Shopping
Shopping opportunities are almost exclusively focused in Skiathos Town. It pays to be discerning about where you go, since the quality is variable.
On Papadiamantis itself, souvenir shops are common (see ‘the bad and the ugly’ above), selling cheap jewellery, beach wear, replica football shirts, etc, as are ‘casual wear’ stores.
Better quality shops selling ceramics, and silver and gold jewellery (a traditional Greek speciality), bronze, museum replicas and other items such as painted driftwood, are mostly located in the side streets between Papadiamantis and the old port. These include Pan Jewellery and Aquarius.
On Papadiamantis itself, the Pounentes shop is worth looking inside. The couple who own this make all their work on Skiathos and their kiln can be seen in the Tzivaeri shop opposite, just off the main street.
If you’re interested in the provenance of the artefacts, ask in the shops. The owners normally make at least some of the items themselves, but much is also from Athens or elsewhere on the mainland.
Around this area there are also a large number of shops selling various accessories, such as the ‘baubles, bangles and beads’ at Mikrokosmos.
A unique shop is Beauty of the Sea, which sells responsibly gathered sea shells and sponges.
Those of a literary bent should visit the shop beneath the Papadiamantis Museum, which sells the author’s works (including some English translations).
Just off this square is the Ellenon Archipelagos art gallery, which also sells jewellery, glassware and ceramics. (Other art galleries are located in the streets off Papadiamantis). The antique and jewellery shops either side of the road just up from Kentavros bar (just off the Papadiamantis museum square) are worth perusing. Even if you are not thinking of buying, one in particular contains a highly eclectic selection.
A number of shops also sell local produce such as sweets, honey, and herbs. Karamela, just off Papadiamantis, sells a range of traditional sweets, while again up the road from Kentavros is Meliades, which (among other things) sells jars of local honey and fruits in syrup. The Art Coffee shop nearby sells local herbs and spices, honey, and spirits, in addition to coffee.
Natural toiletries and cosmetics such as olive oil soap can be bought at Natura Green on Papadiamantis (which also sells postcards, magazines, and a range of books in English).
The shop at Evangelistria monastery sells wine at a reasonable price, alongside fruits in syrup and other produce.