Etiquette of taking shoes off at the door for guests?

[GYoIsReallyHavingABaby]

Hello
I've just got new hall and dining room wood floor (its bamboo so reasonably susceptible to damage) that was a lot of money to us so we'd like to keep nice for as long as possible.

The front door opens onto hall and goes through to dining room so we take our shoes off in the porch the before the front door.

Does anyone else have a "no shoes rule" and how do you deal with it with guests?

I feel awful asking people to take off shoes on way in... I'd always do it in other people's houses out of respect/ politness and I'd make sure I didnt make host feel awkward about it but a few guests over xmas have made me feel really bad for asking!

Where is Fairy mum from anyway - cloud cuckoo land?

We have a no shoes rule for ourselves but would not dream of making guests take their shoes off. It's very rude IMO.

However most guests do take their shoes off without being asked and I don't stop them. I let them do what they are most comfortable with.

I have only once been asked to remove my shoes, about 5 years ago, and that was when I became aware of the whole shoes off thing. The hostess did offer me slippers but I would have felt stupid wearing them (they were big, fluffy and didn't match my clothes) and I am a bit squeamish about putting on other people's footwear. The hostess had hard floors so I ended up skidding around in stockinged (and very cold)feet! And there was no protection for me from the dirt on their floors!

Now I would be really embarassed if someone asked me to take my shoes off in their home. So I always take them off just in case.

People should be a bit more tolerant and consider the comfort of their guests before imposing this silly rule.

They should also be prepared to do a bit of cleaning after the guests have left ...

I am relishing my new found filthiness. I forgot myself this morning and had a shower but I did give the dishwasher a break after lunch and washed up by hand, carefully omitting a rinse. Just off to roll in some mud outside.

It absolutely amazes me that some posters here think that offering their guests slippers is somehow less offensive.

It really is beyond the pale to suggest that you have to wear someone else's shoes.

I'm ok with shoes on our the house, but will offer to take my shoes off if I get to someone's house and there are obviously lots of shoes lined up next to the front door.

Whilst saying that, if I'm asked to take it off, I do secretly file them in the control freak category

What would however seriously freak me out, is if I was offered someone else's slippers or socks. And yes, I know it's washed and everything, but it's just all a bit toothbrushy in my mind!

... shoes on IN our house... obviously, no (that I know of anyway) shoes on the roof. :D

x-posts with stillstanding - yes, the slippers are the strangest to me.

You folks rinse dishes?

We let the dog clean them and then we can put them straight back in the cupboard

j/k

We have a big basket of shoes by the front door (as a subtle hint!) and have a no-shoes-rule within our family. I would ask visiting children to take off their shoes - but there is usually no need as they do it anyway. I wouldn't ask adults though cos I'd feel a bit rude... it's just not the 'done thing' is it?

it wont be helpful but in other countries it is normal to take your outside shoes off when you come inside and put your slippers/whatever on. that includes whoever comes to visit you. in the family i worked for in germany it was normal to bring your own house shoes with you so we oalways left house with a bag full of slippers. which makes sense as i dont like borrowed slipper eventhough they are just for guests not someone elses. cant imagine to walk with outside shoes in the flat. espetially not on a parket floor which is common here. have to admit i normally keep my sandals on /downstairs/ in the summer in the uk.

It's your house so you get to set the rules. if you want no shoes then that's how it should be. guests should respect your abode.

You can set the rules but you may find that no one actually wants to visit-rather like Hyacinth Bucket!
You shouldn't walk into someone's house as a guest and feel that there are rules-a good host makes people feel welcome, not that the floor is more important than the company!

Fairymum - 'rinse the soap off when doing the dishes' ????? You use soap on the dishes? I use the dishwasher or my DH uses AHA - Fairy liquid!

If I knew my host was cringing inside and very uncomfortable, I'd of course take it off (hence the offering when I see shoes at the front door), but I still don't think it's generally necessary, which is why I don't do it it my own house. (Using common sense obviously - I won't go around trampling over the carpets with muddy shoes of course, none of my friends would do that either.)

I have a 8-month old crawler, but think common sense would mean hoovering often where he's most likely to be playing etc. If you were to keep everything sterile, you'd need to make sure people are wearing said slippers etc, else all kinds of skin diseases, sweat etc end up on the floor anyway. And then of course avoid nurseries, trains, tubes, restaurants etc etc.

LOL MarlaSinger, are you excercising your blood pressure? Surely if you think I am just bonkers, then write my opinion off as just that?

Let it go FairyMum, you were wrong and rude, and yes, it upset people. As these things should.

It's a seasoning for our bland food.

As one post said,"its only shoes."Basically, no-one wears shoes in our house.We all change into slippers at the door.I ask guests to bring their slippers if they want in advance.Im amazed that some of you are still surprised that people take slippers with them when visiting.Even as a child i took them with me(mums rule, as she thought it inapproriate to walk around in socks or barefoot in the house.)Thats been the norm for me and i have to say for many others i have known ever since then.This topic always guarantees a good debate and a multitude of responses.

I would take them off if asked or I thought the person was cringing inside. I would rather have wiped shoes than verrucas and other skin infections.

IMO its very unhygenic to wear shoes inside the house
dirt and germs are outside and i think its just manners to take them off
inside my laundry room where you come in there is a shelf with clean socks or slipper type things for guests to use and a sign
ours is a religious household and shoes are definate no-no
we do have non religious visitors and they never mind doing this also they can shut the door before entering hence no embarrassing moments for them to hurry up or worry about odd socks

wearing shoes in the house brings significant levels of contaminants in
i'm not talking germs, but things like lead, pesticides, ddt etc
things that have been banned because they are so dangerous to public health but which still exist in soil and are transferred into your home on your shoes

good link here
children are exposed to more contaminants in dirt brought in from the street than they are from pesticides on fruit and veg, for instance