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Corfu Shopping Tips
These Corfu shopping tips include advice on buying souvenirs like ceramics, jewelry, gold, silver, wood carvings, and food and drink, with tips on haggling.
Corfu has quite a good range of shopping options. Although it is primarily a mass-market tourism destination, it also attracts a number of cruise ships whose passengers have money to spend. The best variety and quality is to be found in Corfu Town, and if you're based outside the capital you should certainly include a visit there if you want to find some good souvenirs.
Ceramics
There are some excellent ceramic items available all over the island. Some are mass-produced but there are also good work from local artists. You should shop around as not all shops stock the same goods.
Food and Drink
Extra virgin olive oil can be found everywhere, some in elaborate bottles suitable for buying as gifts, but make sure it is olive oil from Corfu as a lot is imported from mainland Greece. If you simply want to buy in quantity to use yourself, consider getting a large tin of it.
Honey is also good, although not necessarily a cheap buy. You’ll see hives all around the island, and some of the mountain honey is really delicious, flavoured by wild herbs and flowers.
Liqueur made from the island’s kumquats is an unusual and very special gift. Watch for the different strengths available, as it’s usually a case of the stronger it is, the better and richer it tastes. Some restaurants will give you a complimentary glass of the liqueur at the end of a meal, but these are usually the weaker and cheaper varieties. If these don’t impress you, do try to sample the stronger versions. Many shops will let you try a taste.
Other specialities to look out for include local olives, herbs, spices, nuts, and cheese.
Some Cool Corfu Souvenirs
Paleokastritsa Luggage Tag
Corfu Cypresses Capri Leggings
Corfu T-shirt
Corfu Tote Bag
Gold, Silver, and Jewellery
You’ll find silversmiths all over Greece. There is a long tradition of the craft in Epirus, and in particular in the city of Ioannina, across from Corfu on the mainland. Some of the work makes its way to the island, so do ask about it.
Some Greek jewellery is rather too flamboyant for many people, but there are young designers today creating more subtle work with a wide choice of rings, ear-rings, and necklaces.
Museum replicas are usually very well-made, and make good personal souvenirs.
Icons
There are few more typical Greek gifts than icons, a centuries-old Greek tradition. Most are machine-made, but you will still find a few artists producing these by hand. You can find the best choice when visiting the island’s monasteries.
Our Pick of Greek Islands Guides
Leather Goods
Leather is a good buy almost everywhere in Greece, and Corfu is no exception. Look for sandals, shoes, bags, and belts in the Old Town in Corfu Town.
Weaving
Good quality hand weaving and embroidery can be found throughout the island, as it is quite a cottage industry here. You are just as likely to find top class items in some quiet village as in Corfu Town – and at a much cheaper price. Kassiopi is a centre for lace and crochet work.
Wood Carvings
With so many olive trees on Corfu, it is only natural that the islanders should want to make use of the wood too. There are now many wood carving workshops, almost one in every town, where you can buy items like walking sticks, light pulls, beautiful bowls, and kitchen utensils.
General Corfu Shopping Tips
- Haggling is an option in some places, but nothing like it is in Greece’s neighbour to the east, Turkey. Corfu is far more like its western European counterparts, where the price shown is the price you pay, and discounts are only to be had if buying several items.
- Greece has a high sales tax, and it may be possible for non-EU residents to reclaim this by shopping in stores displaying ‘Tax-Free for Tourists’ stickers.
- Not all local crafts are actually made locally. There is a flourishing market in Asia producing local souvenirs for countries all over the world, so look closely before buying. If you see a colourful plate with Corfu written on it, you might turn it over and find ‘Made in China’!
Other Corfu Pages
Where to Eat in Northern Corfu
This is the Greece Travel Secrets selection of where to eat in northern Corfu, from classy restaurants and traditional tavernas to beachside fish tavernas.
Where to Stay in Northern Corfu
Greece Travel Secrets picks where to stay in northern Corfu with budget and luxury hotels in Sidari, Daphnila Bay, Kontokali, Ipsos, Barbati and more.
