Spygirl

Will-I'm telling you, I could not have worn anything but my two inch cushy-comfy flips in Rome AND Venice last August. My feet did NOT get dirty-not at all. Anything with a strap, I don't care how thin or comfortable it is, will blister and rub my delicate heel-any shoe not completely airy will make me feel like they are on fire. No, no-you just have to get the RIGHT flip-flops-and not think of them all as the simple rubber dime-store type. They really are quite fashionable and oh so comfortable.

In fact, I wear my nice black 1 and 1/2 inch flip flops occasionally with my black Ann Taylor business suits in the summer heat. Looks good, feels great.

dsm22

I usually bring a pair of filp flops along to change into half way through the day. I never had my feet get dirty though. But that was in some amusement parks, and well, I did wear them in Chicago, and Vegas last year and my feet did not get dirty.

I will be going through Belgium and Netherlands. I hope that I won't have dirty feet. That sound so gross.

LoveItaly

Hi Spygirl, what brand of flipflops do you buy? Thanks.

StCirq

Yes, I did last time I was there nin August, and my feet were absolutely totally covered in filth by the end of the day. Never again!

Spygirl

You know, I buy several brands, at the department stores, (also very good ones at Old Navy, Ann Taylor Loft, Marshalls, and Victoria's Secret). But my favorite black ones are "Rocket Dog" made in China- oh so comfy.

dsm22

The Shoe Dept. carries Rocket Dogs in black and "bark" for $19.99. Really comfy!

Spygirl

thank you dsm! Glad to hear that someone else has had good experiences with them-they carried me all the way thorugh many miles of Rome and Venice walking (but you know, I try not to walk that much anymore, because I don't like getting over-tired by doing so, however sometimes you just end up walking more than you intended).

LoveItaly

Thanks Spygirl, I have 3 pair of Clarkes flipflops which I live in, it seems like everyone where I live wears flipflops 24/7. When I go to Italy I only take one pair (instead of slippers) for around the house or hotel room. But although until a few years ago I lived in highheel shoes I now don't want to..do not even know if I could. And I use to always wear stilleto heels all over Italy..but don't think I want to do that anymore. So I was interested in your comments about your flipflops. Again, thanks for the information. And happy walking!

Spygirl

No problem, Love Italy-I can't do the stilettos except for very special occasions, but what I like about these flip-flops is that they give me height- at 5'3, I need that inch and a half, primarily because the higher footbed puts far less stress on the calves and shins when walking, which is why I don't want to buy some of the good walking sandles/slides that are mentioned here, even though they are very comfortable-they just don't have enough height.

amp322

I agree with the Clarkes flipflops! Once you break them in, they are GREAT!!
Also, lightweight foam kind from Target, or similar, are comfy.

I only wore flip flops for 2 weeks in Rome 3 summers ago. Awesome in the heat, when my feet swell.

LoveItaly

Good grief, you ladies are making me feel better. Until I moved to the very casual small city I now live in I never wore flipflops unless it was a casual weekend or we were on our boat.

But since I have moved to where I now live I have lived in flipflops..and have felt so tacky in doing so. Then there was that news article about that those young women, some sport team, who was honored at the White House and they wore flipflops. And I thought "what". And now these posts on Fodors about flipflops.

Thanks again Spygirl for your information, it is very appreciated as I have found that "flat" shoes put strain on my calves and shins also. Although the Clarkes flipflops are really comfy I obviously need to buy some like you wear.

And AMP, thank you for sharing your experiences, it is good to hear from others and what worked for them.

Oh to be back in the days when walking around Rome in stilletos was not a problem, LOL. But the memories are great!

dutyfree

I just hope Schnookies that you are not one of my "broken ankle " people coming home on one of my flights? For the past year, I have had at least one person a month coming home with foot problems(Need to have ice on their foot and elevated or are in a cast) from cobblestones/wine/bad footwear and not necessarily in that order.Be careful!

suze

For schnookies, Do you wear your flip flops at home for long periods? That seems the trick and what I am hearing from the posters above. If they are good for you at home, they'll work for Rome. If this is a new idea for you, maybe not. Tuck one pair in your bag, at worst you'll use them around your hotel room or for something breezy to wear out in the evenings.

SeaUrchin

I posted this on your other thread but wanted to give you a little heads up notice here too (as if you don't have enough to worry about): My friend wears flip flops most of the time at home and wore hers on a day trip we took to Rome from Tuscany. The next day she could barely walk, the cobblestones on non supported shoe did the trick.

If you are really going to be doing a lot of walking I would take another pair to change into for part of the day at first until you see how you fare.

katalina2222

I just came back from Italy where I walked 100s of miles it seemed. I bought an expensive pair of walking sandals and a pair of mule tennies and my Ann Taylor Loft flips. The expensive sandals gave me 3 blisters the first day. I wore them all around before I left but nothing here is like the cobblestones there. The tennies were comfy but hot. I ended up wearing the flips most of the time. They are the thick foot bed type and were extremely comfy.

JAGIRL

I walked around part time in flip flops on my last trip to Rome. No one noticed or cared.

JAGIRL

But seaurchin is totally correct about the cobblestones. I found that after the second day of walking around my feet were o.k. in the flip flops. But I did alternate between flip flops and really comfy walking shoes.
The thicker the flip flops the better. Really thin ones might not be the best thing for your feet.

missypie

I wore my Teva flip flops about every other day of a 12 day trip to Italy. They had done very well the year before on a 10 day trip to Disneyworld, so I knew I'd be fine.

Vera

I envy the people young enough and with feet not yet broken down that can wear anything they want. However, years of wearing either high heels or barefoot sandals, my feet are not in such good shape and need LOTS of support both under and around.

In olden times we had not yet discovered shower flip-flops let alone fashion flip flops. (An oxymoron?)

And note--just because some college girls wore them to the White House does NOT make them acceptable in formal occasions.

Enjoy wearing what you can while you can--the foot gods will exact their revenge eventually.

Vera

francophile03

I agree with Vera. I wore sandals in Rome and don't think my feet would have done well in flip flops even the thick soled kinds. Walking over some cobllestones almost twisted my ankles. I know that it would have succeeded if I had worn flip flops.