What Are These $425 Travel Slippers For?

I love thinking about shoes for travel. I want to know what the best travel shoes are and why men pack so many pairs of shoes for vacation. I am constantly wondering if there is a pair of big boots worth packing for fall trips and if I should buy flip-flops for hotel showers. My latest travel shoe fixation is, what are the Aimé Leon Dore leather travel slippers for?

I first saw a video of the slippers on X, which shows their very thin design fitting beautifully into a leather case that zips closed. I watched the video several times. “Fantastic,” I murmured as I watched the short clip over and over. It was so satisfying to watch a shoe get zipped into a little pouch that is designed to be neatly tucked into a carry-on.

I sent the video to the Thrillist Slack channel, assuming everyone would be as immediately enamored and impressed with the minimalist design as I was. Look, I said. Look at that beautiful form. But instead of being met with resonating “oohs,” “ahhs,” and “need,” as I expected, I was met with many questions about function and zero compliments on form. My fellow Thrillist staffers wanted to know, “When does one wear such a shoe?”

On instinct, I responded, “When traveling.” But what part of travel is best for a shoe with a leather upper sole, a calfskin lining, and a “single stack sueded leather outsole”? Digging further into the product specs, it is harder to determine the best use for this slipper, which costs $425. It is designed for indoor and outdoor use. It is not waterproof. The material is prone to staining and spotting, and the shoes must be stored in a cool, dry place. They definitely aren’t beach shoes, then.

I emailed the founder of Aimé Leon Dore, Teddy Santis, hoping to get a better idea of the vision for the Leather Travel Slipper. As of this writing, he hasn’t responded. So, without a definitive answer, I’ve done a little research. Most travelers say they use travel slippers in their hotels or Airbnbs or as their footwear for long flights.

Personally, I can’t imagine walking through a big airport in these dainty travel slippers—but maybe you can put them on after you’ve already been seated on the plane. The shoes also seem too beautiful to have exclusively as hotel shoes—but I can’t imagine them holding up well on the cobblestone streets of Italy, where they were made.

If there are other, better suggestions for how and when these luxurious slippers can be worn during travel, I gladly accept your suggestions. I’m not purchasing them (I am a writer, these would eat up my monthly food budget), but there’s a specific sort of wanderlust I can muster when I imagine the ways I could wear these slippers around the world.