Shopping hours

The Christmas holidays are just around the corner, and despite the economic hardships facing the average Greek family, people are planning their shopping, while store owners hope to see a long awaited breather in their earnings. Holiday season shopping hours have taken effect from Sunday, December 11. These are the exact operation hours of stores during the holiday period:

The Italian Cultural Institute in Athens presents an exhibition of works by Greek artists who studied under the late Italian artist Leonardo Cremonini. The show opens on Wednesday, December 14, and runs through February 11. Opening hours are Mondays to Fridays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Admission to the exhibition is free of charge.

Maria Ikonomopoulou's photographic project "Such a Tender Nothingness" is going on display at the Netherlands Institute in Athens from December 2 to 17. The project consists of 155 photographs that the artist has uploaded on Facebook over the last few years. The images explore life in Rotterdam and Athens, the two cities Ikonomopoulou divides her time between.

The Easter work hours of stores will take effect from Thursday, April 28. In Athens, retail shops will be open be open from 9 am in the morning till 9 pm in the evening on Thursday, while they will be open between 1 pm and 7 pm on Good Friday, April 29. On Saturday they will open from 9 am in the morning to 3 pm.

The Greek Orthodox Easter holidays and the coinciding of Labor Day with Easter Sunday will mean changes to museum and archaeological site opening hours, the Culture Ministry announced Monday.

Ermou Street was inundated with crowds on the last Sunday of the year, a shopping day thanks to the extended shop opening times on December 27. Athenians took advantage of the extended shopping hours that run to 6 p.m. though some department stores close at 8 p.m.

Shop owners found work satisfactory as people rushed for some last-minute shopping.

Shopkeepers and sales staff held protests in Athens and Thessaloniki to mark the first of three Sunday opening days for shops during the Christmas season. Protests were held at Athens’ main shopping area at Ermou Street and at the corner of Tsimiski and Agia Sofia streets in Thesslaoniki. Traffic in Thessaloniki was brought to a standstill.

Stores will open on Sunday July 18, as it is the first day the start of the summer sale period. President of the Hellenic Confederation of Commerce & Entrepreneurship Vassilis Korkidis said the business people are waiting anxiously to see what the final decision on the opening hours of the stores on Sundays will be.

The National Confederation of Hellenic Commerce on Tuesday announced the shopping hours during the 2015 Easter period in Athens, Thessaloniki and Piraeus.

Sunday, April 5 - 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. (Athens and Thessaloniki) and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Piraeus)

Good Friday, March 10 - 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

In an announcement released on Friday, the Athens Trade Association presented its proposals for the shopping hours during this year’s Easter period.

Specifically, the ATA suggested that the shops remain open from 09.00 a.m. up until 09.00 p.m on Wednesday, April 1 and Friday, April 3.