Asking women on this board: What is the BEST walking shoe?

You and I have the same feet.. lol! I love Mephisto and naot! Also a German brand called ara for dressier shoes. For Europe I swear by my Mephisto hiking boots. Very stable. I can walk and stand for hours and not feel tired. Support is key. ( as you probably know.) cushy does not always mean support. However I just discovered echo walking Sandles and would recommend them. Very sturdy.

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I swear by the brand FitFlop. Not only are they VERY comfortable, the models have evolved over the past few years and you can find some fun styles.

Skechers no longer work for me, but I have multiple foot problems.

I have never been able to wear Skechers - not enough support/sturdy enough. I've tried many styles over the years. I bought my first pair of fitflops last year - a loafer sort of style with a tassle - they're fantastic for work! I'm not sure I'd want to walk miles on vacation (cobblestones or not) in them, but perhaps some could.

When I'm on vacation, I tend to walk miles during the day, so comfort & support are what I want & need. If/when I need something cuter, like, for dinner on Seabourn, I can change my shoes (into shoes that will STILL be comfortable, but cuter and not intended for miles of walking). That said - we usually travel in cooler temps & times of year, so the boots I have (Keen bern and a Keen soft leather knee high) are both good for lots of walking AND cute with dresses for dinner. I don't usually wear my goretex haglofs walking shoes to dinner on vacation, but they're my go-to for wet trips....

There are so many options available these days (I live in the middle of nowhere and shop online by default - returning is far easier than trying to drive hundreds of miles and not find what I want in a store) There should be something that fits - physically AND style-wise - for all of us :-)

I want to make it clear that I usually wear heels or cute dressy flats for dinner! I am just hoping to find some comfortable, serviceable walking shoes for port adventures where there is often a lot of walking! I'm the kind of person who changes out of port adventure clothing for tea time and then I change again for dinner!

There is a fantastic thread on FlyerTalk.com from a few years ago that garnered a lot of replies.

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/women-travelers/1197062-comfortable-pretty-walking-shoes-boots.html

I love Clarks and have a couple of cute pairs of walking boots along with other styles. They make the only ready-to-wear heels I can wear for any considerable length of time without wrecking my feet.

For sandals, I've had great luck with Born, Cole Haan, and FitFlop. I also really like Taryn Rose for a dressier shoe that is still stylish.

Lately, I've been living in Dolce Vita booties from Nordstrom. I have them in 4 colors and will probably pack those for my upcoming fall cruises as they are great for daytime wear with jeans or casual dresses. I've also had good luck with Frye shoes/boots.

I am definitely going to take a look at Ecco.

I just bought a pair of Ecco men’s shoe for this cruise. I also have a pair of slip on Skechers Go Walks and also a pair of Skechers memory foam and of all of them, the Go Walks are the most comfortable. The Skechers memory foam are great now I have put an inner sole on top of the memory foam. That may be to suit the shape/size of my foot.

The Ecco shoe I have is way dressier than the Go Walks.

There is a fantastic thread on FlyerTalk.com from a few years ago that garnered a lot of replies.

 

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/women-travelers/1197062-comfortable-pretty-walking-shoes-boots.html

 

FYI, we also discuss this regularly in the Beauty & Fashion forum here on Cruise Critic (I post in both places;p)

For me, it is Ecco all the way. I used to wear their hiking boots to Europe...now I switched to a beautiful sneaker type shoe with soft yak leather. Their shoe is a little wider than others so that works best for me.

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I have never been able to wear Skechers.

We spent 5 days in Venice two weeks ago. We were walking 16,000 to 17,000 steps a day. I was really comfortable in my Merrell sandals alternating between two different styles each day.

A couple German brands I have for walking a lot in cities:

1. Finn Comfort

finncomfort.com

not cheap

2. A bit cheaper, with slightly less support but still great quality is

Romika brand, especially cute are their sandals and slides with soft and supportive soles

But when it comes down to major daytrip dirt and rock excursions, then do clunky Merrell sneakers ( varied kinds) , with wool socks, to heck with trying to look good ( you will look very bad if you fall and break a hip),

Worishofer ortho grannie shoes also work in Euro cities, where grannies are not a bad thing :)

I've had a pair of Finn Comfort and ended up donating them, hardly worn. The arch was placed somewhat differently and I just never became accustomed to it.

I always use Merrell. I currently have the Moab.

Like Moab hiking shoe, usually Dansko for their sandals and their Mary Janes for city walking. Danskos often have a metal shank, so if I’m wearing sandals I’ll usuakly keep a pair of socks in my bag for going through metal detectors. ( so much for TSA precheck and not having to take them off!).

Also find New Balance good for walking.

I’m hard to fit and have tried so many brands so prefer these current favorites.

Zappos has broad range of sizes and free returns so I usually just order a lot, walk around the house to see if they really fit and return most.

