Shopping locally is one of the great pleasures of a French holiday and Provence has some of the best markets in the whole country.

Here’s my guide to the major markets in Provence, from fish to fresh flowers, from brocante and flea markets to antiques. You’ll discover more in or near where you’re staying (visit the local tourist office for detailed information).

Helpful Tips

Most markets are in the morning, starting at 7 or 8am and going on until 1pm when the traders pack away their stalls. You’ll find some markets (particularly antiques, bric-a-brac, books etc.) continue into the afternoon. And in summer many towns have an evening market. If there are no hours indicated, then they are 8am to 1pm.

If you don’t know where the market is, ask anybody for le marché (le mar-shay).

By law, price tags must state the origin of all produce. ‘Du pays’ means local, so look out for those products.

What to shop for in the markets of Provence

Lavender and Provence go hand in hand and you’ll find it everywhere in the local markets in all kinds of products. Who hasn’t bought those famous lavender bags to take home?

Marseille soap is world renowned. Check out all the different sizes, colours and perfumes.

Traditional crafts are found in all the main markets. In the run up to Christmas, look for little pottery santons (Christmas crèche figures).

Buy lengths of those famous Provençal textiles. Or find readymade tablecloths, napkins and bags (even Princess Diana had one). One of the best known names is Souleiado which also does mail order.

Food is the main reason most people shop in Provence markets. Fresh fruit and vegetables are piled high on the stalls; breads of every kind are on offer; herbs are tied into little bundles. Follow your nose to the cheese vans. Buy everything for a picnic, or if you’re in a self-catering apartment, shop for the ingredients for your meals.

Olive oil comes in pretty bottles or economically sensible litre cans (which you can use as vases or plant pots after the olive oil has been used up). If you’re in Provence make sure you visit one of the mills to see how this precious commodity is made.

Top Markets in Provence

Provence markets in Bouches-du-Rhône 

Aix-en-Provence

The main markets are in the old town where they fill the streets. Peak days like many of the Provence markets are Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

Food Market: Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday on Place des Prêcheurs for top food and fish. Daily on Place Richelme.

Flower market: Daily on Place de la Mairie.

Antiques and Flea market: Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday on Cours Mirabeau.

Clothing market: Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday on Cours Mirabeau for good fashion and textiles.

Arles

The Roman town of Arles has good, large markets which have been going since King Henri III granted permission in 1584. He allowed everything from the Orient, Arabia, Assyria and Arles. Today there are around 300 stalls on Wednesday and 450 on Saturday.

General market with everything from food to clothes, textiles and crafts: Wednesday on Boulevard Émile-Combes. Saturday on Les boulevards des Lices, Georges-Clemenceau and Émile-Combes.

Brocante market: 1^st and 3^rd Wednesday of each month, 8am-5.30pm on the Boulevard des Lices.

Local farmers market: May to October on Place Voltaire from 5pm to 8pm.

Marseille

As befits the major city of Marseille, there are markets aplenty. And for that whiff of authenticity, start off at the fish market.

Fish market (Le Marché de la Criée): Daily on the Old Port.

Food market: Known as La Canebière or Noailles, this is the place for exotic fruits and vegetables, spices and herbs with many stalls run by the local African and Asian community. It’s busy, noisy and colourful. Monday to Saturday 8am-7pm.

General market: Le Marché du Prado has everything from food to clothes, toys to books. It’s one of the biggest in France. Between Places Castellane and Périer. Monday to Saturday.

General Market: Le Marché de Castellane has much the same and is an extension of the Prado. Monday to Saturday.

Local product market: Wednesday at Le Cours Julien
Sunday: Stamp market
2^nd Saturday of the month: Second-hand book market
3^rd Sunday of the month: Brocante market.

Artisan and Bio market: Good market with local produce. Tuesday and Saturday in Place Léon Blum.

Flea market: Best known in Marseille and the surrounding the area and full of delightful surprises of just about everything. It’s more than a market with a covered area as well as outside stalls. Covered market is open daily except Monday 8.30am-7.30pm. The flea market is open Saturday and Sunday 7.30am-2pm.

Also look out for the Christmas santons market. It’s been selling those pottery nativity figures since 1803.

Provence markets in the Vaucluse

Avignon

The beautiful city of Avignon with its spectacular Pope’s Palace is the gateway to Provence. So expect top quality fruit and vegetables in its Provence markets.

Food market: Avignon’s covered market has around 40 stall holders selling meat, herbs, spices and more. Les Halles covered market is at Place Pie. Open daily except Monday 6am-2pm. Every Saturday there’s a free cookery demonstration by a local chef.

General market: Thursday on Place Charles David.

Local farmers market: Monday April 4 to September 26, 2021 from 4pm to 7pm on the Allées de l’Oulle.

