Bare Feet Etiquette On Planes
Shoes off…socks off…and where do bare feet end up? Armrests, backs off seats, tray tables, bulkheads, toilet floors…
A practice that can be disgusting and a nuisance.
In Business and First Class you are fine. You are your own boss there. In Economy it may be a whole lot different if you’re sharing seats with others.
If you believe your feet are clean, that’s good. Then keeping them under the seat in front should be the sensible thing to do. If you are lucky enough to have three or four seats to yourself, perfect. You lie down and cover them up with a blanket, offending others will disappear. Armrests also protected. If socks are worn, even better. People will like you a lot more and won’t give you dirty looks. But, if you are one of those that practices the “I don’t care, stuff you…” attitude, you may get a rude shock one day. Someone may do something you may not like. It’s the “what goes around comes around” thing, just saying.
Disgustingly some people even go to the toilet barefoot. Imagine that? Then others, those with low immunity levels, pickup the germs and bacteria left on armrests, bulkheads, etc. This may affect them elsewhere on their travels. Worse is not knowing where the bug that ruined their holiday or travels came from!
On a forward bulkhead you may get away with your feet being up there, that’s if you change into the socks from the amenity kit, but your feet should be nowhere near where people lay their heads and cushions. It the case of hands, that may even include the bulkhead. People do lean on them with their hands and there’s always the possibility of picking something up. Of course hands not washed from a visit to the toilet does the same. So hygiene is very important.
The best thing to do is to keep your feet to yourself and you can’t go wrong, covered or not covered.
There’s also a safety issue concerning wearing no shoes or wearing thongs (flip-flops). What are you going to do if there’s an emergency or worse still an accident? Will you walk with flip-flops or barefoot over snow, ice, mud, debris, fire, etc.? Keep the flip-flops in your luggage and wear light, strong comfortable shoes appropriate for travelling.
