No socks please, we're Kiwis: Barefoot tours is hoping to introduce international visitors to this New Zealand pastime. Photo / 123RF
No socks please, we're Kiwis: Barefoot tours is hoping to introduce international visitors to this New Zealand pastime. Photo / 123RF
‘No socks this Christmas, please. We’re going barefoot.’
It’s a Kiwi pastime that international guests can’t wrap their heads around. It’s also an experience they can’t get enough of, explains one Auckland tour guide.
There is one question that dominates New Zealand travel forums:
“Why do some New Zealanders walk on the street without wearing shoes?”
Walking through grocery stores (dairies) and the high street without any shoes, or even to the beach, is a source of perennial bewilderment to some tourists.
That’s great news for Louis Hahn, who has been teaching visitors to embrace the sensation of black sand between the toes.
The 30-year-old guide from West Auckland started his touring company a year ago after noticing how unique this quirk of Kiwi culture was, though a visitor’s eyes.
“In New Zealand it’s something we grow up with,” says Hahn.
“There are no snakes or poisonous insects. Though I notice my Australian guests still will choose to avoid the long grass.”
Louis Hahn of Barefoot Tours is on a mission to share the joy of 'grounding' with international visitors.
Taking small groups on guided tours of West Auckland, he says it’s mostly international guests from big cities who sign up for the experience.
While the shoes are optional, the beaches and coastal paths are best enjoyed without the distraction of rubber soled shoes. It’s something that he encourages guests do for at least some of the walk.
“It’s a very different experience going barefoot, walking over 400-year-old tree roots, feeling the way.”
Tracing a 5km loop, along secret trails starting from Piha and other locations on Te Henga, with some surprises along the way. The only thing better than a hīkoi on the beach, is a wine-tasting, or even an outdoor yoga session - free from the tyranny of socks.
“Grounding” - the practice of reconnecting soles with the earth - is something Hahn has a passion for uniquely. Formerly crew and an expedition guide with a yachting outfit across the Pacific, he says it’s a pursuit that many other countries see the benefit from. From Fiji to Brazil, there are plenty of cultures that have their own appreciation for time spent without shoes.
“We build up an energy imbalance where we’re insulated from the land. Going from shoes, car tyres to carpet - we spend a lot of our lives disconnected from earth.”
In 2018 a study of 714 New Zealand school pupils suggested that there could be health benefits to leaving your shoes behind.
It was deemed that from an “evolutionary perspective” being habitually barefoot could help motor performance later in life.
The study in the Journal of Foot and Ankle Research also noted that Kiwis’ relation to shoes was unique: “It seems to remain socially acceptable to carry out barefoot activities”.
The barefoot movement has foundations
Going shoe-free has been taken up as a cause by Kiwis looking for a path to better health.
Auckland podiatrist Paul Thompson started the Barefoot Movement to counter “the effects of modern-day footwear on our bodies.”
Hahn says that even half-an-hour walking barefoot can help reduce stress, improve sleep and support a more natural stride.
“Research shows that in as little as 30 minutes grounding will create positive internal changes and benefits in particular to your blood, energy and mood,” he says.
Despite their foot-friendly setting, West Auckland’s beaches have some areas which are not safe to walk on barefoot. Hahn advises visitors to bring some footwear for the day.
“Crocs are my chosen footwear when bare feet are not suitable. Although super ugly they are light and durable.”
He encourages guests not to turn up in Jandals. Though easy for barefoot transition, they are a slipping hazard.
