Forum des Halles

The Forum des Halles, in Paris

The Forum des Halles is a great commercial and transport hub in the heart of Paris, topped with the spectacular Canopée. The Paris audio-guided tour stops here to evoke this lively place, on the site of the former great central market, the belly of Paris.

The belly of Paris and the Canopée

The Forum des Halles occupies the site of the former great central market of Paris, the famous Halles, which the writer Émile Zola nicknamed the belly of Paris. For centuries, it was here that the food supply of the capital was concentrated, in a permanent effervescence, under magnificent pavilions of iron and glass. After the transfer of the market outside Paris and the demolition of the pavilions in the 1970s, the district was entirely redeveloped. A vast underground shopping centre was built there, doubled with one of the largest underground stations of Europe, which makes it a major transport hub. The site was transformed again with the creation of the Canopée, a spectacular undulating golden-coloured structure that tops the whole, accompanied by a garden. A place of trade, passage and life, the Forum des Halles is a beating and modern heart of Paris.

What to see

Here you discover the great commercial hub on the site of the former central market, the belly of Paris dear to Zola, topped with the spectacular Canopée, an undulating golden structure accompanied by a garden, above a vast shopping centre and one of the largest underground stations of Europe. The Forum des Halles is a modern heart of Paris. It is a stop, to be explored on foot.

Practical information

The Forum des Halles lies in the heart of Paris, reachable on foot and by public transport, including the metro and the regional express network, the site being a great interchange hub. You admire the Canopée and the garden freely; the shops have their own hours. It is lively throughout the day.

What was there before the Forum des Halles in Paris?

The former great central market of Paris, the Halles, nicknamed the belly of Paris by Émile Zola, which concentrated the food supply of the capital under pavilions of iron and glass, demolished in the 1970s; the site is today topped with the Canopée.

Where is the Forum des Halles?

In the heart of Paris, in France.