7
Rant: Hit 60,000 miles on a single pair of shoes and I'm kind of mad about it
I tracked my yearly travel for the last 3 years and realized I walked over 60,000 total miles across airports, hostels, and city streets on the same pair of cheap sneakers I bought for $30. They finally fell apart last month after I did that 12-hour walking tour in Bangkok, and now I gotta find a new pair that won't break the bank but can handle the grind. Any tips for finding durable travel shoes under $50 that won't shred in 6 months?
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
allen.charlie16d ago
Wow, 60,000 miles on a pair of $30 sneakers? That's insane in the best way (and also maybe a little gross, sorry). I had a similar thing happen with a pair of knockoff Converse I bought at a market in Vietnam for like 8 bucks. They survived two years of casual wear before the sole just peeled off one day, leaving me barefoot in a grocery store parking lot for a really weird 10 minutes. For cheap travel shoes under $50, I'd honestly look at those running shoes they sell at big box stores like Walmart or Target, the store brand ones. They're not fancy at all, but I've gotten a solid year out of a pair that cost me $35, and they handled Prague's cobblestones like a champ.
7
the_tessa16d ago
Totally feel this, it's almost annoying when something cheap just refuses to die because then you get attached and then you're stranded. I had a pair of those canvas slip-ons from a dollar store in Mexico that lasted through like four monsoon seasons and then just dissolved mid-walk in a street market. For under $50, honestly check out the clearance racks at places like Ross or Marshalls, I've snagged some no-name sneakers there that felt like they had better stitching than my last pair of Nikes. The key is to look for rubber that's actually thick, not those paper thin soles, and get whatever has a chunky tread because smooth bottoms will just peel off on hot pavement. Just be ready to cycle through a few pairs, sometimes the $30 ones are built for three months of hard walking, not 60,000 miles of pure chaos.
2