walking shoes

[LHR02]

flip flops give you no support...not for arches or ankles plus there is that annoying toe thing. I really urge you to rethink this option......you have no idea just how many miles you will be walking! ;D Leave anything and everything at home with the exception of really good shoes! They are vital to the success of your trip.

[jennifer]

no kidding, even with great walking shoes you'll probably end up having blisters from stroaming the town!
xoxox
Jen

[Rich]

Anyone with any experience with Salomon street hikers? I bought the Tasso II shoes, but I am just wearing them in the house at the moment. Feel great for now and look water resistant, durable and good for hiking without that Crocodile Hunter look. Have never worn street hikers before though....

[SaraBeth]

Anyone have the Mephisto Kadel's? I also like the Nanna's and Kunissa's. Are they worth the $200ish price tag? This is going to sound bad, but i can justify dropping $200 on a pair of great heels, but that seems like a high price for such a boring shoe! So are they really comfortable enough to be worth it? They are the most attractive of all the walking sandals I've found. And they would go well with skirts, which I plan to wear most of the time. Thanks for the opinions!

www.zappos.com/n/es?d=722001360&color=0&size=0&width=0&price=0&heel_height=0&order_by=default&show_all=1&page_size=99

[Kim]

I think all 3 of those would work - and I'm definately all for dropping the money for comfy shoes. Just justify it as you are going to have to make do with 1 (2 at the most) pair of shoes the whole time, so it's worth it.

I think those would work well with skirts and shorts which is great.

Kim

PS I vote for the Nannas!

[kim]

I used to do a lot of river walking, and I had a pair of Tevas with spider-rubber soles that were decent. I have also had Birkenstock sandals, which are very comfortable if you're not trying to cover a lot of ground. However, my favorite "hiking" sandals are Chacos. The straps are configured to really hug your foot to the shoe, no worries about losing it like Birkenstocks, and they are far more comfortable than my Tevas because there is only one buckle. Also, the company will resole them for you for a small fee, so you'll have them forever. They are pretty cool looking sandals, too.

[backpacker]

I've always found it pretty easy to travel with just two pairs of shoes: good quality sandals (Birks are good, Mephistos as well) and some hiking boots that can also be used for walking.

The key thing is to break them in before you go!!!

I once had mad awful blisters in Mozambique from not breaking in hiking boots... it sucked.

Flip flops are usually a good idea for the shower, especially if you're staying in hostels.

Don't bother with strappy sandals or "dressy" shoes. They just take up time and taunt you from your backpack about never using them.

Make sure you can get at least one pair of shoes wet. There WILL be rain.

[ambre]

I would recommend Chacos- I have a pair and LOVE them! I've worn them for everything: walking, hiking, bouldering and dancing! They're a bit on the expensive side, but well worth it.

[Adamg82]

I'm bringing this topic back to life because i'm kind of in a bind. I have a pair a of dressy sketchers that I'm going to be wearing probably at night if wear long pants or while in a nice place such as a cathedral or the such. But I lack a good pair of something to walk around in for awhile.

I'm heading off this coming SATURDAY...and I really need to decide on what to get.

I'll be on my feet for 3 weeks all around Europe and I'd like something that will be comfortable to wander around the cities with and something that looks decent in khaki shorts or pants.

I don't really want to spend TO much but any...and I mean any suggestions would be appreciated!

Oh and I'm not much for sandals either so...anything but, lol.

thanks in advance! ;D

[WillTravel]

Don't worry about having nice shoes in cathedrals. People just wear whatever when visiting cathedrals, so long as the guard doesn't complain about bare shoulders, shorts, or short skirts.

If you want to know if you will like the shoes in Europe, try walking 10 miles with them right now here in your hometown, on pavement and up and down stairs. It would be best if you did this about five days in a row and with a backpack part of the time ;-). This is really the way to tell if the shoes can hold up to what you are likely to be doing. In actual fact, 10 miles/day is probably somewhat of an underestimate, because you're likely to be on your feet and active for at least 12 hours per day.

I took a pair of black New Balance walking shoes and a pair of Rieker walking sandals. The NB shoes were because the Rockports I had been wearing happily for months suddenly failed on me (2 days before I left) when I did some very long walks in warm weather, apparently causing the widest part of my foot to feel cramped and hurt. So I had to rush out and buy the NB shoes and I bought them a little big, knowing from experience that walking around for 12 hours per day, plus the initial flight, causes my feet to swell somewhat. Even so, the NB shoes were no use at all on hot days. The sandals were great on hot days. I would go back to the hotel and switch between them. Anyway, even with all this, I got blisters, but I took care of them quickly and they didn't end up curtailing my walking.

The point of this long story is that comfort, comfort, comfort will be your primary concern after about 3 days. Have two different pairs of shoes, both very comfortable and good for hot weather, and expect that your feet might swell a bit.

[Steve]

I have not seen these mentioned so I thought I'd through them out for consideration. The Merrell Chameleon Stretch. I was looking for a good pair of comfortable walking shoes at the beginning of the summer. I went into a shoe store with intention of buying something else and the salesman showed me these. When I tried them on, I knew I was sold. You don't even know you have them on, yet with the vibram sole, you can even hike in them. I love mine. Here is a link that gives another [supporting] opinion. They look a little goofy, but in the right color scheme, they can look a little more normal.

www.outek.com/blog/archives/000154.html

[Tracie]

I have a pair of Merrell's (trail running maybe...not sure) that are awesome!! They were great for a 5 hour hike in the Swiss Alps or just walking around. I still wear them almost everyday and they are holding up great (had them since last March). They don't need much breaking in as they are so comfy right off the bat (a friend borrowed them the other day and commented on how nice they felt).
I brought some flip flops with me to Europe to use as shower shoes. I wore them out one night as I was too lazy to change shoes...on the way home from the pub I caught the front of them on a cobble stone and the whole top part fell apart. I would not recommed flip flops for anything more than the beach or shower.

[Adamg82]

So I went and tried on a few of the Merrells and found the Chameleon Stretch to be amazingly comfortable. So I picked up a pair

Thank you all for your help! My plane leaves @ 7pm EST tonight and I just don't know what to do, lol.

Safe travels to all and see ya in Septemby ;D

[Steve]

Glad to hear you liked the shoes. They are amazingly comfortable.

Tell us how you liked them when you return from your trip.

[me]

these worked ok on the trip. the fit was less than wonderful, but that's my fault.

- d

David said:

just bought a pair of Raichle shoes a few days ago at REI. hope they work ok. [they have the Vibram soles that are recomended on RickSteves.com] wearing/walking in them now to try and break them in by the end of March, when i leave.

- d