No holiday is complete without a bit of retail therapy, and Paphos is a great place for shopping. The main shopping lane, which runs parallel to the beach promenade, is the ideal tourists' marketplace.

Kato Paphos is a shopper's paradise.The gift shops are open until late and they sell almost everything you would want to buy! From Ethnic sandals to absolutely gorgeous pottery, this place is 'the' place to shop in Paphos.

Our Paphos shopping guide below will tell you all you need to know to get the best deals and best places to shop in Paphos. If you get hungry during your shopping spree, stop for some finger food or relax in one of the great Paphos restaurants. Taking a look at shopping in general in Cyprus will give you some more shopping ideas.

Paphos Shopping Guide

Most shops in Paphos are located on Makariou III Avenue in Ktima. There is an open market at the north end of the avenue. During lunchtime (1pm till 4pm), on Wednesday and Saturday afternoons most shops remain closed.

Local Handicrafts

You will find that the shops down at Kato Paphos harbour are great for souvenirs and gifts to take home. The leather goods are genuine, well made and modestly priced. Most shops near the harbour sell belts, bags and wallets.

Lefkaritica lace is perhaps the most famous local product of Cyprus, and with good reason too. The delicate and beautifully crafted hand-made lace of Cyprus is an endangered craft since the craft does not have many young takers after this profession! In fact, there are cheap machine-made substitutes that are flooding the market but are nowhere near the real thing. Obviously, the price of a genuine lace depends on the quality of the handwork, workmanship and the difficulty of the design.

The pottery is simply delightful in Paphos. The expensive and well known items are huge earthenware storage jars, which are called pitharia. These pots, are used to store oil, water, etc, and can be spotted at entrances to people's homes. They are kept outside because their sheer size makes them incredibly hardy and tough to steal! A local village called Kornos has gained repute for making pottery. Go and enjoy a walk along Kato Paphos harbour as you marvel at the huge range of beautifully painted pottery. You could indulge in a carafe or a bright olive bowl.

Supermarkets

It is quite true that local and mainland Greek products are usually cheaper than imported ones, and this applies to all supermarkets in Cyprus. There are special sections, hosting diet and sugar-free products in most supermarkets listed below. You will see large supermarkets everywhere near Paphos. Most are open until about 8pm and all prices are in Cy Pounds. A great product to try shopping for are the locally produced drinks. Keo is the local name for beer produced here and it is quite good. The local liquors are also known to pack quite a punch.

Paphos Open Air Market

At Timi Village, this vibrant open air market is open every Sunday from 7:00 am to 2:00 pm.

Tax Free shopping in Cyprus (VAT Refund)

If you are not residents of Cyprus or non holders of Cypriot passport you are entitled to a VAT refund. Shop wherever you see the Global Refund TAX FREE SHOPPING sign and simply ask for your Global Refund Cheque (Minimum purchase amount £100 in a store or chain of stores). You will find a highly trained member of staff happy to help and advise you.

When leaving Cyprus, show your purchases to customs officials and have your Global Refund Cheques stamped. (The Global Refund Cheques must be stamped within three months plus a month of purchases). Customs personnel are well informed of the Global Refund system.

Place your Global Refund Cheques into the prepaid envelope provided by the store and put it into the nearest mailbox: (Fill in payment methods e.g. credit card number, international cheque to home address or Cyprus bank account number).

Contact Global Refund Cyprus: 3 Gr. Digeni Avenue, 5th floor, 6502 Larnaca, Tel: 357 24 817555 Fax: 357 24 817558, email: info@cy.globalrefund.com, URL: www.globalrefund.com