Grote Marktstraat (Main Market Street), Hague

The Main Market Street (Grote Marktstraat) holds a significant place among the shopping streets in The Hague. It stands out for its limited presence of offices, residential properties, and dining establishments. Constructed in the late 1920s, its primary purpose was to establish a thoroughfare connecting the Prinsegracht with the southeastern part of the city, specifically Station Staatsspoor and Bezuidenhout. Today, it has been transformed into a pedestrian-only street, barring motorized traffic.

The creation of this road involved the demolition of numerous streets, buildings, and impoverished neighborhoods located between the Grote Markt and the Spui. The only remnants of the pre-Main Market Street era can still be found between the Grote Markt and the Raamstraat, represented by a row of facades that once belonged to the former Gerbrandstraatje. Its name originates from the Grote Markt, which marked the end of the Prinsegracht and the beginning of The Hague's city center at that time.

The municipal authorities in The Hague have set an ambitious goal to elevate the Grote Marktstraat's competitive status by transforming it into a shopping boulevard with international appeal. In 2014, the definitive renovation of Grote Marktstraat as a shopping promenade commenced. The opening of a Hudson's Bay branch in September 2017 marked the culmination of the refurbishment of the former V&D building in Grote Marktstraat, with other sections having already been occupied by different retail chains.