REASONS TO BUY
Comfortable
Cheap
Textured footbed
Fun colors
REASONS TO AVOID
Footbed can be slippery
Not very supportive
The North Face Base Camp Mini - Women's Review
Simple and fun, this flip is a highly affordable choice for casual warm weather fun
Credit: The North Face
Price: $28 List
By Penney Garrett ⋅ Senior Review Editor ⋅ Aug 13, 2019
RELATED: Best Flip Flops for Women of 2024
Our Verdict
The North Face Base Camp Mini is a sleek, low profile flip flop with a unique egg-crate shaped footbed meant to massage and soothe your feet. Decently comfortable, this flip has soft straps and requires almost no breaking in. It's fairly durable, though some of the fun colors show dirt and wear rather quickly. Traction and water-resistance are adequate, and the price tag is super friendly. All in all, this isn't a top scorer in our review, but it's an excellent sandal that will appeal to a lot of folks, especially for the price.
If you'd prefer more support than the Base Camp offers, have a look at the Birkenstock Gizeh Essentials EVA, our Best Buy winner. For just a little bit more money, you get a lot more shoe.
Our Analysis and Test Results
The Base Camp Mini is a fun and simple flip with a uniquely-textured footbed and is geared toward maximum comfort. It's not outstanding in any particular way, but it does everything you would expect from a simple sandal for a very approachable price.
Performance Comparison
The textured Base Camp Mini comes in fun colors and offers everything you need in a simple summer flip flop.
Credit: Penney Garrett
Comfort
If you like textured footbeds and low-profile designs, the Base Camp is a great option to consider. This flip takes no work to break in, the straps are soft, and the egg-crate inspired footbed massages your feet with every step. If you don't like textured surfaces under your feet, this probably isn't the best choice, nor is it the best option for wide feet as it runs narrow. It's also thin so, if you require a lot of cushion to be comfortable, this might not be quite enough. But if you want a mini foot massage while you walk and don't mind being able to feel a thing or two through your shoe, this is a fine choice.
The Base Camp Mini is small enough to take traveling and camping and provides some nice relief after a long day of backpacking.
Credit: Penney Garrett
Support & Stability
We can't give a super high score here because the Base Camp Mini is rather thin and minimal. The textured foam footbed offers just enough to keep you comfy and not much beyond. It gets a bit slippy when wet and there's no contouring or arch support; however, if all you need is a simple sandal with some fun texture, you'll be just fine.
This isn't an overly supportive shoe and it becomes less stable when wet, but if you prefer simple and minimal in your summer flips you'll be more than satisfied.
Credit: Penney Garrett
Durability
Durability is decent but not spectacular for the Camp Mini. The straps are coated and quite robust, but the EVA footbed is thin, and shows wear more quickly. With the light color we tested, dirt accumulates in the egg-crate texturing and darkens the footbed. This certainly does not affect the performance of the sandal, but it's something to keep in mind when you choose your color. While this isn't the most bomber flip, it's decent should last many seasons with decent care.
Between the light color and the texturing, this flip got grimy pretty quick.
Credit: Penney Garrett
Water Resistance
The footbed of the Camp Mini feels pretty slimy when it gets wet, but the feeling is short-lived. With just a bit of time and sun, it absorbs the moisture, and you're back to flipping and flopping with ease. The straps stay damp longer but remain comfortable and pleasant-feeling to wear.
Water dries off the Camp Mini relatively quickly, though the footbed can feel quite slippy in the interim.
Credit: Penney Garrett
Traction
Nothing to write home about here. The Base Camp is perfectly adequate for simple low impact hikes and outings, but it isn't the best if you plan to get very technical. The sole is decently grippy, but we did slip a couple of times on a pine-needle-covered trail. The footbed, despite being textured, is quite insecure when wet, so keep aware if you walk through a puddle or your hike gets muddy.
On flat non-technical terrain the Base Camp is great, just pay attention if things get more complicated or water is involved .
Credit: Penney Garrett
Style
Depending on your aesthetic you can wear this flip flop with anything from jeans to leggings to a summery dress, though it is decidedly sporty-looking.
The Base Camp Mini is sporty, fun, and available in some great colors.
Credit: Penney Garrett
Best Applications
The Camp Mini is best suited for simple summer shenanigans where the terrain doesn't get too complicated or wet. It has decent traction when dry but doesn't offer a ton of support so, unless you're specifically comfortable with minimal shoes, it's better for post-climbing recovery and tent-pitching than it is for long approaches or miles of walking.
The Base Camp Mini having a great time at the doggo park.
Credit: Penney Garrett
Value
This is a great value purchase! The price is very approachable, less than dinner with a couple of drinks (and certainly longer-lasting). If you need something simple and straightforward without spending a bundle, this is pretty perfect.
Conclusion
The North Face Base Camp Mini is humble, approachable, and comfortable. It does everything a flip flop should and won't strain your wallet in the process. If you want a simple summer shoe with no break-in fuss, decent traction and water resistance, and adequate durability, you've found it.
Fun and simple, the Camp Mini is a great budget summer flip.
Credit: Penney Garrett
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Penney Garrett
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