Lively student town, home to France’s biggest GAA club and capital of Brittany, what Rennes might lack in disarming charm (not that it’s entirely devoid of that either), it more than makes up for in energy. It’s another example of French cities at their best – full of municipal drive and invention. Right now, a new metro line is being built to double the capacity of its new one-line underground system.
The main market venue is Les Halles Centrales Liberté – built in 1912. Here, a market is held all through the year and every day of the week from 08:00 to 13:00. It sells a wide range of produce, from fresh fish to clothing, artisan foodstuffs and local Breton specialities such as beurre salé and cidre breton.
On Tuesday, there are the additional markets in the form of Robidou (Square Odette Seveur, 08:00 – 12:00, food and manufactured produce); Beauregard (Place Eugène Aulnette, 16:00 – 20:00, food including organic produce); Cleunay (Rue Jules Lallemand, 08:00 – 12:00, food and manufactured produce); Maurepas (Place d’Erlangen, 08:00 – 12:00, food and manufactured produce).
Every Wednesday, the additional markets are the Saint-Germain market (Rue du Capitaine Alfred Dreyfus, 08:00 – 12:00, food); Sainte-Thérèse (Place du Souvenir, 08:00 – 12:00, food, fruit & veg with organic produce, manufactured produce); Book Market (Place Sainte Anne, 08:00 – 20:00, books).
Thursday, you have the antiques/flea market (near Les Halles Centrales on Boulevard de la Liberté et rue Jules Simon, 08:00 – 14:00); Bréguigny (Square Sarah Bernhardt, 08:00 – 12:00, food and manufactured produce); Alexis Carrel (Boulevard Alexis Carrel, 08:00 – 12:00, food and manufactured produce).
Friday, there is the Bréguigny (Place Albert Bayet, 08:00 – 12:00, food market); Poterie (Place du Ronceray, 15:00 – 19:00, food); Villejean (Rue de Bourgogne, 08:00 – 12:00, food and manufactured produce).
Saturday sees the markets Marché des Lices (Place des Lices, 08:00 – 12:00, flowers and food, including organic produce); Artisan market (Place Hoche, 10:00 – 18:00); Antiques/Flea Market (on streets surrounding Les Halles Centrales, 07:00 – 18:00 – larger on first Saturday of the month); Landrel (Place de Zagreb, 08:00 – 12:00, food and manufactured produce).
On Sundays, the extra markets to check out are the Book Market (city centre, all day, first Sunday of every month).
Click on the symbols in the map below to explore the precise locations of these and other markets across France