Showing posts with label commercial centers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label commercial centers. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

The flea market in Paris

Shopping in flea markets is very interesting. Paris has very famous flea markets. Many visitors enjoy visiting, shopping in Paris flea markets.

There are three main flea markets in Paris:

One in Porte de Montreuil - 20e Porte-de-Montreuil. One of the cheapest flea markets, specialising in second-hand clothes, and also some furniture and other houseware.

One in Porte de Vanves - Avenue Georges-Lafenestre. An enormous range of bric-a-brac can be found at this popular market.

One in Saint-Ouen / Porte de Clignancourt - "Le marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen". "Le marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen" is the most famous one, and when people talking about Paris flea market, it is most likely talking about "Le marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen". We shall introduce more about "Le marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen". All photos were shot there.


Location of three Paris flea markets. You can reach all these flea markets by Mero. All these three flea markets are open on Saturday, Sunday and Monday all arround the year, 07:00 to 19:00.

“Le marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen" has a long histry. It was inaugurated in 1885 and extends over six hectares. Now, the Puces de Saint Ouen have more than 2000 shops. Just image that it recieves 70 000 visitors every week, you can understand that this is a worth visit place for a visitor.

In the fifties and sixties of 20th century, the Puces de Saint-Ouen was a market place to buy cheap but good and old furnitures. This is not the case anymore, but it is still a very interesting place to visit. The choice is large: old furnitures, old art pieces, clothes, shoses, poceline, time pieces, military pieces, almost every thing you can image. The prices are moderate to high.

The Puces de Saint-Ouen are located on the north edge of Paris. They can best be reached by the metro (station Garibaldi on line 13, station Porte de Clinagncourt on line 4). Going by car is also very easy: take the ring, exit at Porte de Clinagncourt, you are there.

The Flea market at Vanves keeps its original charm and originality. A veritable Ali-Baba cave, a large selection of goods awaits on the sidewalks of the avenues of Marc Sangnier and Georges Lafenestre in the fourteenth arrondissement.

You can hunt like a pro on Saturday morning or bring the family on Sunday morning. There are four hundred merchants most of whom are afficionados of their merchandise and some are strongly individualistic personalities, being mixture of specialists and some with a wide range of knowledge, all of whom offer you interesting merchandise gathered during the
week from all over France. Here you can find all sorts of things : furnishings and household objects from the early 19001s , Art Deco from the twenties and the thirties, and nostalgic fifties and the sixties collectibles, weird things, kitch, clothes
and old textiles, lace, worktables, dinner things, glasses, silverware, jewelry, African and Oriental art objects, small traditional tables, chandeliers, paintings and prints, bathroom things, photos, cameras and phonographs, books, garden furnitures.

The text of above two paragraphs and two pictures about Flea market at Vanves were provided by friends of Flea market at Vanves.

Here we have photos:



There are actually 13 markets in “Le marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen" .

When you get to the station Porte de Clinagncourt, you will see many people flow to a direction, and there are many shops selling clothes, shoes, low price watches and other electronic appliances in the street. That is not real “Le marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen" . The real flea markets are inside, after you go through the crowded streets.

The real flea markets “Le marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen" are calm, it is for collectors, and dealers all over the world nowadays.


Visiting to some stalls in flea markets is as if visiting a museum.


This is a modern shop in flea markets.


Perhaps you can find a treasure here!


Every thing is possible here. Who knows what these huge jars, each higher than 1.2 meters, were used for!


In an old fashion shop, we found these old rackets.


Globes of different size.


You can find very fine articles here.




You can have your old fashion furnitures or articles repaired here.


Packing and shipping companies serve to all over the world.


Many cafe bars and restaurants here. Have a cup of wine after a long time shopping in “Le marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen" ?


The Flea market at Vanves keeps its original charm and originality. A veritable Ali-Baba cave, a large selection of goods awaits on the sidewalks of the avenues of Marc Sangnier and Georges Lafenestre in the fourteenth arrondissement.


The Flea market at Vanves in the evening.

Monday, June 25, 2007

Shopping in Paris supermarkets and commercial centers

There are few large supermarkets in Paris city center. It is said that maximum area of a supermarket in Paris city downtown must be under 200 squre meters. Parisians buy their grocery in Monoprix, Franceprix, ATAC , ED, Leader Price and so on, relatively smaller supermarkets in every street corner.


