Back in July, I had a random idea to travel but hadn't done any planning until the very last moment my 2-week leave was about to kick off. Time flies. I realised that I had to make a decision anyway.

"Paris seems to be a nice destination for city break, maybe." I talked to myself one night while surfing Instagram and spotted photos of some random French pastries. I instantly booked a one-way ticket from Hong Kong to Paris on the same night. The rest of the trip...hmmm...will see....

Anyway, there I go, Europe!

A Must-Do: Checking-in on Facebook with a snapshot of the most touristic place in Paris

I rushed to Hong Kong International Airport on the Friday evening and was in the glare of Paris sunshine on the next morning. Nice start of my very first solo city break experience.

The concept of city break is still pretty new to me, guess probably because I am too used to travel with assignment/specific goal and always got trapped in unusual situations, like, being dumped by driver in nowhere of the remote Caucasus Mountain area and had to hitchhike all the way from Georgia to Russia. Simply going to a foreign country and to do nothing but enjoy city life is something I would consider as completely SPECIAL (also abnormal)!

Note: My backpack weighted 7.2 kg only, probably because there was no DSLR this time, just iPhone and a Praktica SLR + 55mm f/1.8. Achievement unlocked!

Room is tastefully decorated with pastel colours

The sitting area

Hotel Balzac is a pretty boutique hotel located right in the heart of Paris, literally just off the Champs-Elysées and very close to the Arc de Triomphe. The deluxe room was spacious and its comfy king-size bed quickly healed my jet lag.

The hotel itself has an antique look&feel that any vintage-loving hipster (like me) would fall in love with at first sight, not to mention if you are also a foodie, the Pierre Gagnaire’s eponymous, and highly regarded, 3 Michelin stars restaurant can be found just downstairs. The only "downside" of this hotel could probably be their tight availability. Having only 69 rooms out from the whole building meaning their rooms can go really quick during peak season. There is a chance to get a nice discount like 20% off if you pre-book the room 20 days in advance. Also, better to secure the number of night needed for the room upon arrival/during the booking.

Just 2 mins walking from the hotel

I visited most of the touristy places in Paris when I first travelled to Paris with my sister years ago (missed the sweet young backpacking time though...) so this time, I decided just to relax, wandering around the streets and markets, spent a whole day in the Paris weekend flea market and I wasn't disappointed after all.

Those touristy places...all checked last time

Before I head to my next destination, Poland, I went up to the Sacre Coeur on Montmartre in the early morning and it was filled with tourists already. Hmm...

Less crowded way uphill but have to walk all the concrete steps

Sacre Coeur, checked!

This city view though!

My so-called Paris city break experience was nothing special or fancy, pretty much just loads of eating out, some sightseeing, a bit of shopping along Champs-Elysées and eating some more french fries while watching telly on bed at night....

I am not too sure if I like this kind of travel but it is always good to experience something new.

The Paris Flea Market in the Porte de Clignancourt area (officially called "Les Puces de Saint-Ouen" and has been referred as "Puces de Clignancourt" commonly) is a flea market area located in the Saint-Ouen area, northern suburb of Paris. It may sound far away from the Paris city centre but it is instead well connected with the Paris Metro system and within a reasonable walking distance (~30 minutes) from Montmartre/18th arrondissement.

Vintage style accessories can be found easily in the flea markets

Paris Flea Market Actually Hosts 14 Markets

Don't be surprised to learn that the Paris Flea Market itself is actually hosting 14 different flea markets across the Clignancourt area. Detailed descriptions of each market can be found here. (Also see map below)

I've spent a whole day in the area and had only visited 6 markets. The whole market can surely take up a full day or even more. (There is a swap meet/open area bazaar called Le Plateau near Boulevard Peripherique, people tends to skip that at all but I walked through it...nothing special there indeed.)

 

The open area bazaar, Le Plateau, where cheap garments are available

Inside Le Plateau

Getting There

By Paris Metro: Porte de Clignancourt(Line 4) or Garibaldi(Line 13)

Take the métro to Porte de Clignancourt on Line 4 (personally suggested this way because it is the closest metro station to the market area) and follow the crowds after the exit. Yes, just follow the crowds. I am not kidding because on the Saturday morning I was there, there was a sea of people flowing in the same direction after exiting the metro. So I was thinking "Hmm...this can't be wrong." Yep, I was right.

If you happen to arrive on a quiet day when there is no crowd for you to follow, look for sign of “Les Puces” (means Fleas in French) after you exit Porte de Clignancourt. You can also easily spot the freeway overpass along Boulevard Peripherique. The flea market area starts just across the Boulevard Peripherique.

On my way to Market Vernaison and spotted some sweet corns fresh off the trolley 

Tips:
Before you plan your visit to the markets, I'd suggest to get yourself familiar with the location and description of each market with the help of this pdf leaflet.

Here is the map exact from the leaflet.

Pink/Magenta: Antique shops/stalls, open only on weekends (+ some stalls on Monday)
Purple: Antique markets for professionals, open on weekdays, some are by appointment only
That Brownish Colour: Markets for new clothes (Try to avoid Le Plateau unless you are interested in those cheaply-made clothes/ill-fitted iPhone cases/counterfeit Adidas trainers/Eiffel Tower keychains)

Opening Hour

Saturday 0900 - 1800
Sunday 1000 - 1800
Monday 1100 - 1700 (Note: Not all shops/stalls open on Monday!)

What To Expect There

Varieties of goods, from sky-high expensive vintage furniture, toys from early 1900s to cheaply made retro style necklaces and some poorly pixelated pin up girl reprints that would cost you €2. It really takes time to find the nice stuffs.

 Creepy bathing dolls from early 1900s (equivalent to the modern age yellow rubber ducks...)

 A small selection of letterpress lead type characters

Not working anymore, I assume

 Narrow alleys in Market Vernaison

 Vintage hand bind hardcover books

 Letters from the 1940s-60s

Pricey furniture just placed on the street causally