit alive today.

More than 2000 stalls are grouped into 15 marchés (markets), selling everything from 17th-century furniture to 80s vinyl. There’s a lot to wade through, but your guide steers you towards the shops most loved by locals. Your guide will happily make your biddings for you too, should your French only extend to “hi”s and “how are you?”s, like ours.

After sifting through the best furniture, textiles, ceramics, glassware, lighting, prints, vintage clothing, bags and jewellery (you name it and a stall likely sells it here) for two and a half hours – you’ll have earned yourself a little refreshment. Chez Louisette – a kitschy, retro cabaret cafe – is just the place for a pitstop. After a drink, your guide will say their goodbyes. You’re left to sit back, take in the vocals of a talented Edith Piath-style singer, and contemplate whether it’s worth running back to grab those shoes you spotted earlier (yes, always).