Another vote for ECCO here. I normally, even in cooler, dry weather wear open toed ECCO sandals and love them. They have good support and are attractive with any outfit. I put over 50 Miles on one pair on a Middle East trip last year. Aquatalia booties are my go to for wet, cooler weather. I love their waterproof suede, comfort and their stylishness. My other pair of long distance walking shoes (besides gym shoes) are Merrell hybrid hiking shoes. For city walking, though ECCO is a go to brand for me.

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Vote for Allbirds!! Also love Everlane Day Glove shoes. They are a little more streamlined and dressy than a traditional walking shoe.

Another vote for Skechers from me, even if I get annoyed at their silly spelling :) BTW, some styles are wider than others in their range. The memory foam soles are wider than non memory foam styles in my experience.

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Does anyone know of brands that are actually labelled WIDE. Really need it to be labelled wide rather than "fits a wider foot".

Have a pair of pink Sketchers.....normal width but can wear them for about an hour. Like them. Want a pair in light blue, but can not find nice blue colour.

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FYI, we also discuss this regularly in the Beauty & Fashion forum here on Cruise Critic (I post in both places;p)

And remember the Abeo's from The Walking Company:D;)

To the original poster, if you have a Walking Company anywhere near you, they offer very well made shoes,

with folks who know what they are doing. If you don't have one near you, you can use their website. They

offer great choices with excellent support.

I have a pair of Abeo's which is a Walking Company brand and they are most supportive, comfortable shoes

for walking that I have used on multiple cruises. I highly recommend them.

-Does anyone know of brands that are actually labelled WIDE.-

Go to any shoe sale website. Use the filters to sort for Wide and/or C/D, depending on how the site is set up.

As an example, here is a search for Skechers + wide + color = blue: https://www.shoes.com/skechers-wide-blue-womens.htm

SLSD, congratulations you started a thread that has over 2000 views in less than two weeks.

What is it with women and our obsession with shoes? 👠👡👢👟

Maybe we could get Colonel Wes’s wife Ada from the SS forum to also come over to this thread ( I think I read she cruises with a dozen pairs, though am not sure how many are walking shoes!).

Catlover54, Thanks for the congrats. I'm mostly obsessed about having comfortable feet! On our cruise last June (21 days), I took a pair of heels, a pair of flats, a pair of leather lace ups, my Naots, and a pair of loafers. That's five! I think I could cut that by a least one pair if I found just the right pair of walking shoes.

Well I’d already bought merrell Moabs for my odyssey cruise in 3 weeks. I’ve some clarks unstructured Mary Jane style which I bought for route of the vikings. I’ve now just ordered 2 pairs of Ecco sandals to add to my Ecco walking boots (which are for winter in Venice not this trip). Great thread. I currently have plantar fasciitis after walking so much on route of the vikings. It still hasn’t gone away and comfortable feet are my number one priority right now.

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Does anyone know of brands that are actually labelled WIDE. Really need it to be labelled wide rather than "fits a wider foot".

Have a pair of pink Sketchers.....normal width but can wear them for about an hour. Like them. Want a pair in light blue, but can not find nice blue colour.

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I need a wide width shoe and have found these to be extraordinarily comfortable (and they come in a blue denim color).

http://www.munroshoes.com/products/GABBIE/M120090

I have a couple of pairs in different colors. They've been my favorite walking shoes for our last couple of cruises.

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I like the White Metallic Gabbie. It looks like a light green that would go with most things. And it is available in wide. Thanks Ann

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ECCO for me too. I wear these, always have a spare in the que. I like the ease of the toggle. I walked 8-10 miles per day on most of our trips. Lisbon, London, Barcelona etc... I switch off between my ECCO ( they are not sandals) they are slip-ons. and Adidas Hiking. Adidas are more sneaker like, for actual hiking, but they've widened the toe box, and my feet do so much better if I switch off during the day between shoes. If I switch off, I can have style and comfort with good planning. I have terrible foot/ankle problems, and this method works so well, nothing is an obstacle.

ECCO

ECCO Women's Soft 5 Toggle Sandal (a slip-on, not a sandal)

Adidas

Adidas Duramo Cross X Shoe - Women's

Thank you kimanjo for being so specific. I'll look up these two shoes.

I do have a report on how my Clark Cloudsteppers performed on a recent trip. My husband and I took a vacation to the central coast of California last week. While not every day was a big walking day, we did have a few days that were walking intensive. The Cloudsteppers were infinitely comfortable. Nothing rubbed, nothing hurt. My only comment would be that for extensive walking, I would like a bit more support.

I do have a pair of Hoka walking shoes (black sneaker like shoes--white soles) which are wonderful--but not that attractive, I'm wearing this weekend out at our farm. I've not taken them on a cruise because they are so clunky looking, but I might consider taking them in the future.