I recently took a couple of warm-weather trips to Mexico and then Los Angeles, both of which offer a significant beach culture. But in my opinion, that doesn’t make it a good idea to consistently wear the controversial sandal style that I kept seeing on people’s feet during my travels. If you’re thinking flip-flops, we’re on the same page. What kills me is that there are so many shoe styles out there that are just as easy and comfortable as flip-flops but are significantly more protective of your feet.
I wanted to know how flip-flops rank on the airport practicality spectrum, so I reached out to the experts themselves and chatted to TSA spokesperson Lisa Farbstein and Delta travel agent Stacey Townsend. Farbstein pointed out that while you can certainly wear flip-flops to an airport, “even though they are thin-soled, they still will need to be removed at the TSA checkpoint, which typically means bare feet on the floor.” So making the security process easier certainly isn’t a valid reason to wear them.
Townsend told me, “flip-flops are great to slide on to head down to the pool, but as a flight attendant, they are not my footwear of choice when exploring a new city. They offer no support, which is basically my worry.” I asked what she thought of wearing them to the airport and flying in them, to which she responded, “I mean, it’s sort of gross. There’s so much bacteria. Wearing flip-flops, you can get blisters and then bacteria can get into your feet.” Yikes, right?
So with that in mind, here are six celebrity-approved shoes that are far more sensible for the airport. See which celebs travel in them and shop the styles below.
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