What Is a "Mercadillo"?

Quick Answer

Learn about mercadillos(flea markets) in this article.

Questions This Article Answers

How do you say mercadillo in English?

What are other ways of saying flea market in Spanish?

What does puesto mean?

What does ganga mean?

How do you say "I'm just looking" in Spanish?

Mercadillos

A mercadillo(flea market) is a market in which you can find all kinds of artículos(items), generally sold at a lower precio(price) than in stores. Mercadillos are usually located in large, open spaces and may open on specific days. For example, a mercadillo may open in a parque(park) only on domingos(Sundays).

In a mercadillo you’ll typically find items that are nuevos(new), sin usar(unused), como nuevos(like new), de segunda mano(secondhand), usados(used), viejos(old), and antiguos(vintage).

Let’s look at some of the items you can often find in the puestos(stands) at a mercadillo.

Spanish	English	Spanish	English
antigüedades	antiques	libro	book
artículos de bricolaje	DIY supplies	moneda	coin
artículos de colección	collectibles	mueble	furniture
artículos de decoración	decoration items	objetos de cristal	glassware
bisutería	costume jewelry	objetos de interés	memorabilia
calzado	footware	plato	dish
careta	purse	póster	poster
CD	CD	revista	magazine
disco de vinilo	vinyl record	ropa	clothing
DVD	DVD	ropa de época	vintage clothing
juego	game	ropa de niño	children’s clothing
juguete	toy	silla	chair

So Many Names

Other Spanish words for flea market include:

• baratillo

• bazar

• feria

• feria libre

• mercado al aire libre

• mercado de pulgas

• mercado sobre ruedas

• pulguero

• rastro

Vocabulary and Useful Phrases

Let's learn useful words and phrases to use at a mercadillo.

Spanish	English	Spanish	English
barato	cheap	puesto	stand, stall
caro	expensive	solo se acepta efectivo	cash only
comida callejera	street food	vendedor	vendor
descuento	discount	comprar	to buy
dinero	money	mirar	to look around
efectivo	cash	pagar	to pay
ganga	bargain	regatear	to haggle
precio	price	vender	to sell

examples
¿Qué días está el mercadillo? What days is the flea market open?
¿Cuánto cuesta esto? How much is this?
¿Es nuevo o de segunda mano? Is this new or secondhand?
Puedes regatear el precio con el vendedor. You can haggle the price with the vendor.
Solo estoy mirando. I'm just looking around.
Conseguí esta chaqueta de segunda mano en el mercadillo. I got this secondhand jacket at the flea market.

Learn more Spanish in the following articles:

• Shopping in Spanish

• At the Supermarket

• Travel Guide: Guadalajara

• A Year of Celebrations in Spanish-Speaking Countries

• Travel Guide: La Paz