Brocante market: Sunday morning on Place des Carmes.

Carpentras

The delightful market town has one of the largest markets in France.

Food market: Daily except Mondays at the Marché gare.
Food market: Friday in rue de Carpentras.

Puces-Brocante (flea market): Sunday in Parking des Platanes (Av. Jean-Jaurès). Good market, step above a vide grenier but not quite a brocante! 10am-4pm.

Truffle market: The truffle market runs from November to March on Fridays on pl. Aristide Briand, 8am to noon. There’s also a summer truffle market.

L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue

L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue is best known as France’s most prestigious antiques town. It’s to antiques what Hay-on-Wye in England is to books. But they also have to eat so check out the excellent markets.

Regional produce market: Thursday mornings from 9am to 12.30pm around the church.

Provençal market: Sunday 8am to 2pm throughout the city and along the river.

Floating market: 1^st Sunday of August when boats go between the banks, selling food, wine and more.

Brocante market: Sunday 8am to 6pm along the Avenue 4 Hostages.

There are also two famous weekend markets, over the Easter weekend, and in mid-August.

Vaison-la-Romaine

This former important Roman town has four main markets.

General market: Daily from 7am to 3pm in the centre of town.

General market: Saturday Place François Cevert.

Summer market: Thursday in Place François Cevert.

Provençal market: Tuesday combining local farmers’ produce alongside furniture and Provence items such as linen, oils, soaps, fabrics and more.

Provence markets in the Luberon

Apt

General market: Apt has the largest market in the Luberon. It’s only on a Saturday morning but has everything you could possibly want, and a few things you didn’t even know about. Comprehensive selection of fruit, vegetables, food and flowers. It’s all around the place de la Bouquerie and into the neigbouring street up to le cours Lauze de Perret.

Farmers market: Tuesday evening, April to December as a farmer’s market every Tuesday evening, from April to December, in the Cours Lauze de Perret.

Ceramics market: Mid August for an excellent selection of local pottery.

Provence markets in the Var

Aups

This pretty small village near the Verdon gorges comes alive on market days.

General market: Wednesdays and Saturdays with its markets held under the plane trees in Place de la Mairie.

The winter black truffle market is one of the biggest in France. Held from end of November to beginning of March every Thursday 9.30am-noon. Find out more about truffles at the Maison de la Truffe.

Salernes

General market: Sunday and Wednesday in the main square. It’s not as extensive as some of the others, but Salernes is known for its tiles and pottery so visit some of the manufacturers here. There’s also an excellent museum, Terra Rossa that is a must for all ceramic enthusiasts.

Sanary-sur-Mer

Sanary-sur-mer has some of the prettiest markets in France.

Daily markets including the fish market but the biggest is the Wednesday morning general market. Over 300 stalls under the plane trees in the alle d’Estienne d’Orves and down in the port on the quai Charles de Gaulle.

Saint-Tropez

There’s plenty going on in the markets in St Trop as you’d expect from this lively, chic resort.

General market: Huge range of food plus fashion at this popular market. Tuesday and Saturday. Place des Lices.

La Grande Braderie de Saint Tropez. In late October many of the boutiques take their clothes out onto racks in the streets and sell them off at bargain prices. Friday 29 October to Monday 1 November 2021 from 9am to 7pm.

Summer & Night Markets – Marche Nocturne: During the holiday season the night markets take over the street in the towns around St Tropez. In July and August look out for Ramatuelle Night Market, La Faviere Night Market in Bormes-les-Mimosas and La Croix-Valmer Night Market. They are open from 5pm to 7pm to midnight.

Toulon

Toulon isn’t the most popular town in the Var for tourists but on market days the streets fill up with stalls and people.

Fruit, vegetables and textiles: daily except Mondays at Cours Lafayette, Rue Paul Lendrin, Place Louis Blanc, Rue de Lorgues and Place Paul Comte.

Local farmers’ market: Tuesday, Friday, Saturday on Rue Paul Lendrin

Mourillon market for fruit & veg, fish, local cheeses and textile. Daily except Monday: Place Emile Claude & Place Monseigneur Deydier

General market: Daily except Monday in the Place Martin Bidouré

Provence markets in the Alpes-Maritimes

Antibes

You can’t miss the historic covered market that fills the Cours Masséna down by the port.

Food market: Here you’ll find everything you could want. The stalls running around the two outer sides are for professional growers and traders. People with smallholdings and large gardens occupy the stalls running down the middle. Daily June 1 to Sep 1. Other months daily except Mondays.

Craft market: This market takes over the Cours Masséna in the afternoons from 3pm after the food and vegetable market is cleared away.
Mid-June to end of September Tuesday to Sunday. October to mid-June: Friday, Saturday, Sunday.

