My Merrell sandals have been my favorite travel walking shoe for over 16 years. However, all good things must come to an end and they have stop making them with no suitable replacement. After an exhaustive search and even buying six different pairs to try, I have finally found a new favorite – Vionic.
My needs for a walking sandal are very specific. I need something I can wear all day and that will transition from touring to dinner. I only use a carry-on so I need one shoe that can work with shorts, pants, jeans and a dress. I prefer a sandal to a closed-toe shoe, so I will wear a sandal through three seasons for every activity that is not actual in the woods hiking. I need to walk on cobble stones and stairs. It doesn’t need to be a water shoe, but it needs to be able to withstand some rain. And I walk A LOT. On my last trip, I walked 166 miles over 22 days. That is an average of 7.5 miles a day. And when you account for the fact that I was flying or driving several of those days, it is easy to believe that several days were more than 10 and 11 miles.
Vionic did a great job. The leather top looks better than a sport sandal. The rubber sole does great on slick surfaces. The soles are thick enough for rough terrain and surfaces. There was no break-in time.
I’ve fallen in love with the Tide Aloe Toe Post Sandal. I do wish they came in a larger variety of colors and I wish the metal was silver instead of gold – but after such a long search – I’m over it. Of course, they have many models and styles but I’ll be sticking with these!
Of note – Life Kinetic receives no compensation for this review or any review / recommendation. I am just sharing what works for me!
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