Large supermarkets such as Carrefour, Auchan and Intermarche are distributed at the outskirts of Paris. Most of them are open in a shopping center. Larger supermarkets sell every thing, from the food stocks to clothes, soft drinks to spirits, small electric appliances to computers, some even sell diamonds. If you want to buy some special French products such as foie gras, fromages, champagnes, French wines, you can simply go to a larger supermarket to find them. The price is low, and the quality is as good, that is the place where French consumers buy their every day consumer goods.


Like other metropolitans, more and more giant malls have grown up in farther suburbs of Paris, Ile De France. Many Parisians and inhabitants of the Ile de France region surrounding her (10 millions people altogether) do their shopping in huge suburban shopping centers. Easily reachable by car, as well as by Metro, by RER, located in the residential districts, they usually include a gigantic Auchan, Carrefour. They also include lots of restaurants and stores selling clothes, books, records and other stuff.



You can find very interesting shopping centers along RER A: Les Quatre Temps in La Défense, Forum les Halles in Chatelet Les Halles; and larger ones at Val de Fontenay, at Neuilly Plaisance, at Noisy le Grand, at Torcy, at Val d’Europe. Here we should emphasize commercial center in Val d’Europe, which is new one, one stop to Disneyland, it is called as international shopping center. Some foreign guests often visit there.


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This is shopping center Forum des Halles - most crowded shopping center in Paris. It is located at the heart of Paris: Châtelete. All shops are underground, directly connect to the RER - Metro station: Châtelete - Les-Halles. RER A, RER B, RER D and Merto No.1, No.4, No.7, No.11, No.14 all stop here. This plaza was the city’s principal market in the middle ages. Today, it has become a paradise of consumers. This huge shopping arcade offers a selection of chain shops catering for a young and mixed crowd, as well as cinemas and a swimming pool, though there is not a hypermarche in it. The Espace Créateurs (Porte Berger, Level -1) is a special section where you can browse and buy the creations of young and up-and-coming Parisian designers. On the surface, it is a beautiful garden. an attractive visit point even not for shopping.


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This is more tradictional Paris commercial center - a “passage" If you have time walking around, you will be able to discover it. Arts, fashion, traditional French restaurants are all gathering in these “passages"


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Newly built shopping center at Torcy. A giant Carrefour, Darty, and a Leroy Marlin and many boutiques are included in this large commercial center. RER A: Torcy


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Many foreign visitors like shopping in Val d’Eulope. This shopping center is located at the east of Paris, just one stop to Disneyland Paris by RER A. This commercial center is very new, but also very complete. There is a large supermarket Auchan, an large electronic store Darty, and Fnac and many smaller boutiques. If you are tired, you can relax by listening to music, watching movie, visiting the exhibition Sea life, enjoying seafood and various style cuisine in the commercial center.


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Not only young girls like jennyfer.


Different style restaurants in the terran offering good service to costumers of the shopping center.



Other shooping centers in Paris downtown or outskirts:


Bercy 2
4, place de l’Europe - 94228 Charenton
Metro: Charenton-Libert

Boutiques du Palais des Congrès
Porte Maillot - 75017 Paris
Metro: Porte Maillot

Carrousel du Louvre
99, rue de Rivoli - 75001 Paris
This underground shopping center is connecting to Museum Louvre. Open time is similar to Louvre: daily from 11:00 am to 8 pm except Tuesdays.
Metro: Palais Royal / Musée du Louvre

Centre commercial Galaxie
30, avenue d’Italie - 75013 Paris
Metro: Place d’Italie



Galeries marchandes des Champs-Elysées
Lido, passage des Champs-Elysées, Berri, Claridge, Rond-Point des Champs-Elysées - 75008 Paris
Metro: George V, Franklin-D-Roosevelt


Les 4 temps
15, le Parvis de la Défense - 92092 Paris la Défense
RER and Metro: La Défense


Les 3 quartiers
23, boulevard de la Madeleine - 75001 Paris
Metro: Madeleine

Maine Montparnasse
Tour Maine-Montparnasse - 75014 Paris
Metro: Montparnasse-Bienvenue


Marche Saint-Germain
rue Clément - 75006 Paris
Metro: Saint-Sulpice, Mabillon


Passage du Havre
12-14, rue du Havre - 75009 Paris
Metro: Saint-Lazare