A car-boot sale set to Gypsy swing in Riscle, the 73rd Argeles-Gazost parish fete, Millau's summer flea market: our Occitania pick for 4 and 5 July.
The first weekend of July marks the opening of the great summer hunting season in Occitania. From the bastides of the Lauragais to the plateaus of the Margeride, village committees, parishes, clubs and associations are pulling out their boxes for two days of open-air brocante. Our pick gathers eleven dates across nine departments, from the summer puces of an Aveyron sub-prefecture to a Gypsy-swing car-boot sale in a Gers village.
An Occitania hunting between vineyards, spas and hilltop villages
On 4 and 5 July, the region plays the summer card: you comb the stalls under the plane trees, at the foot of causse rocks and on the squares of medieval bastides. Our favourite is the Riscle car-boot sale, set to music by the Gypsy-swing festival, and the 73rd Argeles-Gazost parish fete, which blends hunting and village celebration at the foot of the Pyrenees. In between: town puces, producers' markets and high-altitude hunting in the upper Lozere. So where should you park the boot this weekend?
On Sunday 5 July, the bastide of Revel holds its summer flea market on place Philippe VI de Valois, from 9am to 5.30pm. Dealers, antiquarians and private sellers lay out antique furniture, decorative objects, knick-knacks and curiosities. This Lauragais town is famed for its cabinet-making and marquetry. Labelled a Ville et Metiers d'Art (Town of Arts and Crafts), Revel offers a remarkable heritage setting around its celebrated central market hall.
Like to pair the find with the history of woodworking trades? It is one of the weekend's standout stops, to round off with a stroll under the bastide's arcades.
On Sunday 5 July, the place des Arenes in Riscle hosts a summer car-boot sale like no other, gathering up to 200 sellers. Run alongside the Festival Swing Manouche 32, it blends hunting with Gypsy-jazz guitar concerts. The atmosphere is unique, between the aisles of stalls.
Also on the programme: a vintage vehicle display, games of petanque, catering on site and entertainment throughout the day. Pitches cost 2 euros per linear metre. This is our favourite of the weekend, in this western Gers town at the gateway to the Landes. You come as much for a good deal as for the festive, musical mood.
On Sunday 5 July, Argeles-Gazost celebrates the 73rd edition of its parish fete, doubled with a car-boot sale, on avenue Adrien Hebrard and the town-hall square. This spa town is nicknamed the little Nice of the Pyrenees. The event mixes hunting with a village celebration: open-air mass, aperitif, refreshments and the sale of crepes and cakes punctuate the day.
Sellers lay out attic finds and curiosities in a good-natured mood, at the foot of the Bigorre peaks. Holidaymakers in the valley of the gaves and local hunters alike pair the find with a living tradition, deeply rooted in the spa town.
On Sunday 5 July, Millau's Summer Flea Market opens its season in the centre of the Aveyron sub-prefecture. Run by the town, these weekly puces return every Sunday morning until the end of August. They take over boulevard Sadi-Carnot, place Foch, the surroundings of the covered market and rue Clausel de Coussergues, turning the whole centre into a vast hunting ground.
Private sellers and professionals offer furniture, china, knick-knacks and antiques, a stone's throw from the Grands Causses and the viaduct. To open summer on the southern Aveyron side, it is an accessible, lively urban stop, ideal before a getaway into the nearby Tarn gorges.
On Sunday 5 July, Pennautier holds its annual car-boot sale. It gathers around 100 private sellers in this Aude wine-growing village, an immediate neighbour of Carcassonne. Set up on the village square and in the streets, it draws hunters from the Carcassonne area in search of clothing, toys, books, china and vintage objects.
Set in the Cabardes vineyards, it is a friendly, human-scale event, perfect to open the Sunday before heading up to the medieval Cite. It pairs the good deal with the discovery of a renowned wine terroir, just minutes from the centre of Carcassonne.
