How to fix broken flip flops

November 7, 2012/by Ian Yacobucci

Say, “no more” to broken flip flops!

Find out how to fix your broken flip flops, an easy way to save you money and prevent you from being shoeless on the road.

You’re traveling, you have little money to spare, you’re in the middle of nowhere and your flip flop busts; perfect timing as always. On a recent trip to Switzerland my flip flops broke and I had no other options. How was I going to hike the mountains without them?

Luckily, my friend Elisa came to the rescue. It was on a study abroad in Brazil that she had the same problem and solved it with a lighter. Here’s how she did it:

1. Push the thong back through the hole.

Fix your flip flop – Step 1

2. Melt the thong using your lighter.

Fix your flip flop – step 2

3. Push the lighter against the melting rubber to create another disc at the end of the thong. This will keep it in place and prevent it from popping through the hole again.

Fix your flip flop – step 3

4. Repeat the process several times until the disk is thick enough to not break through.

Fix your flip flop – step 4

5. When you’re done let it dry and try it out.

Thus far my flip flops have continued to work while traveling through Switzerland, a road trip across the USA, and to Tokyo, Japan. That’s three months of travel since they last broke!

So next time you’re stuck with a broken flip flop just remember these five easy steps and you’ll never have to worry.

And now you know,

Yak

Ian Yacobucci

Traveling the Trans-Siberian, mountaineering the Himalayas, or teaching in Tokyo, I'm always trying something new. As a someone who's worked, studied, and traveled to 40+ countries around the world, I'm here to share my experiences so you can do the same.