Columbia Crestwood are budget-friendly hiking shoes with their outstanding comfort right out of the box.
Our Verdict
If you are looking for comfortable, budget-friendly hiking shoes, the Columbia Crestwood hiking shoes are an excellent option. With my extensive hiking experience using Crestwood shoes, I consistently enjoy exceptional comfort and support on a variety of trail types. Given their comfort level, it’s almost surprising how economical and affordable they are.
Columbia Crestwood Hiking Shoe: View at Amazon
These shoes will ensure your hike is smooth and comfortable, whether you’re on a simple trail or tackling a difficult trek. You won’t find another pair of high-quality shoes at such a low price anywhere else. Crestwood shoes are built to outlast any other pair in the same price range. Their lightweight design offers maximum ease for hikers.
Related: Best Columbia Hiking Shoes
Columbia Crestwood: Performance Comparison and Testing Results
Comfort
I would give five out of five marks for comfort based on my experience on the trail. These shoes require no break-in period. They didn’t pinch anywhere, and the toe section never felt tight. They are true to size, but I experimented with a half-size larger for more room in the toe area.
I wore both sizes—my usual size and the half-size larger—to see if the extra room in the toe section made a difference. Both sizes were comfortable, but I think sticking with your actual size is the best option.
Crestwood really offers the best and most comfortable fit for walking or hiking. Their soft, flexible texture makes them lightweight, and the mesh panels allow the shoes to breathe, even in hot summers.
If you choose to add extra foot-bed cushioning, it may provide additional arch support and comfort, but in most cases, it’s not necessary, as the shoes themselves are already very comfortable.
Traction
Columbia Crestwood shoes provide the best OmniTech in-build rubber outsole for your shoes which are extremely soft and help in excellent gripping traction. These shoes are very convenient to walk, even on the plain or rocky hiking trails because of its broad bulky and light- weighted design enabling more grip on those surfaces without any slippages.
One thing the Crestwood shoes lack is providing the best traction on wet surfaces. Due to their design, they are not meant for hard, rigid surfaces. The shoes perform best in dry conditions, though that doesn’t mean they are completely useless in wet weather.
I slipped a few times on flat, wet rocks, so I was extra cautious when crossing wet rocks. However, I didn’t slip on wet surfaces that were less rigid. When there is some friction on the surface, they grip well on wet areas.
You just have to manage them according to the weather conditions and try not to step in any puddles. I would recommend wearing these shoes indoors and on dry hikes avoiding as much contact as possible from the wet humid conditions.
Weight
When it comes to the weight volume of the shoes, Crestwood surprisingly are the most average light- weighted shoes ever, The average pair of shoes weigh only around 1.82lbs, which is very light in comparison to other hiking shoe brands.
Crestwood shoes are proved time and time again to be very light-weighted by its satisfied buyers.
Stability & Support
The Crestwood shoes provide the maximum high Tech light sole which gives the extraordinary texture and stability. The shoes offer support from the average day trail hike to the rough rocky surfaces. It even gets better if you add the extra foot bed in addition to the already included one, to give your feet the thorough comfort. This in turns give the decent lower ankle stability on the hard and uneven surfaces.
The shoes hold its grip perfectly well on the gravel hard trails because of its sturdy sole. In my experience the Crestwood provide the best overall stability and insole support on every trail, be it a plain ground or a rocky terrain.
It kept my foot perfectly snuggly with the ankle support on the rough surface and I can even wear them in my office indoors. Crestwood shoes are multi-functional in every regard.
Water Resistance
Since Crestwood shoes have a lot of layered mesh that makes it much more expandable in warm weather, it is something that is definitely not waterproof. It is something that can be seen as an inconvenience in rain or walking on wet surfaces.
The shoes are able to withstand walking through a shallow body of water but anything more than an inch will soak through your socks. Since the shoes do not have a waterproof panel, they prevent your feet from getting sweaty and are ideal for dry warm weather.
