I like to think that I know a good amount of information to make a Disney Trip successful. But, the one thing that I still struggle with is finding the Perfect Shoe to wear around the parks.
It’s so frustrating…I have wide feet, so unless I struggle with finding shoes to begin with. Finding ones that are comfortable to wear all day long? Yeah, that is an added issue I wish I didn’t have to deal with.
So I’m asking begging my readers for help.
Help me find the perfect park shoe!
The walking in Disney World is no joke!
I have walked for full days in flip flops, flats, sandals, and sneakers at Farms, Zoos, places in Houston like NASA and Kemah (often one busy day after another when my family visits), and even other Theme Parks like Darien Lake (a local amusement park back home) and I’ve never had any problems. I have never once gotten a blister! But ONE day into a Disney Trip and my feet cries in pain…every.single.time.
If you don’t believe how much walking there is, during our most recent visit, we averaged between 12,904 (our arrival day) and 25,018 steps. And that is just the times that I had my phone on me. That is not including the 3 times we went swimming and a couple times I walked to the lobby for some food and left my phone in the room.
The good news is that in my search for the perfect shoe, I have also found some great products that make my life so much easier after I get a blister. But, still, it would be so nice to not have to go through the routine every day afterwards.
You would think that by now, I would start the routine before the blister, but I get optimistic that I have finally found a shoe that would not give me blisters after just one day in the park. But, again and again, I fail.
This time around, the culprit was my most comfortable sneakers. They’re about 2 years old, but since I spend most days in flip flops, they still have plenty of tread left to them. I had such high hopes for these perfectly worn in Adidas sneakers.
So, why was it just one day into my trip did I get the biggest blister I have ever had in my life?!
Things were going great. We had park hopped from Magic Kingdom to Epcot, and we were on the way back to Magic Kingdom for Happily Ever After.
Suddenly the unpredictable Florida weather decided to dump buckets and buckets of rain down on us as we rode the Monorail. We’ve seen it rain for a few minutes and then clear right up, so we weren’t very concerned. Even if Happily Ever After was cancelled, we figured we were still going to have fun closing down Magic Kingdom that night.
But, plans changed when just stepping off the Monorail and walking down the ramp towards Magic Kingdom drenched my shoes.
Since it was the first full day of our trip, I was worried about blisters, so we decided to head back to Port Orleans Riverside to dry our feet. In the amount of time it took to walk to the buses, ride back to our resort, and walk to our room, my feet were done for.
I realized that I would get blisters when I failed to listen to the warning signs my feet were giving me. This time, I thought I’d get ahead of the game and actually listen to my feet.
Yup…that didn’t work either.
I spent the rest of the night drying shoes in the dryers next to the quiet pool. How did I go from planning to have a magical night at Magic Kingdom to spending the night holding the dryer door closed because our shoes kept “kicking” the door open? Oh, the things that happen at Disney…
Is there a shoe that will actually work for me?
Upon some great recommendations, I have purchased a few different pairs of shoes in recent years. Here are a few that have not worked for me:
Teva
I can’t really say that these haven’t worked for me in the parks because I never actually got to wear them to the parks. Upon recommendation that these are great because they allow your feet to breathe while also providing cushion and support was enough for me to make the leap and get them. They also had some great reviews, some which also include Disney World specifically. While they are incredibly comfortable, taking them for a test run around my neighborhood with my dachshund, was already starting to wear on the sides of my feet. Had the front straps been slightly wider, I’m sure they would work, but after I walked back home, I saw that my feet were already getting red from the rubbing of the straps. They’re great if you have thinner feet, but for me, they won’t work.
Vans
I still wear my Vans while running errands, but never again will I wear them to a Disney Park. Surprisingly, they were so much better on my feet than my sneakers, but ultimately, they still gave me a blister. Bummer…
If only I had as much room in my shoes as Mickey does
Adidas
These aren’t the exact pair, but you get the point. I got the worst blisters of my life in my Adidas, and I think it had to do with the fact that there was nowhere for my foot to breathe after getting wet from the rain. I do still wear my Adidas for running errands and bike riding, but as far as Disney Parks go, these are a big NO!
I’ll never know the JOY of being at Disney without blisters
