I'm reading all these notes about shoe size problems for woman and wonder if I'll have a problem buying shoes (or even clothes) in Madrid. I'm 6' 1" and wear 11 1/2" shoes. Apparantly, Madrinos (spelling?) are shorter. I was ready to buy some dress shoes in the USA anyways, so I was planning on buying them in Spain but starting to have my doubts. Anyone know if this size shoe for men is common in Spain?

You might get lucky on the shoes, but don't count on it. I even went into Foot Locker in Madrid, and they just looked at my 13 1/2 Ws and laughed. They told me that they didn't have anything that exceeded the equivalent of an American size 10W at that time. Of course that was in 1998, so things could have changed since then.

You might want to do a little "on-line" checking on this issue. It's very possible that you will be able to find stores in the major cities that cater to the larger foot.

Anyway.... times.... they are a-changing. Who knows for sure? Maybe one of our local Madrid area residents can check the sizes when they wander through stores, and post something that can be helpful.

If not, you could always do like a friend of mine suggested. "Can't find shoes? Buy a couple of surfboards and tie them to your feet."

Wolf

I'm about the same foot size as you (11 1/2D) and have little problem finding my size (46) in Spain but I can usually find Spain-made shoes here in the U.S. on sale at stores like Nordstrom's much cheaper than in Spain. This is especialy so now with the Euro being worth about $1.18.

hi,

my dad is 6'3 and has size 13 feet and he is about as spanish as they come. he usually buys shoes at camper these stores are all over the country and at el corte ingles

they have a range of styles from business like to fun. they are also very comfortable in fact that is what the company is known for.

good luck finding the right sizes for you

Oye, Guapetona: There's another outdoors-type store called Ventiscas: One outlet across from that big mall (south side) at the north end of Madrid.

They carry a lot of hiking boots and things like that. Our relatives are into Mycology (exotic mushrooms) and they buy their hiking supplies there.

I wear a size 13, and finding shoes is always difficult. I have found them with "Camper" as well but also shoes by "Panama Jack".

Thank you everyone for your responses and the useful information!

You will have no problem.
I wear a size 12 and I think I have at least 5 pair of shoes from Spain.
on my last trip, I bough 2 pair that were on the discount rack. I think might actually be helpful to have the bigger shoe, since it's not a common size.
Good luck

Actually, KK bought the last five pairs.

Wolf: My 13EEs got lots of "dormir a pie" jokes from the ever-hilarious Spaniards. I found two pairs of shoes that fit me in a two year stint there once...I bought them both.

I've noticed on subsequent trips to Iberia, though, that larger is getting more common. Mmmm...growth hormones in my beef. Yummy!

Thanks for the comment CaliBasco.
I counted and think I actually have 6 pair from Spain.
I almost bought a pair for my brother when I saw some of his size. - Size 15 -

He would have been shocked to have seen they had his size there.