96 Best Places to Shop in Greece

A traditional grocery shop on the waterfront that not only stocks all the essentials, most of them locally sourced, but also transports you back in time with its old-fashioned, romantic decor. It has been lovingly created by the owners of the Archontiko Art Hotel.

On Wednesday the narrow streets surrounding the Rotunda are taken over by a bazaar with knickknacks and the occasional interesting heirloom, antique, or folk art piece for sale.

This enticing store just off the harbor sells the work of contemporary jewelers and other craftspeople from Crete and throughout Greece, as well as the work of owner Carmela Iatropoulou and her artist husband.

The center is an outlet for quality handicrafts—ceramics, weavings, sheep bells, wood carvings, prints, and old paintings. Take a break from shopping in the center's quiet and quaint I Oraia Ellas café to enjoy a salad or mezedes in clear view of the Parthenon. Upstairs is an art gallery hosting temporary exhibitions of Greek art.

A silversmiths' cooperative, Kepavii sells the silverware and jewelery produced by 44 regional workshops. Items vary in style and technique, including many traditional Epirote pieces as well as some interesting modern ones. The prices are good, and there's something to suit all pockets. You can also take a tour of some of the workshops and watch the smiths practicing their fine skills.

The award-winning ceramic artists Kostas Panaretos and Klio Brenner create beautiful and unique pieces of ceramic art using the ancient Greek technique called Terra Sigillata. To achieve their striking orange colors, they make glazes from Greek soil and then proceed to fire the pieces with wood, imprinting the design through the action of the smoke. In their showroom in the Jewish Quarter you'll find everything from brightly colored bowls to remarkably sophisticated plates and pieces based on ancient Greek forms.

An appealing array of beads, quartz and silver jewelry, woven tablecloths and scarves, carved bowls, and other handicrafts fills Chez Sonia.

Elena Votsi designed jewelry for Gucci and Ralph Lauren before opening her own boutiques, where she sells exquisite, larger-than-life creations in coral, amethyst, aquamarine, and turquoise. In 2003 she designed the Athens 2004 Olympic Games gold medal; in 2009 her handmade 18-karat gold ring with diamonds won a Couture Design Award in the Best in Haute Couture category in Las Vegas. Brava!

For more than 40 years, art restorer Dimitris Koutelieris has been inspired by his home island of Naxos. He salvages most of his materials from houses under restoration, then fashions them into picture frames, little wooden boats, small chairs, and other decorative objects. In his hands objects like cabin doors or window shutters gain a magical second life.

Elegant wine gift packs are available at this old-fashioned wineshop, where you can browse a broad selection of Greek wines and liqueurs. The couple who own this place are wine lovers themselves and will be eager to offer any advice you need.

All goods in the "Light of the Orient" shop—including rugs, lamps, clothes, clay ornaments, and jewelry—have a traditional Eastern style.

Among the solid shampoo cakes, body oils, lotions, and face masks sold here are a tremendous number of organic Greek-made soaps, most sliced from big blocks or wheels, which you pay for by weight. Try the watermelon soap, shimmering fizzing ball, and the soothing body soufflé.

Thessaloniki's fabled Anatolian sweets can be sampled at central Hatzis. Specialties include the buffalo-milk cream-based kazan dipi, a kind of flan; trigono, a cream-filled triangle of phyllo; and kataïfi (logs of crushed and sugared walnuts wrapped in honey-drenched shredded phyllo) served with kaïmaki (mastic-flavored ice cream). Choose a beverage—like iced coffee, granita, or boza (a thick, sweet, millet-and-corn drink)—and people-watch from the pedestrian side street that faces the gardens of Panagia Chalkeon church.

Ianos draws travelers because of its stock of foreign-language books.

For a souvenir that will be light to carry, stop in and browse shelves brimming with sponges harvested off the eponymous island and in other Greek waters.

This family-run business has dispensed fine wines, ouzo, and other spirits since 1869 and offers tastings and a great deal of knowledge about local vineyards. Karonis also has a distillery on the outskirts of the Old Town.

A shop on the ground floor of this museum in an old home sells antique and new worry beads and attractive beaded key chains. The museum's exhibits of historic worry beads are fascinating and provide a little insight into the national male pastime of fiddling with a string of them.

Greece's leading producer of excellent natural cosmetics and beauty products now has a shop in Thessaloniki south of the city center. Even though most pharmacies stock Korres, this shop has the full range of products. For those who want to order these and other top Greek beauty products online and have them sent to your home there are good some websites providing this service, the best of which is www.mysecretkshopper.com.