Åven if you are not an overly keen consumer, Santorini’s shops - and especially those in Fira - will tempt you for sure. Taking a walk along the narrow cobbled streets of Fira, shop windows will definitely grab your attention. The first to catch your eye are the jewellery shops that you will find along Ypapantis street, or “Gold Street” as it has been nicknamed. Not unduly, as this street is considered to be one of the biggest gold markets in Greece. Here you will find the most modern jewellery designed by the most famous jewellers from both Greece and abroad. Even if you manage to resist and continue on your wander, you will surely find yourself in front of many shops selling handmade jewellery made of silver and other materials at much more affordable prices. The shop windows in Fira also display the latest trends of international fashion in terms of clothes, shoes and accessories coming from big and famous fashion houses.
Compared to Fira’s shops, those of Oia are less shiny and more ethnic. The shop displays are of high aesthetic, which will not leave you unmoved. You will find objects and works of art in the village’s pretty little shops from different countries and civilisations that do, however, join together harmoniously. Similar shops can be found in Fira. If you wish to buy cosmetics, there is a large store in the city centre that offers a wide range of cosmetics, perfumes and sun creams. There is also a wide range of shops along the seaside road and narrow streets of Kamari. You will find labelled clothes and accessories, handmade jewellery, but also decoration crafts and lighting objects.
In Santorini you will find works of art as well. To be more precise, you can find pottery by Andreas Makaris and Galatia Papageorgiou at the crossroads to Akrotiri, marble sculpture by Grigoris Kouskouris in Messaria, modern art by George Kypris and paintings by Christoforos Asimis in the “Fabrica” shopping centre in Fira. You can also find pottery by Andreas Alifrangis in Firostefani. You can stop off at Dimitris Koliousis’ religious paintings workshop and the art galleries of Vasilis Kyrkos and Stavros Galanopoulos along Oia’s main pedestrian street. You can buy textiles at Oia’s traditional weaving mill or paintings by Frederica Nomikou in Finikia.
There are, of course, tourist shops in every part of the island where you can buy small or large souvenirs of Santorini. |
