Sandals are a versatile footwear option for travellers, offering comfort, breathability, and style. Leather walking sandals are particularly popular, bringing together all the above with an emphasis on style and durability. Whether you're exploring a bustling city or relaxing on a tropical beach, a good pair of walking sandals can make all the difference. Read on for our top five sandals for travellers - wherever your feet take you.
Walking Sandals: How to buy
Sandals for travelling need to perform a complex list of functions, from looking as stylish as possible to shrugging off mud, dust and general detritus. They have to cope with long days afoot, and terrain that will range from slick airport hard-surface through urban tarmac and paving to footpaths and trails. A good, positive set of straps is an essential here, and a sole unit that delivers comfort, grip and as much breathability as possible is also a central requirement.
Although we’ve chosen a range of sandals here to suit most travel occasions, you’ll need to , consider the climate you plan to visit. If you're expecting hot weather, you'll want a pair of sandals that are open and airy. If you're planning on doing any hiking or other outdoor activities, you'll need a pair of sandals that offer more support and protection, especially around the toe area. However, the more protective, closed style sandals - like the Keen WK450 Sandal - will feel on the warmer side if worn around town in the heat, so a compromise may be on the cards…
Walking Sandals: TL/DR
If you needed just one sandal to do it all, the Teva Hydratrek Sandal has to be right up the top of the list. There’s a reason Teva has been selling essentially the same design for decades, and that’s because it’s jolly effective, as well as comfortable. Offering some protection while still being incredibly breathable, you can still jog for a bus just as easily as take on a light trek. If you need something more understated, the Keen Kona Leather Flip-Flop packs in the comfort without dropping any hints of function over form.
Keen Kona Leather Flip-Flop
Sometimes simple is best, and the Keen Kona Leather Flip-Flop ticks that box admirably. At a glance, it’s a high-end flip-flop, immediately ready for summer duties of all types, but there’s more than meets the eye here. For starters the upper thong is made from full-grain leather, and environmentally preferred premium leather from a LWG-certified tannery at that, elevating matters far above your standard flip-flop.
The sole unit also offers a series of upgrades over the humble flip-flop - most importantly featuring arch support, an essential for longer days afoot. There’s a cushioning
foam midsole too, as well as in insole with embedded Eco Anti-Odor technology and a quick-dry lining. A final point is the non-marking rubber outsole with aquagrip rubber for better traction on wet surfaces - the latter crucial for travellers likely to face sun, sea and wet paving all over the course of a trip. Overall these understated gems offer all-day comfort and considerable practicality without compromising on style, which is a pretty robust combo.
Buy Keen Kona Leather Flip-Flop: From £37 at Amazon.co.uk
Helly Hansen Women's Capilano F2F Sandals
The Helly Hansen Capilano Sandal might look like a fashion item, but there’s considerable tech built in here, making it the perfect companion for travelling, as well as everyday wear. It’s very lightweight too, at a mere 160 grams, so perfect as a low-profile suitcase addition.
A dual-compound midsole provides durability as well as comfort, and an aggressive outsole offers plenty of grip across a range of surfaces. Adjustable straps offer a good range of fitments for variously-shaped feet, but also allow finer adjustments on the go, such as when temperatures soar, on a long flight, or when a tighter fit is warranted on move technical terrain. There’s more than a little nod to sustainability too, with 30% Recycled Rubber across the whole sandal, and 30% Recycled EVA in the Mid-sole too.
Buy Helly Hansen Women's Capilano F2F Sandals: £75 hellyhansen.com
Teva Hydratrek Sandals
No trip suitcase is complete without a pair of Teva sandals, unless you’re headed to the Arctic, and the new Hydratrek ticks all the boxes you’d expect as well as a few more. The classic strap system is present and correct, adjustable but secure, and the hook-and-loop closure will be familiar to millions. Specifically made for excellent traction on wet surfaces, the design - inspired by tree frogs - also uses a variety of recycled materials in the polyester strap padding, the EVA midsole and the Spider Rubber outsole.
Buy Teva Hydratrek Sandals: £75 from Teva-eu.com
Arc'teryx Kragg Shoes
The Kragg is something of a departure for the premium Canadian brand, representing a fascinating hybrid of an approach shoe and a flip flop. Protective thanks to the deep rand - more reminiscent of a mountain boot - but with a slip-on style heel, it’s part slide, part camp slipper. The mesh upper is exceedingly breathable, bolstered by TPU and Vibram rubber zonal protection and the outsole is technical Vibram Megagrip. The sock liner has strong eco credentials, as it’s made with a 50 percent bio-based poured PU compound with an open-cell foam top layer containing 25 percent bio-based content. Essentially, this is the most technically competent slipper on the planet, a flip flop with mountain aspirations, and for that alone we salute the Kragg.
Buy Arc'teryx Kragg Shoes: £136 from AlpineTrek.co.uk
Keen WK450 Sandals
The WK450 is designed for long days afoot, ideal for city breaks in hotter climates. The rocker motion maximises gait efficiency and gives a sensation of forward motion, something that is accentuated with a high rebound EVA midsole. The engineered mesh upper with TPU overlays is robust enough to tackle anything from town to trail, and the laces are 100 percent recycled PET. The upper is treated with KEEN’s Eco Anti Odour treatment that’ll snuff out any heat-related smells, and the wide outsole platform contributes stability - whatever the journey.
Buy Keen WK450 Sandals: £100 from AlpineTrek.co.uk <<DEAL PRICE>>
