Mission accomplished! Fifteen miles, two pair of shoes and eighteen hours later (a real “flea market marathon”!), we concluded our tour of the 2015 edition of the Münchner Flohmarkt auf der Theresienwiese (Munich’s Giant Flea Market).
This truly gigantic and epic event, which brings together every year more than 2,000 retailers and above 80,000 visitors for a one festive day of flea market sales in the Theresienwiese, constitutes an amazing opportunity for flea market and thrifting lovers, to find great second-hand goods at a very low price (if you follow at least some of the recommendations we shared in our post “The Art Of Flea Market Haggling“): clothes, design furnitures, militaria, home appliances, electronic, antiques, etc. are at the reach of any budget!
Be assured that even if you get there with no idea of what you’re looking for, you’ll surely leave with a dozen of things you’ve actually been looking for the past year(s)! Of course, you won’t need the half of them. But who cares! It’s so inexpensive, that you already have an excuse to do it again next year!
Last year, we attended for the first time this event which officially starts on Saturday morning and ends up twelve hours later. We showed up then quite early, around 4:00 a.m. to be able to get the best merchandises available, and equipped with the basic must-have flea market raider gear: a flashlight, good walking shoes, a comfortable outfit, pockets full of coins and small (but enough) banknotes, and a strong dose of motivation and determination.
Twelve hours later we were heading back to our hotel with the trunk of our car full of great treasures.
Bu this year, we decided to do even better.
Following the advice of a friend of us, we arrived in Munich the day before the official opening. And this was nothing but a great move as most professional stalls were already set-up and ready to rock-n-roll! With almost no visitors (as Friday is a regular working day in Bavaria, like anywhere else in the world), we spent five wonderful hours searching for antiques and design furniture with almost no competitors. on that Friday we were so satisfied with what we got, that we actually considered driving back straight to Austria as we had found enough stuff to keep us busy until the next big flea market.
We though decided to stay one more day to see what “private” retailers had in stock. So whereas we dedicated the whole Friday to finding real antiques and design stuff, we spent our Saturday thrifting for clothe and gadgets. And it was amazing to see how many stands were overflowing with genuine (believe me, not fake – and I know what I’m talking about) accessories and clothes from brands like Chanel, Dior, Louis Vuitton, Dolce Gabana. Are the people living in Munich so wealthy they can afford reselling a wonderful 40 years old genuine Louis Vuitton bag for 20€? A Chanel or a René Lazard purse for 10€? A Longchamp notebook and leather keyring for 2€??! I guess most women who were fighting for those “gems” didn’t know and didn’t care! This stuff was just here, and meant to be traded!
And those were just some isolated cases we witnessed in the immensity of this mega flea market. Try and imagine what has happened in that single day. Probably some much bigger stories than a 1,200€ Burberry bag sold for 60€. Paintings, vintage furniture, pictures, sculptures, etc. gone for almost nothing! As long as you have an idea of what you’re buying, or at least experience that weird feeling inside you that you’re about to take home something “huge” (you can’t explain it. it’s just that inner voice that says “get back to that stand and BUY IT!”), then you’re a winner.
So get ready for you’re next big flea market; it may really turn into the chance of your life.
Munich Giant Flea Market (Riesen-Flohmarkt Theresienwiese )
Next date: Saturday, April 27th, 2019 (from 6:00 am to 4:00 pm)
Place: Theresienwiese (Matthias-Pschorr-Straße 1, 80336 München)
More information: Next Münchner Flohmarkt auf der Theresienwiese
