Score Vintage Treasures and Unique Finds at Prague's Newest Flea Market

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A newly opened flea market hopes to give weekend pickers and lovers of second hand-stuff another regularly operating market option.

Open from early September Terminál Žižkov is located on the premises of a former freight-train container terminal.

The market is connected with the neighboring historic Žižkov Freight Train Station, a functionalist gem and heritage site constructed in the 1930s, that was, up until 2018, open to the public as an art gallery and culture space.

As of this week Terminál Žižkov will add another day to its schedule, running from Friday (11am-5pm) and Saturday-Sunday, (8am-3pm), year round.

Market owner Pavel Halada believes that such a place is sorely lacking in the Czech capital.

“Being able to shop and sell on such a large brownfield in the center with historic buildings next to you and great accessibility by car and public transport is unprecedented here,” he tells us.

During the first month, the market saw between 30-80 sellers on each day; within three weeks attendance has jumped from 1,000 to 1,500 visitors per weekend.

Halada hopes to fashion Terminál Žižkov after similar markets and bazaars in Paris, London, and New York, saying that the potential for the space is limitless:

“Given the sheer scale of the area, with authorization for up to 420 sellers, we hope that soon we will be able to offer visitors a similar shopping vibe as other world renowned markets.”

Halada says he wants to make the selling process easy as well, noting that many people come to buy and end up wanting sell. To that end, vendors can borrow stands and shelving units free of charge.

The neighborhood market has seen a mix of foreign and Czech visitors so far; Halada recalls one of his favorite scenes from a recent market day when a Brazilian couple left wearing three beautiful antique frames around their necks and hopped onto a packed tram.

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Antique furniture and art are the most popular items among visitors, however tables and blankets are also loaded with clothes, books, and bric-a-brac while those staples of any Czech open-air event beer, langos, and klobasa fuel up hungry market-goers.

“We know that the true market vibe can only exist when the pleasant atmosphere, good sellers, unique items, and plenty of visitors coexist at a given place and time,” says Halada. “And we know that Terminál Žižkov has the right ingredients to be just such a place.”