The London Lounge

I now only take a single carry on bag for city vacations lasting a week or so.
I resolved, and committed to that a long time ago.

I just can’t be bothered to pack more than fits in that 22” bag. Anything more suggests flabby thinking.
And I don’t care that I will have to wear the same shirt, etc. a couple of times. So what.

2 items take up the most space and add the most weight : Shoes and the toiletries bag.

The toiletries: well, I’ve cut that way back. No more shampoo bottles, hair curlers, face masks, or mascara. Takes up too much damn space and you can always buy that locally at the nearest pharmacy, right? And then toss it before the next leg of your trip.

Shoes are the issue. What walking shoes do you recommend to pack suitable for walking and touring all day?

My usual routine is to wear a pair of brown loafers when boarding the plane - easy to get on and off for airport security. Even when your feet swell after a long flight , you can usually stuff your feet back into them when landing even if you forgot your pocket shoe horn. And you can wear them with your blazer day or night when dining at a bistro. Forget the brown color issue for night; nobody’s looking and nobody cares. Believe me.
Anyway, you’re a tourist right?, and can’t be expected to pack your whole closet of clothes and stuff.
My teeth still ache when I recall Will over at the now defunct site asuitable wardrobe when he described packing and traveling. Very dedicated to the dress idiom. But exhausting.

You know all the old rules, but here you are breaking them because....well, you are a practical person and the schleppers next to you at the Michelin ** wearing their jeans, sweat shirts and trainers, with $$$ in their wallet, think that you are a bit too out of it wearing your blazer, ascot and all. But ascots and scarves are easy and light to pack. Right?

Anyway, back to the subject at hand, do you have a favorite rubber soles shoe you recommend for walking around city streets. ??

I thought of the EG Dover with dainite sole but for god’s sake they weigh a brick, more than my flight allowance. Not to mention that I don’t own them but I have a reasonable facsimile.

TIA.

Still working on that. One recent failure: EG Dukes. I had special order made with dark brown Utah, and 1.5x thickness flat rubber soles. I figured I was covering all bases-- dark enough to wear in the evening, textured for casual use in weird weather, and thick enough soles to tolerate European cobblestones. As it happens, the soles are so thick that they don't bend properly, and the shoes pull my socks down while walking. The Utah has stretched out a bit, so even though the original fit was good it is now even less good for walking.

C&J Harvards are actually quite excellent for walking-- my first shell pair needs re-soling, and I will keep at single thickness. Still wondering if I should go for the closed-channel handgrade sole. I may try an extra pair from Ben Silver in city rubber soles/dark grain.

Otherwise, I think the best all-in shoe would be a "military" pair (double-stitch cap derby) or maybe a scotch-grain oxford in plain-toe or cap-toe. Mink suede is another option. Single rubber sole if you'll need to wear them more than once in wet weather. Get leather dark enough to go with your suit during the day, and pack a black pair of oxfords for use at night or in others' offices. Bespoke, especially from the likes of Cleverley, will wear and pack lightly.

Weston 180s black w thin rubber sole

I'm also committed to the single carry on case.

I have a Globetrotter hard shell case circa 1975 that was made specifically to fit under the seat of BEA (British European Airways) aircraft. It fits the modern carry on maxima in most instances (not Ryanair obviously).

I can get a week’s kit in it largely because Im also in the habit of taking an overcoat whose pockets I'll merrily stuff with underwear and the like. This is the only situation in which I have contemplated investing in some ‘cargo pants’.

I'll also often take an umbrella or walking stick - I don't need it but flight attendants give you the benefit of the doubt when you have one.

All this effort is worth it if it means I can have 2 pairs of shoes, or at least carry some sandals. I just don’t like wearing the same shoes 2 days running if I can help it.

Most of my leisure travel is trying to get somewhere hotter than the UK, in a location with some sights worth trekking around. Maybe I should invest in some proper walking boots, plus the day-glo lycra & goretex kit that goes with it - in another life maybe...

Unless it’s going to be ridiculously hot, I stick with a pair of Cheaney commando soled veldschoen. The principal reason aside from being robust, is that the last is near-perfect for my shape. I can do a few miles and still smile at the end of it. I’ve also just acquired some RM Williams suede desert boots - rubber soled, so true ‘brothel creepers’ - supremely comfortable.

As with most travel attire, comfort must be the watchword surely?

I've had many years of good service with Mephisto oxfords. They are a great walking shoe, long-lasting, sure footed, and very comfortable, with Goodyear welt. Suggest the Marlon; comes in black and chestnut. They don't win on style points, but you will appreciate them through the day, and, especially, at the end of the day.

I just finished a flight with Vass P2 Norwegers— darkest brown scotch grain, with Vibram commando soles. I can see getting a good fraction of a week out of them in tweed/flannel territory. Light-ish, comfy, surprisingly elegant, and weather-resistant.