On Saturday 4 July, the Foyer a Noste of Clermont-Pouyguilhes hosts a car-boot sale paired with a local producers' market, from 10am to 6pm. While sellers lay out second-hand goods and finds, local producers present foie gras, cheeses, wines, Armagnac and other Gascon specialities.
This double event celebrates the Gers art of living, between hunting and gastronomy, in a village of the Riviere-Basse. Fancy leaving with a boot full of both fine pieces and good products? It is one of the tastiest stops of our weekend, the ideal way to open Saturday on Gascon terroir.
On Sunday 5 July, the association Generations Mouvement du Lot runs its flea market on the place du Foirail in Castelnau-Montratier. This medieval bastide is famed for its exceptional views over the white Quercy. Private sellers and enthusiasts offer brocante, clothing and toys for a friendly day of hunting, punctuated by crepes, ice cream and catering on site.
The pitch costs 3 euros per linear metre. Perched on its hill, the bastide makes a remarkable backdrop for browsing the stalls. An ideal stop for hunters who like to pair the find with a view, on a summer Sunday in the south of the Lot.
On Sunday 5 July, the Friends of the Media Library run the Puylaroque book market at the village hall, from 7.30am to 4pm. Books, comics, novels, illustrated editions, vinyl records, CDs and second-hand DVDs change hands at gentle prices, in a relaxed, cultural atmosphere.
Bibliophiles and casual readers gather in this bastide of the Caussade Quercy, perched at 350 metres. It is the only stop in our pick entirely devoted to the book: a gem for paper lovers, to round off with a wander through the village and its views over the surrounding causse.
On Sunday 5 July, the Comite des Fetes de la Lande invites hunters to the Jean-Jaures park in Carmaux for its traditional summer flea market. In the shade of the tall trees of this green lung of the former mining town, private sellers and occasional dealers lay out treasures and forgotten objects.
A cradle of Tarn socialism tied to the figure of Jean Jaures, Carmaux adds a historical touch to the stroll. The format is family-friendly and shaded, welcome in high summer: you take your time, sheltered from the heat, between the aisles of stalls.
On Saturday 4 July, Langogne launches its summer flea market at the Chapelle du Couvent. It will then run every Saturday in July and August. In this exceptional heritage setting, in this high-Lozere town, hunters and visitors from the Margeride come to comb the stalls of antiques and brocante.
Far from the coastal crowds, hunting here happens in the open air of the plateaus, at one of the finest gateways to the Gevaudan. Looking for a breath of cool air? For those spending the summer in the uplands or heading to the neighbouring Ardeche, it is a refreshing, authentic stop, ideal from Saturday morning.
On Saturday 4 July, the Saint-Affrique Summer Flea Market opens its season at the public garden on boulevard de Verdun. It will then run every Saturday morning until the end of August. Set at the foot of the famous Caylus rock, in southern Aveyron, the market draws a growing number of hunters and curious visitors between the stalls spilling out of the garden.
Antiques, knick-knacks and assorted finds make up a varied summer offer, in shaded surroundings welcome in high summer. For hunters of the south of the department, a step from Roquefort and the Grands Causses, it is a regular date that opens the Aveyron summer Saturdays nicely.
Also worth a look
- Tanus (81) — On 5 July, the association Tanus Decouverte et Loisirs holds its car-boot sale on the place du Foirail, near the majestic Viaur viaduct, on the borders of the Tarn and the Aveyron.
- Le Cabanial (31) — On 5 July, the village committee runs the annual car-boot sale of this Lauragais village, which can welcome up to 100 sellers in its centre.
- Chirac (48) — On 5 July, the votive fete of this village on the banks of the Lozere Lot includes a car-boot sale from 8am, with refreshments, catering and a dance.
And all summer to go hunting?
The Occitan hunting season is only just beginning: July and August will see a surge of big antiques fairs, seaside flea markets and village-committee car-boot sales in every village. Want to go further? Browse our national weekend agenda, which gathers the best dates region by region. And if an event is missing or a date has changed, let us know: our database is kept up to date by the hunters themselves.
