I enjoy traveling and take a lot of city trips. I’m going to New York City later this month and Toronto the following and I wanted to get a new pair of shoes that were comfortable and travel-friendly.
*Disclaimer: Not sponsored. This product was purchased by See, Shop, Love!
I had seen ads for the Allbirds brand all over social media and knew they were popular as “the best shoe for travel.” I wanted an all-black shoe that I could slip on and off easily at security checkpoints at the airport and that would be comfortable for walking around NYC and Toronto. I decided to try the Allbirds Tree Runners after hearing good things from friends.
I liked the Tree Runners because they’re listed as best for walking, warm weather, and everyday wear. They can be worn without socks and are made with eucalyptus fiber for comfort and thermo-regulation. They were also on sale for $84 instead of the regular $105 when I purchased (with free shipping).
A zero-drop shoe is my ideal, but these are hard to find since most people need at least some support in the heel area. These have a two millimeter drop, which isn’t too bad. They do deliver on the lightweight promise, but I found them to be a bit tight. I ordered a size six, which is my regular size, and do not have wide feet, but after lacing them up they were tighter than I prefer on a walking shoe. That being said, it wasn’t uncomfortable, just not my preference.
Being able to easily slip these on and off was probably the most important aspect for me, especially since I’ll be flying to NYC and haven’t gone through TSA since pre-pandemic. Taking off your shoes is the most annoying part, so I was hoping I could slide these on and off quickly. Unfortunately, I didn’t find that to be the case. It’s probably because of the tighter fit, but I had to unlace and lace these back up to take them off and struggled too much if I didn’t.
I also tried wearing these with and without socks and found that I don’t enjoy wearing shoes socks-less. They didn’t chafe without socks, but my feet still get sweaty and even with the eucalyptus fibers, it wasn’t enough to keep my feet feeling dry enough to wear without socks.
Overall, I found the Allbirds Tree Runners to be a good shoe, but nothing special. I’ve previously used the Skechers GoWalk line and found these to be very similar, but more expensive. I ended up returning them because I found a pair of adidas shoes that actually do slide on and off easily for $35 at Marshalls, so I couldn’t justify keeping these. Thankfully, Allbirds has a great return policy for shoes: you can send them back, no questions asked, even if you’ve worn them (the policy for clothing is different, must have tags attached).
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Bottom Line: I think the Allbirds Tree Runners are a good shoe, and if you want to spend the $105 for an eco-conscious shoe, these are comfortable and I could see myself walking in them all day. I also think that you can find a comparable shoe for a lower price, so whether or not they’re “worth it” mostly depends on your budget.
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