Three times a week, all year round, an industrial wasteland next to the Jonage canal in Villeurbanne, on the outskirts of Lyon, becomes the site of France's second-largest flea market.
Like clockwork, dealers arrive at Les Puces du Canal in the early hours of the morning to unload and display their wares. Les Puces du Canal is a truly unique market that attracts around 500,000 visitors every year.
A true paradise for collectors of bric-a-brac and antiques, Les Puces du Canal is an unusual experience and well worth a visit if you're passing through Lyon. If you're looking for old furniture, vintage decor or anything with a designer or retro feel, then you've come to the right place: Les Puces du Canal brings together around 400 sellers and exhibitors every week, including antique dealers, vintage decor specialists, flea market dealers and collectors.
And if you're looking for quality items, don't worry: Les Puces du Canal is open three times a week, on Thursdays and Saturdays exclusively to professional stallholders, while members of the public are welcome to set up their own stall during the Sunday opening hours.
Each weekly event is divided into four different areas. Le Hangar, famous for its fine furniture, brings together more than a hundred well-known dealers who offer a wide range of antiques from the 16th to the 20th century. La halle Louis-la-Brocante, colloquially known as "les tôles", is the backbone of the market: it brings together second-hand dealers organised according to their specialities. Le village des containers, dedicated to design and more contemporary items (old bicycles, lamps and old posters). Last but not least, l'École is more focused on upcycled, restored and vintage items.
And when you've dug up a few hidden gems, browsed all the great deals on offer and haggled like your life depended on it, head to one of the guinguette such as Le Broc’ café or L’expo Bar for a well-deserved steak-frites, plenty of Rhone wine and a savory petit mâchon à la Lyonnaise.
Last but not least, the Puces du Canal hosts the Grand déballage International de Lyon twice a year. Situated on the route between the antique fairs of Chartres and Le Mans and those of the south of France, Avignon, Montpellier and Béziers, the Puces du Canal are not only at the crossroads of Europe, but also have the infrastructure to match.
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