All Shopping in Corfu


Despite the long tourist season and the large numbers of visitors, Corfu retains an old-fashioned allure in retail practice, never having embraced large shopping malls but supporting many small and independent stores. Locals will fill their bicycle baskets with their daily purchases, and many amble through the Old Town trailing their shopping trolleys.

Very small enterprises need to make and maintain their name based on the good faith, even the friendship, between sellers and buyers. The weather and rhythm of life dictate that opening hours are usually broken for the afternoon siesta, although in recent years, during summer months, many stores stay open for sixteen or more hours a day. Some quarters are distinguished by the concentration of shops and stores in the same line of business: ironmongers and hardware purveyors are to be found in the Evraike (the old Jewish quarter); the open-air market provides fresh vegetables, fruit and fish; certain streets in the Old Town are each the province of leather goods, olive-wood artifacts, or religious icons and faith objects. Younger people apply their talent and creativity to the introduction of new stores that sell handmade items, and farm and beauty products from sustainable local sources. Shopping in Corfu, both in the Old Town and the modern quarter, is enjoyable in its variety and ease.