Clothing market: This is worth a browse; you’ll find some pretty ordinary items but there are good stalls with good clothes to seek out.
Tuesday, Saturday: Place Amiral Barnaud
Thursday:  Boulevard Albert 1er and Place Amiral Barnaud.

Brocante market: The second-hand market often has some very good buys, though you’ll have to search for the bargains. Antiques, china, glass, books, posters, post cards, jewellery and more.
Thursday, Saturday: Place Audiberti. Saturday: Place De Gaulle and Boulevard d’Aguillon. 

Cannes

There are plenty of interesting markets in Cannes which is something of a shopping destination.

Covered markets: There are three main covered markets in Cannes:
Forville (rue Gazagnaire close to the bus station): Flowers, fruit and veg, plus small shops for household goods. Open daily except Mondays.
Gambetta (place Gambetta): Fruit, vegetables, meat, cheese etc. plus clothes, shoes, jewellery and leather goods.
La Bocca (on bus lines 1, 2 and 20): General food market daily except Monday. Saturday’s market which is huge covering all foods, plus clothes etc. closes at 12.30pm.

Antiques and brocante market: Mondays at Forville 8am-6pm and La Bocca Thursdays 8am-12.30pm.

Nice

Nice really is a draw for market lovers. The best known and most popular is in the Cours Saleya in the Old Town designated a ‘Special Market’ by the National Council for the Culinary Arts.

Cours Saleya fruit and vegetable market. Daily except Mondays, from 6am to 1.30pm.
Running right next to the fruit and vegetables is the flower market, held every day except Mondays and Sunday afternoons from 6am to 5.30pm.

The Brocante market takes over the Cours Saleya when the produce market is closed. Find those second-hand bargains every Monday from 7.30am to 6pm.  If you miss that, try the place Garibaldi on the third Saturday of every month from 7am to 6pm.

Evening Craft market: Art, ceramics and jewellery from local crafts people. Mid May to mid September daily except Monday 6pm to midnight.

Fish Market: With a good variety of fish it’s on Place Jacques Toja daily except Monday from 6am to 1pm.  

At the Place du Palais de Justice:
Old, rare edition and used books: 1st and 3rd Saturday of the month
Artistic and craft products: The 2nd Saturday of the month
Post cards, old discs and newspapers: 4th Saturday of the month.

Winter hours for all these markets: 7am-5pm; Summer hours 7am-7pm.

More about shopping in France

Flea Markets and Brocante shopping in France
Discount, Malls and Sales shopping in France

More about Food in France

Regional French Food
Discover the top Food Festivals in France throughout the year
Read more about Food in Burgundy
Read more about the Food of Provence
French Christmas Food

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Imagine the food of Provence and you’re sitting in cafés watching the world go by and enjoying leisurely meals in peaceful squares beside a fountain in the dappled sunlight. Or at least that’s what any mention of the food of Provence does for me.

Provence is one of France’s greatest regions for food. Its long coastline on the Mediterranean gives it the freshest fish and seafood; the hinterland that stretches behind offers pasture full of sheep, olive groves and fruit orchards. With its balmy climate, Provence became a wine-producing area after the Greeks founded Marseille, making it France’s oldest wine growing region. The food of Provence is truly inspiring.

Provençal cooking is, like the rest of life in this gorgeous region, simple. It concentrates on the best fresh ingredients in season like tomatoes, peppers, garlic and saffron, anchovies, wild herbs and olive oil…lots of it.

Food of Provence Ingredients

Fish and Seafood

With its long Mediterranean coast, and inland rivers and lakes, Provence is strong on fish. Along the coast, you’ll find fish markets from small to large so if you’re self-catering this is a great opportunity to try out new ingredients and new recipes. Or just light a barbecue and grill the sea’s harvest with bunches of rosemary and thyme. Marseille is one of the great harbors of the south with trawlers and small fishing boats supplying the fishmongers in Marseille’s Vielle Port.

Fruit

Provence is full of small market gardens, with the valleys of the Rhône and Durance the largest fruit- and vegetable-producing areas of France. Dessert grapes are produced in the Vaucluse; figs and almonds around Aix, and oranges and lemons everywhere in the Alpes-Maritimes region. The Menton lemon festival in February transforms the town into one vast citrus fest, celebrating the food of Provence.

Meat

Provence is not known for its meat as it has never been a big animal-rearing area. The goats of Provence are bred for providing cheese rather than meat. But if you’re in Sisteron in Haute-Provence, try the special lamb which is tender and sweet.

Olives and Olive Oil

Olive groves, many of which have been here for centuries, fill the landscape. Between April and June, the trees blossom then produce their fruit which becomes gorged with oil and goes from green to black.

