When you own a shoe store, you lose the luxury of taking the standard week-long vacation, so my partner Michael and I have perfected the 4-day weekend getaway!  As seasoned travelers, we make sure that the long distance between Boulder and the places we want to visit does not deter us from seeing the world -- even if we only have FOUR days.

Our most recent getaway was a weekend trip to Barcelona.   Traveling to Barcelona from Boulder is not the easiest, so we ended up with only 3 evenings and 2 days to explore Barcelona.  My first rule of thumb for these quick trips is to NEVER EVER check luggage.  With so little time to spare, you cannot waste precious moments tracking down lost bags.  A small carry-on bag limitation for me means that I have to be extremely selective with my wardrobe choices, including my shoes.  This is not an easy task for someone who loves to have the perfect outfit for every activity.  For a four-day trip, I allow myself no more than 3 pairs of shoes. 

I knew our trip to Barcelona included walking up to 10 miles per day, a concert, time spent near the beach, and fancy evening dinners. So out of all the shoes I own, which lucky three got to make the trip?

My three choices:

For daytime walking, I brought along a pair of Gioseppo sneaker-inspired comfort shoes.  This brand originates from Spain so I knew that I would be in good fashion as well as be comfortable, as these are one of the most comfortable pairs of shoes I own!

For our fancy evening dinners, I wanted a sexy shoe that would pair with dresses, yet be comfortable enough that I could ride the Barcelona Metro.  I choose the Jeffrey Campbell Finite.  With a pointy toe and block heel, I was able to comfortably maneuver all of our metro rides (we pride ourselves on only using public transportation while in Europe), while still looking great.

My third pair needed to be hip enough to pair with the leather pants I had chosen for the concert, yet comfortable enough to allow me to stand in a concrete stadium for many hours. I brought along the Shay from Miz Mooz and it was the perfect choice as it looked amazing and felt even better.

The lesson for this month’s edition of Into the Sole is that as you get ready to go off on your summer European vacations know that you don’t have to sacrifice fashion to be comfortable or to meet a packing goal.
Come in and visit us at Shoe Fly or shop us online and we can help you find the perfect shoes to meet your European summer travel needs!