Where to Stay in Southern Corfu
Greece Travel Secrets’ pick of where to stay in southern Corfu including hotels in Moraïtika, Paramonas, Messonghi, Agios Georgios, and near Benitses.
Korission Lagoon
The Korission Lagoon on the west coast of Corfu is also called Lake Korission and has abundant wildlife, especially birds, and one of the best beaches on Corfu.
Sidari
Sidari is a popular holiday resort on the north coast of Corfu with beaches and unusual rock formations as well as plenty of places to eat and to stay.
Corfu Food and Drink
Information for travelers on Corfu Food and Drink including restaurants and tavernas, Corfiot specialties, desserts, wine and other Greek drinks like ouzo.
Corfu Festivals and Events
Information for travellers to Greece on Corfu festivals and events including Easter, the Feast of St Spiridhon, Carnival and Name Days.
Corfu Wildlife
Corfu’s wildlife includes rare and colourful birds, snakes, lizards, fireflies, and insects, with plenty of places to watch the wildlife like lakes and lagoons.
Corfu Olives
Corfu olives are an important part of this Greek island's economy, with an estimated 3-4 million trees producing olive oil of exceptional quality.
Corfu Town’s Old Fortress
Corfu Town’s Old Fortress is the town’s most striking landmark, standing east of the Old Town on top of a rocky promontory.
Corfu’s Special Cuisine
Corfu’s special cuisine includes dishes like sofrito and pastitsade and the chance to try ginger beer and kumquats.
Drive to Palaiokastrítsa
This drive to Palaiokastritsa starts at Corfu airport and takes you across the Ropa Plan and through hill villages before returning to Corfu Town.
Best Time to Visit Corfu
Greece Travel Secrets picks the best time to visit Corfu, with a monthly summary of the weather, plus hotel prices and special events to help plan a visit.
Corfu Town
Corfu Town is the capital of Corfu and of the Ionian Islands and has museums, two forts, several museums, churches, and many other attractions.
Visiting Albania from Corfu
Donna Dailey of Greece Travel Secrets visits Albania by boat from Corfu Town, staying overnight and seeing archaeological sites with Sipa Tours.
North-West Corfu Beaches and Villages
North-West Corfu’s beaches and villages include busy resorts, quiet beaches, hill villages, and places ideal for watching the sunset,
Where to Eat in North-West Corfu
Greece Travel Secrets has its list of favourite places where you can eat in north-west Corfu, including in Paleokastritsa, Pelekas, and Ayios Stefanos.
Corfu Climate: Sun, Rain, Winds
The Corfu Climate page describes the hours of sun, the rain, the winds, to help you plan the best time to visit this Ionian island.
Where to Stay in North-West and Central Corfu
Greece Travel Secrets recommends where to stay in north-west and central Corfu including luxury mansions, inexpensive rooms, and resort hotels.
Kassiopi
Kassiopi is a popular tourist resort on the northeast coast of Corfu with a sandy beach, Byzantine fortress, old church, and lots of places to stay and to eat.
Mount Pantokrator Drive
This Mount Pantokrator drive takes you to the top of Corfu’s highest mountain with wonderful views to Albania, mainland Greece, and around Corfu.
Corfu Offshore Islands
There are three islands off the northwest coast of Corfu, Erikouusa, Othoni and Mathraki, popular with day-trippers from resorts like Sidari.
Mount Pantokrátor
Mount Pantokrator is the highest mountain on Corfu and it’s easy to drive to the top for spectacular views of Albania, Corfu, and even sometimes to Italy.
A Lawrence Durrell Walk
This Lawrence Durrell walk takes you from Kaminaki Beach in northern Corfu to the White House in Kalami where the writer Lawrence Durrell lived for four year.
Two Corfu Saints
The main two Corfu saints are Saint Spyridon, the patron saint of Corfu who saved the island four times from disaster, and Saint Theodora Augusta.
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