inside the footbed

Think about your footprint in the sand. Now take a look at the Birkenstock footbed. The contours, the deep heel cup, the wide toe box.... it's anatomically correct footwear. It is built around the human foot. It is real comfort, based on real feet. Take note of the benefits of each aspect of the Birkenstock footbed pointed out in the diagram to the right. Along with those attributes, the entire footbed is made a high quality, shock absorbing, and highly flexible cork that molds to match your foot to create a custom orthotic. You might sometimes hear that a Birkenstock requires a certain "break-in time." While this is true, we are not talking about a time that should be painful, it's simply that the cork is stiff at first right out of the box. As you wear your Birkenstock sandals, the heat from you body will mold that cork into the custom orthotic made just for your feet, and as that happens the footbed becomes more flexible. This is why we suggest wearing them for a few hours for the first few days, before you experience the all-day comfort that they provide.

experience the softer side

The Birkenstock soft footbed has the same anatomical properties as the classic firm footbed, but it features an added layer of foam cushioning for extra comfort. This is especially nice to ease that extra firm feeling of a brand new Birkenstock out of the box, as the soft footbed almost feels as if it has already molded to your foot. Just imagine how it feels for a million tiny air bubbles in the foam layer surrounding your foot with extra comfort!