On my recent trip from LAX to Honolulu and back again everyone at both airports was required to take off their shoes - no matter what kind they were wearing. It is inconvenient, but for the sake of expediency - not setting off the alarm & having to be searched - as well as for security reasons - it's okay with me.

I think sometimes it's not whether the shoe has metal or not, but if there is a heel or a thick sole (like a clog) that could be hollowed out and something hidden inside.

I always wear slip off shoes with socks when I travel anyway, for comfort, so it's not been an issue for me. But in spite of the article on what you can catch by going barefoot, I always do so in hotel rooms, the gym locker room, swimming pools, etc. and have never caught any fungus. I would be a lot more concerned about hand contact with surfaces that are loaded with bacteria than with where my bare feet are planted for a few brief seconds.

Hey Scarlett, hope you had a good time anyway!

Yes, Thank you, Marilyn, a good time was had by all :)

You can choose to not take off your shoes like I do. I will not take the risk of getting someone else's foot fungus :o As of yet I haven't been wanded down after saying "no". I just very firmly tell security there is absolutely no metal in my sandals and I'm not taking them off.

My husband wears size 14 shoes and he almost always get asked to remove them...must look like he could hide an arsenal in them!

I would urge others NOT to follow the actions of travelinwifey. This sort of "take no prisoners" attitude could create problems for you if you express it to the wrong person! I'm curious, travelinwifey, what would you do it you were ordered to take off your shoes?

The whole shoe-removal thing has never been an issue for me because I always wear socks when traveling. I don't know how you ladies travel in sandals - my feet would freeze from the air conditioning on the plane!

Plus, don't you want to "travel light" and wear your heaviest shoes (like sneakers or boots) when you travel, so you don't have to carry them?

Suzanne,
In my case, we were flying to a beach destination, sandals were the shoes I wore the entire time there. I actually managed to only bring one other pair (sandals) because of that!
Of course, if it were fall/winter, I would wear socks with my shoes/boots. Then I would only wish that I could burn my socks after walking across the fungus floor :D

Howard, I don't have a "take no prisoners attitude", sorry if it came off that way. Passengers are no longer required to take off their shoes. I have no problem being wanded down, but for sanitary reasons I will not take off my shoes.

I'm still curious what would happen if the checkpoint provided "booties" and if a security guard wouldn't take "no" for an answer.

"travelers are no longer required to take off their shoes"
When did that happen? As of Monday, they were required to at Newark.
If I were to inform a TSA agent that "I am not taking my shoes off"- I can imagine how happy he would be to send me off to be strip searched !
To tell the truth, I am happy they do whatever they can to be sure we are safe, so I am not complaining about taking off my shoes, only about the idea of the icky floors!
But as we can see here, we all adapt and manage to travel and keep our feet clean too :)

We had to remove our shoes just over two weeks ago at LAX. Last week my partner had to remove his shoes at Dayton, Ohio. I was at Ft. Myers RSW two days ago and they were requiring people to remove their shoes. Tomorrow I'll find out what they're doing at Ft. Lauderdale. I'm not sure where you got your information, travelinwifey, but I for one would do whatever they ask.

Scarlett-Sounds like you didn't get much power walking done. ;-) The disposable peds is a good idea. As for wiping your feet off with a kleenex, wet ones makes a travel size antibacterial wipe that fits neatly in your purse. Don't leave home without them.

I've only had to do that once and it was in Providence.

Scarlett, as of this summer passengers are no longer required have to take off their shoes. it happened about the same time random screening stopped. The screeners can request it, but you can also refuse. Then you may get "the wand". You will not be strip searched if you say no. There was an article regarding this in the USA today in july. Unfortunately I can't supply with the web site, but yes, you can say no and not be strip searched.

Here's an article regarding shoe removal: www.executivebtitravel.com/travel_news.htm
The shoe controversy....
you may decline but are much more likely to be selected for secondary screening.

Frankly, I'd rather just take off my shoes than go through the bother of being wanded.

Well, wifey, I must get that article and hand it to the nice TSA man at Newark Airport. He made me take off my shoes! Actually, so did the lady at the scanner machine. Maybe they were all just interested in my lil ole feet?
Hmmmm~

The Article Says:

The shoe controversy?. To remove or not to remove

On July 10, Executive BTI Travel published an article from CNN explaining that Transport Security Administration workers were asked to back off on making travelers remove their shoes before walking through the metal detector, though they would continue to encourage people to remove them. Today (July 14) a look at the TSA website shows it is just a question of semantics. The TSA screeners will continue to encourage you to take off your shoes and submit them for X-Ray examination. If you decline you are much more likely to be selected for a thorough secondary screening. Our advice; wear clean socks with no holes to the airport.
____________________________________
This is just what happened. I started to walk through, they told me to take off my shoes. In no uncertain terms.
When I said I thought I could get away without having to take them off, he said you could keep them on but we would have to search you, ALL of you.
This article does not say that you do not have to take off your shoes. Just that they will search you if you insist on keeping them on.

It's not just one brand (I forget which one was mentioned) of athletic shoes that have steel supports. We buy el-cheapo's, but my spouse, after setting off the alarm, has learned to be prepared to take his off.

(Incidentally, while shoes were setting off the alarms, my carry-on was searched and they found -much to my surprised and overlooked dismay - not only a five\inch haircutting shears that I'd forgotten was in there (and had to scurry off and mail back to myself), but a fork - from one of my on-the-run lunches. Imagine my surprise to arrive at our destination and discover...the fork had been put back in my bag. Not to mention...the spear-sharp little cocktail pick that Midwest Express Airlines included with a cocktail..???


On our last flight (LV to Milwaukee last spring), after we, barefoot and checked over, had cleared the security gate and boarded the tram to the outer terminal..I was so choked up I couldn't speak for several minutes. I knew our lives had changed - forever - in those minutes around 9 a.m. in September two years ago. But to be faced with it...this way, for now and forever...was just so terribly, terribly sad.