The wide open field south of the Sava river is packed. Vans and cars, with their boots and back doors open, sit parked behind tables and rugs with all sorts of goods. It goes on for rows and columns, creating impromptu little alleys and pathways down which potential buyers stroll, scanning the wares of vendors who periodically shout out deals and offers they hope will entice visitors.
Some vendors are clearly veterans, with pre-made custom signs advertising their neatly segmented offerings, while others lay out a number of suitcases overflowing with trinkets, badges, collectibles galore. This is Hrelić flea market.
Its name comes from a neighbouring village where the flea market originated, and though it moved to its current Zagreb spot in 1970 and became a cultural mainstay of the capital, the name stuck.
From 7am to 3pm every Wednesday and busier Sunday, visitors to Hrelić can find an absurdly diverse range of objects for sale. One stand might offer functional pre-owned household items like kettles, speaker systems, and crockery, while right next to it, old film cameras and lenses attract photographers.
Collectors and lovers of odd trinkets could be rummaging through boxes and crates of badges, stickers and curios while beside them, a student haggles down the price of an old chemistry textbook. Even homemade perfumes make their way to the stalls and stands of the flea market – if you can imagine it, odds are you’ll find it somewhere.
Hrelić flea market is a must for collectors, restorers and those who love a good haggle over a useful – if slightly beat-up – household item.
Where: Sajmišna cesta 8, Novi Zagreb
When: 7am-3pm every Wednesday and Sunday