Dress Shoes

[mowgli]

Hey

Just wondering about packing a pair of dressier shoes.
Everyone here seems to think its a waist, but has anyone ever had problems with getting into certain clubs/venues with just your normal sneakers or hiking boots or watever you were? Did any clubs/venues require nice shoes to get in?

Plus is it best to bring a pair of sneakers or boots of some kind for everyday use?

Cheers

[Jules80]

hello

i brought three pairs of shoes: hiking shoes (not boots but very comfy for walking), sports sandals, and flip flops. the flip flops were very strategic... they were teva brand so good quality. but they were very strappy and i think as fancy as you can make a flip flop and still have it go in the shower so these doubled as shower shoes, going out shoes, and what i wore to my cousins wedding.

Jules

[MuvverRussia]

No idea if you're male or female. Generally dress codes are stricter for guys rather than girls though, so consider that.

Generally though sneakers, hiking boots, flip flops etc aren't going to cut it for most clubs, nice restaurants, bars etc. That said, will you be wanting to go to these places? If so, definitely bring some nicer clothes (shirts, trousers for guys). Most of the time the main backpacker haunts aren't like this anyway - you can get away wearing pretty much anything (and in some cases, nothing) in these places.

[Eagle]

To reiterate Muvver's comments, it would help to know a bit more about you. The details in your Profile are very "limited", to say the least.

With respect to your question, my strategy so far has been to travel with only one pair of "all purpose" shoes (Rockport). So far this has worked reasonably well for city walking & touring, however I'm considering adding some Day Hiking or Approach Shoes or similar for my next trip, as I'll be doing some "light hiking" in Switzerland and Italy (Cinque Terre). However, I don't really want to add the extra weight, so might just try to get by with the present shoes.

So far I've also used the walking shoes for the Hostel showers as well (slip them on without socks for trips to the Shower). It might look a bit "goofy" but I don't really care.

I'm not much into visiting Clubs anymore, but from what I know there IS a dress code in many parts of Europe. How rigidly these are enforced probably depends on the "policy" set by each club?

Good luck and happy travels!!!

[mowgli]

hey, yeh im a guy
Im not really inot clubs that much either, but just thought i would at least see a few on my travels, and wasnt sure about dress code.

A lot of you say you dont go to clubs when travelling, what do u usually do at night, drinking in pubs? or at hostel?

Cheers

[MuvverRussia]

Generally the hostel bars are pretty good - really good atmosphere as well, everyone's just talking to each other etc.

Failing that, some of the more popular places have bars aimed at backpackers. These are pretty good too. The local bars can be worth a visit as well.

I find that clubs in Western Europe aren't really worth visiting. They're the same as at home, so I'd rather do more of a backpacking thing. However in Eastern Europe they're worth visiting - they're cheap, have decent music and are generally a pretty good night. It might be worth taking some dressier clothes for this, although if you were to slip the bouncer €10 or so then it wouldn't be a problem .

[Jules80]

well many places in europe (such as france and italy) you can't actually eat supper till 7 if you go out. so by the time supper is done it can be anywhere from 9 to 10 pm. we went out once or twice but we often hung out at the hostel and hit they hay somewhere between 10 and 11 cause we were so exhausted. walking around several hours a day is exhausting sometimes we'd hit net cafes after supper too

Jules

[madamtrashheap]

I used to go to all the big-name clubs in Europe (back in the days...aaahhhh), but have found in the the few years that some of the best nights are either chatting with people at the Hostel/Hotel after a day out, or stumbling across a cafe with a DJ in the background and just enjoying the music and the chatting.

These cafes/bars are a great place to meet locals and travellers alike as they are often cool little places that serve food, and then all of a sudden the music starts up and they morph into a space somewhere between club and cafe - all the good bits without the posing on the dancefloor! Although speaking of that, never get between and Italian boy and the mirror on the dancefloor - carnage! I loved watching them preen in front of each other and try to out-dance each other, with scant regard for who was watching, in fact the bigger the audience the better! It's a good insight into the culture of being an Italian guy, and something I've found can perplex visitors to Italy if you're not ready for it. I love it!

If you've heard of any clubs (in Europe they are called Discos - I know! Love it!- if you ask to go to a Nightclub you'll be directed to a stripclub ) in any of the cities you're going to, my advice is to have a bit of a scan on the web, then when you're in that city, ask around and see what the consensus is about it. Make a list (another one!) and if you get the chance then go to them, otherwise just follow your nose when you're in each city and see what you're in the mood for! The cafes won't require dress shoes, but the Discos tend to (black trainers/sneakers or boots would be fine).

Have fun and dance like no-one is watching...or like Napoleon Dynamite, whatever works! ;D