France · Île-de-France · Paris
Les Halles, Paris — Area Guide & Where to Stay
Les Halles held Paris's central fresh food market until 1973; the Westfield Forum des Halles stands on the same ground.
About Les Halles
Where to stay in Les Halles
Each area has its own feel; here's who each one suits.
The Westfield Forum des Halles and the Châtelet-Les Halles interchange beneath it set the pitch of the district, and a bed here is picked by how much of that traffic a visitor wants underfoot. Trains run below the shops. Museums crowd the same few streets, among them the Musée des Arts et Métiers and the Musée du Barreau de Paris.
A 2.5 hectare canopy covers the roof.
About Les Halles
What are the main landmarks in Les Halles?
Churches came before the mall. The Church of Saint Eustache, the Église Saint-Leu-Saint-Gilles de Paris, Saint-Nicholas-des-Champs and Notre-Dame de Bonne-Nouvelle all stand in the district, and the Tour Jean-sans-Peur and the House of Nicolas Flamel are named beside them. Museums run from the Musée des Arts et Métiers to the Musée Grévin, Forum des Halles, the Musée de l'Illusion and Les Caves du Louvre.
The bibliothèque du cinéma François-Truffaut, the square Émile-Chautemps and the Suzanne Berlioux swimming pool close the list.
What is the history of Les Halles?
The market ran here first. Paris kept its central fresh food market at Les Halles until 12 January 1973, after which an underground shopping centre and a park took the site, and that development was pulled down in 2010. The Westfield Forum des Halles replaced it, built largely underground beneath an undulating 2.5 hectare canopy.
Older stone outlasted both. The Church of Saint Eustache, the Tour Jean-sans-Peur and the House of Nicolas Flamel still stand where the market once traded.
Where is Les Halles?
Les Halles covers roughly 41 hectares of Paris, ground shared between the Westfield Forum des Halles and the church streets around it.
Good for
More areas in Paris
Updated September 2026