Shoes in Alaska

[Chemist]

We are going to Alaska in a few weeks and I am trying to figure out what shoes for excursions.

None of my tennis shoes are the slightest bit waterproof. (They all have a lot of mesh in them.)
I have a pair of kind-of-lightweight hiking boots that are very water resistant.

Should I find space in my luggage for them?

We we don't have anything strenuous planned that tennis shoes can't handle, but I'm worried about rain and dry feet.

Thank you!

 

[Distinkt]

We went a few years ago. My experience was that the weather was great ALMOST every day so that comfortable tennis shoes were fine. I wear the barefoot type of a sports brand (not sure I can post the name) and they worked great. However, we had one day where we took a float plane to fly over a glacier and have lunch and a small hike (not strenuous) and it poured. I had light waterproof hikers, as did my husband, and my feet were still soaked. It was so wet I am not sure that anything much would have kept them dry. My advice would be to bring them if you think you can sacrifice the space, but if you find it difficult to pack them, I wouldn't worry too much. I spent way too much energy thinking about it, and in the end was super wet anyway.

 

[ofcabbagesandkings]

Bring them. I was very glad to have my lightweight hikers in Skagway and Juneau. We got lucky and it was sunny in Ketchikan, but we weren’t doing trails that day anyway. I had my Keen hikers, Nike sneakers, and a pair of shoes for dinner, and that was perfect.

 

[Kwami]

Better to have a second pair of shoes than not. If some shoes gets wet, then you can wear the others while the wet ones dry.

I brought a pair of "waterproof" hiking boots for adventures and a pair of comfy running shoes to wear on the ship. That system worked out great, except that I also wore my boots for most of glacier viewing day because it rained all day.

 

[shosh1530]

We had rain in both Juneau and Ketchikan on our June cruise last year. I brought water resistant hiking boot and just wore them on the plane so they wouldn't take up space/weight in our luggage.

It was also pretty wet on our last day in Vacouver, so I wore them then too.

I think my travel mates wore sneakers and, while a little, soggy were ok too. As the previous poster said, having more then one pair helps.

 

[auntlynne]

Definitely a second pair.

I think I have traveled with the same type shoes for most of my cruises (anywhere): broken in walking/running shoes and closed-toe Keen sandals (wool socks if it’s cold).

If it comes down to it, Keen’s can go in the dryer.

And then a pair of dinner shoes.

My shoes are about 16 years old and still have tread and provide a comfortable foot bed, even when walking on uneven terrain.

 

[NAB]

I bought waterproof Vessi weekend sneakers . So comfortable.

We just got off the Princess this morning we didn’t get much rain to try them out…wore them a few times but we just had a few sprinkles. Glad I had them just in case .

Told we were luck with the weather, it rained a lot the week before.

 

[robinb]

I had my sneakers plus a pair of Chaco sports sandals and a pair of Columbia hiking shoes. I wore all three at one time or another.

 

[holula]

Last year I wore waterproof Converse. I was VERY glad to have them in Skagway when it absolutely poured the whole day. Would have been fine with non waterproof shoes in the other two ports and at sea.

 

[Dive Bar Casanova]

I wear 2 pairs of sox and a good DMX sneaker pre-sprayed with:

BTW:
If it's chilly sweats under my jeans and a sweatshirt + jacket I can tie around my waist if it warms up.

I mention it because:
Some come decked-out with their LL Bean Duck boots and Sir Edmund Hillary parkas. The Ice Pick hammers may have not made it through screening.

 

[ladyofthetramp]

I wore lightweight waterproof hikers a few years back. Glad I did as we had the true Alaska experience of mostly rain. We did the small glacier explorer boat- and it poured for awhile. Feet stayed dry. I recommend them

 

[jimmymc]

If you're just planning to go around town in the ports, then regular sneakers are good. If you're doing any excursions that involve trails or going out into nature, then try to bring the hiking shoes.

 

[tlprice]

We wore our waterproof Merrell hiking boots most of the time and we didn't even have any rain when we were there in 2022. We will be taking them back again this summer. We also have tennis shoes, Keens, Chacos, etc. We drive to the port though, so we can take as much as we want.

 

[Chemist]

Thanks everyone. I think I will try and make sure I have space in our luggage for boots. I actually scored a pair of barely worn boots for my kid, too!

 

[Dive Bar Casanova]

* The kids asked me to mention if you spray anything with water repellant it may be flammable and takes a long time to dry and not give off fumes. Not a good idea to pack nor wear boarding a plane in the meantime.
Not all are that way, some are simple ingredients, but some are.

Hold that thought.

 

[I Run Long]

I bought waterproof Vessi weekend sneakers . So comfortable.

We just got off the Princess this morning we didn’t get much rain to try them out…wore them a few times but we just had a few sprinkles. Glad I had them just in case .

Told we were luck with the weather, it rained a lot the week before.

This. Vessi's are great. I live on south Vancouver Island and have about 6 pairs of Vessi's (I love them that much), since walking the dog in the winter rain is kind of the norm here. Heck, I've even worn them walking the dog on those rare occasions when it snows and my feet are always perfectly dry. Highly recommend them.

 

[Clarkson U]

We used our hiking type boots two days on our sailing earlier this year. One day at Icy Strait Point we were glad we had them to walk up top and one day on deck we enjoyed having them on glacier viewing day especially for pictures and for light mist. Wet feet are no fun. We brought our tennis shoes, hiking type boots that are very water resistant, dress shoes for Palo and flip flops for when we didn't want to wear closed toe shoes. It was the right mix of footwear and we used them all on our 7 day voyage.

 

[CarolinaBlue]

We just cruised to Alaska last week. It rained in Skagway. It rained A LOT in Ketchikan. I'm glad I took my Skechers water repellant hiking shoes. They also came in handy on our Dog Musher's Training Camp excursion.

 

[CallieMar]

We recently came back from Alaska. We never got fully rained out but it did rain in Juneau and Skagway during our excursions. Ketchikan is one of the rainiest cities but we were lucky to have really good weather there. Wear your boots on the plane if you can to save luggage space. If you can’t bring boots, at the very least have two pairs of sneakers that you can switch between if one pair gets soaked.

 

[Chrislovesdisney]

Our glacier viewing day was wet, foggy, and rainy. I appreciated the hiking boots on the ship, transferring to the small boat excursion, and the day we did the glacier hike in Juneau. There’s a *chance* you won’t need them but I’d say if there’s room, take them.