Olive oil was considered so important that French kings were baptized with it from the 5^th century to the French Revolution. The Provence climate is perfect for olive trees, which is great as it takes 5 kilos of olives to make 1 litre of olive oil. The olive harvest for oil begins in early November; if you want to buy that season’s oil at the mill (the best way to buy it), March is the last month to shop for the previous year’s olive oil.

Garlic

Provence and garlic go hand in hand. Just think of the famous Provençal dish of aioli and its ton of garlic and you get the idea. It’s harvested in June and woven into garlands, piled high in the daily food markets.

Melons

There’s more to Cavaillon than melons, but that’s what the town is famous for. Check out the Cavaillon melon festival on the weekend before July 14^th each year.

Pâtisserie

Different town produce different specialities like the calisson of Aix and navettes of Marseille. Also try the soufflé cakes and croissants with pine nuts, which make up one of the celebrated thirteen desserts of the Provencal Christmas, celebrating the 12 apostles and Christ.

Provençal herbs

Imagine Provence and you conjure up aromatic plants like thyme, rosemary, oregano, basil and lavender. All these are more are used extensively in Provencal recipes.

Rice

Rice is grown extensively in the Camargue, Europe’s most northerly rice-growing region. The rice is planted in a flat field at the end of April and flooded with fresh water from the Rhône, which in turn helps keep the delta’s delicate ecological balance. While white and brown rice varieties are produced here, it’s the red rice that is regarded as particularly good. The result of cross-pollination of wild red and cultivated short-grain rice, it’s harvested in September. 

Tomatoes

Hundreds of different varieties are grown in Provence, including black tomatoes which are becoming increasingly popular. The tomato is a staple of Provençal cooking, from a simple tomato salad to sauces made with garlic and olive oil.

Typical Food of Provence: Dishes and Flavours

Aïoli, made with garlic and olive oil with egg yolks added to make it a mayonnaise, was first made in the 1^st century. It’s served with cold poached fish, in bourride, salad and cold meat.

Bouillabaisse comes from Marseille and each chef has his own particular take on this most Mediterranean of dishes. It’s all kinds of fish cooked with herbs, originally cooked on the beach by fishermen.

Bourride or fish soup originally came from Sète and is made with monkfish. After cooking, the strained liquid is bound with aioli (that famous garlic mayonnaise).

Daube of beef is a Provençal stew cooked for a long time in wine with inexpensive beef and vegetables.

Fruits de mer. Try one of the groaning platters of seafood at any good restaurant for a spectacular meal.

Gigot d’agneau is leg of mutton or lamb cooked with local herbs.

Pan Bagnat is a sandwich that is very common in Nice and around, using tuna, tomatoes, lettuce, onions and boiled eggs. If you’re in Antibes on the Salis beach, buy one from the little stall Chez Jose.

Pistou, made of fresh basil, pine nuts, garlic, cheese and olive oil, comes in various dishes, including soup and as a sauce with pasta.

Pizza. You might think this is Italian, but with the region around Nice once belonging to Italy, it’s regarded here as a French dish. Wander through the streets of Nice to find small pizzerias cooking with wood ovens.

Ratatouille is a vegetable stew made of eggplant (aubergine), zucchini (courgettes), onions, bell peppers and tomatoes, cooked in olive oil and flavoured with herbs and garlic.

Salade Niçoise is one of Provence’s most famous dishes, made with tuna, vegetables and anchovies.

Tapenade is olives and capers crushed into a paste, mixed with olive oil and lemon juice and then strongly spiced. Often served on toast with an apéritif.

Markets of Provence

Wandering around the open air fruit and vegetable markets in Provence is one of the great pleasures of a trip to the south of France.

Before you travel, check the local tourist office for details of the markets in the areas you’re visiting.

The major markets are in Aix-en-Provence (daily); Antibes (famous covered market daily); Arles (Wednesday and a bigger one on Saturdays); Avignon (covered market Tuesdays to Sundays); Cannes (3 big covered markets daily); Carpentras (one of the best farmer’s markets in France, Tuesdays to Sundays); Marseille (famous fish market Mondays to Saturdays); Nice (Cours Saleya is one of the best known and great markets in France, Tuesdays to Sundays); Vaison-la-Romaine (big Provençal market Tuesdays).

Read the Travel Guide to Provence for more information about the region

More about Food in France

The intriguing story of Food in France from Gauls to vegans
Discover the top Food Festivals in France throughout the year
Best Regional French Food
French Christmas Food
Surprisingly, the artist Toulouse-Lautrec was a great cook. He followed the seasons and local produce. More about this unexpected gourmet and the Art of Cuisine.
Compare Provence with Food in Burgundy
The Auvergne‘s food is far more earthy and rustic!

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