What to Know
- Sunday, Dec. 5 (first Sunday of every month) at Pasadena City College (west side of campus, near Hill Avenue)
- Free admission; $2 parking
- There will be no January 2022 market "due to the Rose Parade"
PCC? Those are the three letters that flea fans have long texted to other flea fans in their shop-happy circles, usually on Saturday afternoons, as various flea-loving friends discussed which markets they'd visit the following morning.
For Pasadena City College's famous flea market has long been one of the region's vintage-laden, find-filled, gewgaw-crammed powerhouses, the sort of spot you roam when you're looking for an old lamp that you can't quite describe, but you'll know it when you see it.
The market, which features over 500 vendors selling everything from hard-to-find vinyl to kitschy dishes to dolls for days, has been shuttered over much of 2020 and 2021, too, but it is ready for its colorful comeback.
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And that comeback? It unfurls, booth by booth by booth, on Sunday, Dec. 5.
The flea market, which boasts everything from "high-end antiques to rummage sale-type items" can be found around the PCC parking lots, on the west side of the campus, near Hill Avenue (located between Del Mar and Colorado).
Good to know?
This first-Sunday-of-the-month event will not be back in January, as another big happening will be in town the day before (yep, that would be the Rose Parade).
It all begins at 8 in the morning, and you can bet bag-toting browsers are out early. By 3:01?
The goodies that didn't find a buyer are being packed up, so arriving well ahead of 3 o'clock is wise.
The Colorado Boulevard-based college shares this uplifting note: "The proceeds from every Pasadena City College Flea Market benefit student scholarships and activities. This year we were able to contribute $50,000 toward supporting students' basic needs prior to and during the pandemic."
Call the Dec. 5 return of this amazing wonderland of amazing wonders both a much-longed-for triumph for a titan on the flea scene, and also a fine place to do a bit of holiday shopping, if you're seeking a stranger and/or funkier and/or one-of-a-kind gift for the one-of-a-kind person in your life.
Entry is free, but if you park there, prepare to pay two dollars.