UC - when travelling carry-on, I dont usually worry about weight, more "cube". For me, if the trip is business, its nearly always one pair black and one brown, one in the bag and one on my feet. I dont worry about speed through the airport, meaning that I'm not concerned with slip ons versus laces. I am worried about "the wet". As a rule, I always try and have one of the pair rubber soled. Green's thin Thames sole wears nicely on a single monk on the 888 last and brown shoes, usually a captoe, have the dainite. If the shoes fit well and the correct socks are taken, I can walk. For a full day, a rubber soled lace-up is the best. A nearly 15 year old pair of Monmouths in willow grain calf with Dainite treads by EG are my best for this.

Business trips are the easiest because I dont take any "casual" shoes and the wardrobe turns around suits and odd jackets. Casual and family trips are harder because of the variety of costume one might wish to don. But practicality needs to rule, if it doesnt fit in the roll-on, it stays at home. County will be decent boots. Cities beg the question - jackets or suits. If no suits, then the black pair usually goes in favor of another brown. Suede chukkas have a particular charm in cities and the mud washes off pretty well on a country walk. LL Bean's "camp moc" is a favorite of mine.

DDM

Like everything related to travel, our clothes/shoes, etc. choices need to be edited, practical and spot on. That’s actually maybe not a bad principle to follow generally in our purchases...but anyway..

I actually have the Weston 180s loafer Alden recommends, but with, alas, a leather sole, not thin rubber, and not in black per Alden, but rather dark brown.

I agree, thin rubber would have been a better, more comfortable choice for walking and wet streets. And black, more versatile for evenings. Oh well....

These Weston’s are certainly a go to shoe for everything, all the time. One of the best, most versatile and practical shoes I own. Great for travel as well. Any EG or CJ I own will certainly stay at home. I can’t carry the weight and bulk.

But, other than a lightweight loafer, I wanted something more comfortable for travel. Meaning : Light weight. Soft. Easy to stuff into luggage. And wear most anytime, anywhere.

Well, I may have found a solution: Clark’s desert boots and Allbirds wool runners.

We would need to get into a consideration of mixing different genres of clothing, different levels of dress, when considering these shoes because they are both decidedly cheap and chic and don’t much go with anything tailored. They are decidedly proletariat and I like that. Hi/low dressing if you will. An interesting subject in and of itself for another time.

But that’s OK with me because I rarely wear anything tailored other than a sports coat.
I think that is enough tailoring for me, for these causal days and times, and this place I inhabit. Otherwise , it all becomes a bit too too....well, too much, too heavy. Too predictable. Too cliche.

I hope these shoes work out.

We would need to get into a consideration of mixing different genres of clothing, different levels of dress, when considering these shoes because they are both decidedly cheap and chic and don’t much go with anything tailored. They are decidedly proletariat and I like that. Hi/low dressing if you will. An interesting subject in and of itself for another time.

I agree and intend on starting a thread on Mixed Genres. The most elegant man I ever saw and probably will ever see was the French actor Philippe Noiret. I have written a good deal about him on the LL and he was a Master at mixing genres of dress. He did it beautifully. I rarely, if ever, saw him wearing a suit. But he wore sports coats, shirt jackets and casual coats of may kinds effectively with all manner of flannel, tweed, linen and corduroy trousers. He loved sweaters and silks, and he knew how to use them to maximum effect as well.

Noiret style was a very strong influence on me; and like you UC I also favor the mixed genre look, always have.

Cheers

Crepe-soled desert boots have taken me on plenty of overseas jaunts, although for business travel I favour black double-monks: more formal than loafers and also more forgiving on swollen feet (you can loosen the straps). While I would never wear them unbuckled as a style statement, it is a happy halfway option for flights, to avoid wandering about in one’s socks...

One pair of brown shoes in the suitcase and one pair of brown shoes on me for a total of two pairs. Why would I wear something different abroad than what I wear in the rest of the time? I obviously wear only shoes that I feel comfortable for long walks regardless if I am in Munich, London or Sofia.

I have gotten somewhat obsessed with the Vivo Barefoot line of shoes recently. They are exceedingly comfortable if you can get used to the low heel, and they are really easy to pack. I now wear them for both business as well as personal trips if I can get away with it. I recently traveled Japan and they were great for both urban walking in Tokyo as well as rural trekking along the Nakasendo trail.

I will usually wear a more "formal" pair on the plane, such as the Scott leather boot, the Ra II or the Lisbon (although nothing they make can be considered truly formal) and a more informal/sports pair (Primus Lux, Primus Lite) in my carry-on.

alden wrote:Weston 180s black w thin rubber sole

i hv always liked its shape. hv you ever seen them in shell cordovan?

On my last trip to London I wore a pair of Edward Green Halifax chukkas on the flight. These days I never take my shoes off on the plane. It helps greatly to mitigate feet swelling. I also wear compression socks on the flight, as I do on any flight longer than five or six hours. The other shoes I brought with me were my Nicholas Templeman oxfords. I can walk all day in them. The EGs are mostly for inclement weather. Oh, I also had a pair of patent leather shoes, of course, for evenings when I wore a dinner jacket. I managed to get through ten days with that complement.

i hv always liked its shape. hv you ever seen them in shell cordovan?

No. I have seen them in every other leather and color though.