Living here · Shopping
Second-hand, and ready for winter
A room usually comes empty and a Padova winter is damp. Neither has to be expensive.
In one minute
- Buy from students who are leaving: at the end of each year whole rooms are sold off cheaply.
- Saturday in Prato della Valle is the big market for clothes and household things.
- Winter here is wet more than cold: waterproof shoes and a good umbrella matter more than a heavy coat.
Where second-hand lives
Everything
Subito
Italy's classified ads: furniture, bikes, desks, fridges. Filter by Padova.
OpenClothes
Vinted
Second-hand clothes and shoes, sent by post or handed over in town.
OpenShops
Mercatino
A chain of second-hand shops that sell on commission, with furniture you can see before you buy.
OpenStudents
Facebook Marketplace
Where students leaving Padova post their whole room in June and July.
Open
The student groups on the Living page are the other place leaving sales are announced. When it is your turn to leave, post there first.
The markets, by day
From the city's own list of its markets. It does not publish opening hours, so none are guessed here.
The food stalls of Piazza delle Erbe and Piazza dei Frutti, under the Palazzo della Ragione, are there most mornings too. Smaller neighbourhood markets run in Piazzale Cuoco, Piazza Barbato, Piazzale Azzurri d'Italia, Via Bajardi, Via Astichello and Via Nani.
A winter kit, and what to ask for
Six things, in the words you will need in the shop.
un piumino
a padded jacket
The one warm thing worth buying new-ish. Light ones pack small.
scarpe impermeabili
waterproof shoes
Winter here is more wet than cold. Wet feet are what make you ill.
un ombrello
an umbrella
A sturdy one: the cheap ones die in the first windy week.
sciarpa e guanti
a scarf and gloves
For cycling. A bike in January without gloves is a mistake you make once.
una borsa dell'acqua calda
a hot-water bottle
Old flats are cold at night and heating is expensive. The cheapest comfort there is.
un deumidificatore
a dehumidifier
Damp is the real enemy in many old flats. Sharing one between a flat works.
Where: the Saturday market, second-hand shops, the big sports chains, and the January sales, i saldi.Student-reported
Buying used, safely
Meet in daylight, somewhere public
A café, a station, outside a supermarket. Take a friend for anything big.Test it there
Plug it in, switch it on, ride it round the block. Brakes and lights on a bike, every time.Pay when you have it in your hands
Never in advance to a stranger for “shipping” or a “deposit”. That is how most second-hand scams work.A very cheap bike from a stranger is a warning
It may be stolen, and buying it can get you into trouble. Practise spotting the other tricks in the scam game.
Say it
È ancora disponibile?
eh an-KOH-rah dee-spoh-NEE-bee-leh
Is it still available?
Posso vederlo oggi?
POS-soh veh-DEHR-loh OD-jee
Can I see it today?
Funziona tutto?
foon-TSYOH-nah TOOT-toh
Does everything work?
Mi fa un po' di sconto?
mee fah oon poh dee SKON-toh
Could you do a small discount?
Checked against Comune di Padova on Wed, 30 September 2026.
Where to buy and the winter advice are what students report, not official information.