Cost:
Adult: Free
Child: Free
Senior: Free
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Overview
 Located in the heart of Paris, the Forum des Halles is a park at ground level, a large underground
mall one level below ground, and, below that, the world’s largest underground subway station.
In addition to the underground shopping complex featuring numerous big-name department stores and
eateries, the Forum des Halls is hedged in by numerous shops and restaurants
spread throughout the surrounding area. The small park contiguous to the Forum is very popular among locals
who like to enjoy a quick lunch or some relaxation while in the midst of their
shopping endeavors. An open-sky plaza sits in the center of an all-glass, arched
covering that separates pedestrians from the elements as they browse the various restaurants, boutiques, cultural institutions, discotheques, museums and cinemas located
throughout the underground level.
The Forum des Halles actually sits on the grounds of the famous old market Halles. For more than eight hundred years these grounds served as the central marketplace for Paris. As population increased over time, congestion in the area was inevitable. By the late-20th century the city was forced to relocate the hundreds of food stands and cafes to a suburban area called Rungis. Subsequently, with the huge marketplace gone, what was once the city’s most bustling area was now nothing more than a gigantic hole in the ground. Eventually, after several years, the city decided to turn the le trou des Halles (the hole of the Halles) into what we now know as the Forum des
Halles.---Words and photos by Michael Rando
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