Breathability
The build-in airy mesh layering in suede leather gives the ideal breathability to your feet especially in dry and warm weather conditions. Whenever you are on a long hiking trail, getting your feet sweat free is everyone’s preference and Crestwood’s shoe structure helps with that.
Whenever I go on hikes, my first preference is to have more breathable shoes, so that my toes won’t press together that hard. The mesh structure helps keep the shoes flexible, comfy and light-weighted. Crestwood never disappoints when it comes to making you feel comfortable and give your feet enough room to breathe.
Quality & Durability
I took a leap of faith in buying Crestwood for the first time and I am so glad I did, because now I wear them all the time everywhere. They are so soft and comfortable that they can be worn at anytime and anywhere. Considering how long they last, it’s surprising how cheap and pocket-friendly they are.
Since there is a lot of in-build mesh layer on the shoes, they are prone to get worn out after a couple of years. The soft mesh leather suede though extremely comfortable, is very exposed to being torn up from overuse before you need to replace them.
Fit and Sizing
Crestwood fits perfectly well on every feet of every size. From my own personal experience, due to its flexible and soft texture, my toes were not pushing and pressing too hard together, which was refreshing for me because then I had enough room to wiggle my toes without getting them sore.
The shoe has an excellent bending quality on rock climbing or running in general. The midsoles are also wider than any other average hiking shoe.
People with wider feet might have difficulty in getting comfortable in Crestwood hiking shoes, because it has the tapered toe box.
Columbia Crestwood Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Very cheap and economical, value for money | Not waterproof |
| Comfortable cushioning | Not meant to last longer after overuse |
| Padded mesh interiors | Slippery on hard wet surfaces |
| Extremely flexible | |
| Excellent breathability | |
| Perfect fit for everyone | |
| Suitable for both indoor and outdoor wear | |
| Exceptional gripping quality |
Comparison With Competitors
Competition is tough in hiking shoe market because everyone wants the best of everything. Columbia Crestwood has some tough competitors including Merrell Moab and Adidas Terrex.
When people invest money they want to make it worth their buy, in this regard, Merrell Moab 3 is the best option. Though Moab 3 has extra mesh layering to make your feet more comfortable, they are slightly expensive than Crestwood. It doesn’t slip and slide just like Crestwood, that said, Moab 3 is waterproof unlike Crestwood.
If we talk about Terrex, they are just as expensive as Moab, ranging between, 67-100$. They are waterproof and made with recycled materials. These shoes are best suited for long and rough terrains as well.
Terrex provides the maximum breathability as well, due to its mesh lining just like Crestwood and Moab. The major difference lies in the shoe fitting; Terrex is very well suited for people with wide feet, because of its wide sole specification.
Although, because of how it looks, it is not always a best casual wear unlike Crestwood. Another shoe brand that is both waterproof and can be used like a sneaker is Hoka Anacapa and Hoka Speedgoat 6.
Should you buy the Columbia Crestwood Hiking shoes?
Well, after taking every aspect into consideration, I can say that Columbia Crestwood hiking shoes are one of the best Columbia hiking shoes for all purposes. It depends on the individual preference; if you are looking for a good pair of shoes in less money then Crestwood is your go to.
Besides, it has all the necessary specification qualities you need in hiking shoes. Ranging from comfort level to the durability (if well maintained), breathability, flexibility and the amazing traction it provides, Crestwood has everything. They are very light weighted which makes it conveniently easy to hike in and they can be used indoors as casual wear.
Not many hiking shoes have that advantage of being multi-purpose. It’s not to say that all Crestwood shoes are non-waterproof; there are some versions of it that provide the waterproof quality. Crestwood shoes also have the ability to withstand tough weather conditions but are ideal for dry weathers.
So, if you are planning to take an average trail hike with comfort, then Crestwood is your best option under pocket friendly budget or even if you need a good pair of shoes for casual wear.
