Well we are 30 days out from our WDW trip. Everything is done and paid for but I am worried about my feet. I must have bought 8 pairs of new sandals & shoes. Have tried 2 pairs of flip fops at Disneyland. The crocs gave me blisters and the snauks flip flops were okay for my feet but the next day my legs were killing me. What flip flops, sandals or shoes works for you? Has anyone wore AllBirds? I am 65 years old and NOT super active. Any tips or tricks will be helpful!! Thanks
I bought Merril sandals before our last trip and I love them! I wear them everywhere
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chacos or keens
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iâve worn birkenstocks. if there are concerns about getting them wet, the eva versions are less expensive but still very comfy. some experience a difficult time breaking them in, so one month may not be enough. speaking for myself, birks are great out of the box.
and, yes, iâve worn allbirds. theyâre excellent. i canât say enough good things about them. i wore the tree runners.
i typically wore birks during the day and switched to allbirds in the evening. i have also worn both for full days without switching and was fine.
Another vote for Chacos! Theyâre supportive and dry super fast.
Seconding the Birkenstocks. My favorite style is Gizeh because of how they support my feet without too many straps, and I can also wear them right out of the box. They are expensive for sandals, but they are incredibly durable. I wear mine all summer and have had one pair for 8 years that are still in great condition. If you are a Costco member, they occasionally have them online for the best price Iâve seen, but they sell out quickly.
I third the Chacos. Better than sneakers!
In desperation to find sandals I could wear, my wife learned about Birkenstocks. So, I went to the Birkenstock in Ann Arbor and had them try to custom fit ideal sandals. They even let me wear a pair outside and walk around the block. Ultimately I decided they might work, so I gulped at the price and bought a pair.
But hereâs the trick. They tell you that they take at LEAST a month to break in (which, should be a clueâŚshoes should never need to be âbroken inâ). But, they also said that in order to return them, they had to be returned in LESS than 30 days, and couldnât be worn OUTSIDE. Um. Then, how does one âbreak them inâ?
I wore them all summer long, my foot experiencing increasing pain as I did. While they didnât start out amazingly comfortable, by the time the summer was over, I couldnât stand them. $125 down the tubes. (AlmostâŚmy son ended up wearing themâŚhe was okay with them since they were free!)
So, I do NOT recommend Birkenstocks. At all.
Fortunately, I eventually found my Reefs. (Well, my wife did, but they are great!)
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youâre not alone @ryan1! i know so many others like you whoâve not had any luck with birks and those who have, some needing the break-in period others not. i definitely donât recommend buying them for disney unless you know you have time to break them in if they arenât right for you out of the box.
itâs unfortunate you bought a pair and put in the effort to break them in with no luck! but happy you found the reefs to your liking (and that your son ended up with the birks)!
I am 54 and walk a lot but have sensitive feet.
Try Noat shoes
I wore these exact sandals on my week visit last May.
Very comfortable, supportive, and well made.
I wore this style all through Northern Europe in 2014
They come in a variety of colors, and are comfortable but stylish and go from the parks to a nice dinner.
Wear them before trip and Iâd recommend taping your feet for long days.
Teva Hurricanes
I bought 2 pair for our June 2018 trip and traded each day.
5 full days in the parks with 20K+ steps each day and zero blisters and zero foot pain.
My knees were done, but my feet were fine.
Family didnât listen and had a variety of problems from blisters to horribly sore feet. Now everyone has hurricanes for the parks.
ETA: I live in these things now and dread when the weather changes and I canât wear them and wait for the spring when I can.
I like my Teva Verras (womenâs sandals). Good arch support, lots of adjustable straps to fit my narrow feet, thick cushioning sole that can handle pounding pavement at WDW without problems.
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I havenât tried in WDW yetâŚbut will in 36 days. Spenco Yumi flip flops. Good for planter facaitis, or whatever itâs called. A podiatrist on chat recommends them. They have been a life saver this summer at home with standing/walking a lot.
Possibly the best thing you can do is go to a store that specializes in running shoes. They should check out what kind of feet you have. If they donât, go to another store.
Birkenstock, with the cushioning of the cork, work best for a certain kind of foot. My feet love them. My husbandâs feet - not so much.
Other shoes provide support which a different sort of foot requires.
The running shoes store should help you discover which kind of foot you have and thus which kind of shoe will help your feet and legs.
Once youâve been walking on your feet for several decades the kind of shoe makes a huge difference.
Or shoes! I joke that I could put all my clothes in a small backpack while my shoes need a big suitcase. My feet want a shoe change frequently during the day.
Good luck !
What ever you decide on, make sure they are comfortable from the second you try them on. If any part of the shoe is slightly tight or just rubs a little bit. GET A DIFFERENT PAIR. No shoes should have to be âworked-inâ to be comfortable. (My wife 59 wears Sketchers. she loves them)
Chacoâs and Keens. Chacoâs before Keens.
I did really well with OluKai flip flopsâŚexcept for when my son kept stepping on my toes 
Iâm a huge Chacos fan, but when I first started wearing them years ago it took my foot some time to get used to them. The arch support is great for me (my feet are flat), but it felt really weird for the first couple of months. Once my foot adjusted, they became the only shoes I wanted to wear.
For flip flops I love love Teva mush wedge flip flops. I can walk on them all day. Iâm on my second pair over several years. And they are inexpensive. I think I got them from amazon for twenty something dollars.
We just returned from a trip to New York where we walked about 12 miles a day. I bought a pair of Allbirds sneakers and a pair of Allbirds flats before this trip. It took a lot for me to buy them at $95 each, but I am so very glad I did. Absolutely love them. So comfortable⌠my feet were happy every day.
I know many people wear sandals to Disney I personally just canât imagine doing that. We are at the parks all day and have to have sneakers. Hoka one one running shoes are what Iâm wearing now. My feet hurt after just one hour of walkingâŚjust how I am sadly. So soft plush shoes are my only option. I stopped wearing sandals after my mid 20âs though too. But if people have other recommendations for sneakersâŚIâm all ears.
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