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Dating from 1808, the colourful Marché aux Fleurs (flower market) on the Ile de la Cité is the oldest and one of the largest flower markets in Paris. Its blooms brighten up the area between the stark walls of the Conciergerie and Hôtel Dieu from Monday to Saturday – everything from orchids to orange trees. On Sundays it is joined by the Marché aux Oiseaux (bird market) with equally colourful, caged species.

One of Paris’s two top department stores, Printemps opened in 1864. Its goods range from designer clothing and accessories, to middle-of-the-range labels and funky fashions, home decor and furniture. The sixth-floor tea room is crowned with a lovely Art Nouveau stained-glass cupola.

Printemp’s great rival store opened in 1894 and is a monument to Parisian style, topped by a glorious steel-and-glass dome. Along with designer clothes, there’s a fabulous food hall. The seventh floor has great views.

Every Thursday and Sunday morning, this market stretches along the tree-lined boulevard that separates the Marais from the Bastille. Sunday is the best day, when locals come to socialize as well as shop for foods such as fish, meat, bread and cheese. Some stalls sell North African and other international fare.

This is a gourmand’s delight. Some of the most delectable speciality food shops in Paris are dotted around the edges of this square, including the famous Fauchon supermarket and the smaller Hédiard. There’s Maille for mustard, Kaspia for caviar, Marquise de Sévigné for chocolates and La Maison de la Truffe for truffles.

The artist Picasso reputedly did his shopping at this daily morning market in the heart of St-Germain. The huge fruit and vegetable stalls are of high quality but of greater interest are the food shops opening on to the street, which sell specialist and regional fare. You can also buy prepared Italian dishes and delicious pastries.

One of the oldest street markets in Paris winds downhill through the Latin Quarter every Tuesday to Sunday morning. Although this formerly cheap and Bohemian market has been discovered as a tourist spot, it retains its charm, the narrow street lined with colourful food stalls and speciality shops. There are also good restaurants in the quieter side streets.

Paris’s first department store was founded on the Left Bank in 1852, its structure partially designed by Gustave Eiffel (see Eiffel Tower). Today it’s even more hip than its competitors, with an in-store boutique featuring avant-garde fashions and music. It also has designer clothes, its own line of menswear and the enormous La Grande Epicerie food hall.

Away from the tourist bustle, this Bastille market, dubbed the “Notre-Dame of markets”, retains an authentic Parisian atmosphere. Every morning North African traders hawk inexpensive produce in the open-air market, and there’s an adjacent flea market and a covered market selling top-quality fare.

Every Saturday to Monday the largest antiques market in the world comes alive. There are actually 13 markets here: the oldest, Marché Vernaison, is the most charming; Marché Malik sells vintage clothing. Others offer furniture, jewellery and paintings.