KEEN Women's Whisper Closed Toe Water Sandals - Lightweight Hiking & Water Shoes for Outdoor Adventures, Beach, Pool & Travel

I had an upcoming camping trip and after seeing my friend get Keens, I decided to search for my own water shoes. I saw a woman at the store and I liked her style of sandal and she said that Keen was the best-lasted long and overall good shoes. and let me say that water shoes in general are not very stylish or pretty but I was not disappointed with these. I read reviews for my purchases and a lot of the reviewers were not positive about this style or keen brand, apparently they changed- quality went down and other things. But that happens with every product. What drew me to these were the style- lightweight yet still gave structure and breathability. I wear a 10.5 in brooks running shoes, so initially I was going to order a 10.5 or 11 (most reviewers say to go up .5size ) but my friend insisted that I go to a store and try them on or a style similar first. Well thank goodness I took that advice because apparently I like more room with my running shoes, especially for work but in reality my foot is a 9.5, so I bought the 10 which was a perfect fit. Reviewers also said that quality was lacking but my sandals seem very well built, no misplaced threads, nothing. The only dislike I have is that someone had tried on and returned my pair ( I could tell because the inside sole was dirty and there was dirt in the cracks on the bottom) which it seems they didn't wear them for a couple days maybe just walked around in them a day trying them. Regardless that creeps me out somewhat because of toenail fungus, which I caught from a pool, but still in the back of my mind worries me how clean they are after someone tries them on first so I wiped these down really good before I tried them on. Which leads me into the next point, one of my big toes is being treated for toenail fungus so I don't like wearing opened toed sandals, I think it looks bad, this offers great protection, breathability and coverage. I love the color I chose but there are many colors to choose from, they can be washed, you can wear them anywhere-hiking, stores, swimming at the lake, they don't rub the back heel and they can be cinched tighter almost like laces. The price can be high about $130 original but if you check around you can definitely find a deal like I did and get them as low as half off-totally worth $65! Overall they are super comfortable to wear they have definitely become my go to sandal this summer. And let me say they are perfect for camping. Pic shows my keen whisper's in front and my friends uneek keens in backI have an old pair of the same style shoe. I wore them often during warm weather for about 3 years. Unfortunately, as much as I like these as hiking sandals, they don't work for me anymore. I hadn't worn my old ones in about 10 months. Before these arrived, I wore my old pair once. After a few hours, I noticed my feet feeling very uncomfortable. When I removed my shoes, I was surprised to see that my feet had swollen to the point of having a DEEP imprint of the sandal upper. After having surgery on each foot about 9 months ago, my feet tend to swell more than before when standing or walking for extended periods. I still really like these sandals and would recommend -- but not if your feet tend to swell.Some of the great things about these sandals:- The outer sole has good traction and feels secure while hiking or walking on uneven or damp surfaces. The soles are quite durable. My pair I wore a lot over a period of 3 years has little visible wear on the outsole.- The uppers dry very quickly when wet -- even after walking in a stream.- The insoles are comfortable but not very squishy. As a person who prefers good arch support in general, I would say these habe a little support but not much. I was ok with that.- The upper part of the sandals is secure and flexible. The toe coverage is great for a hiking sandal. Even with a lot of wear it didn't stretch out, and the cord never broke or frayed.A drawback about the "smoke blue" color is that the uppers are a much brighter blue than they appear in online photos. It's not just the photos on the Amazon listing. I've previously seen product photos of these in the "smoke blue" color from other retailer websites. They all appear to be a nice muted dusty blue color. I was disappointed. At the same time, I had ordered a pair of the solid black. I ordered both through the Amazon try before you buy. I'd wanted to compare the look of the two in person before choosing. The black pair looked great. Since this style wouldn't work for me now, though, I sent both pairs back.If you're looking for a good hiking/active sandal, these are a great option and would probably last a long time for you.I have to wear "closed-toed" shoes for Bio labs, and my feet get sooooooo hot in running shoes. These are much better. I know some labs have a stricter definition of "closed-toes", but I seem to be getting away with these.I've discovered they're also great for gardening in the pouring rain. Will probably be good for rocky beaches, too. A bit pricey, but they're more attractive than most of the competition, and with Keen I expect they'll be good quality and last a while.My shoe size fluctuates between a 7.5 and 8, depending on the shoe. I went with an 8 for these, and they are perfect. I wanted something I could wear at night to walk the dogs or to run errands. These have been wonderful. More support than my go-to flip flops, which helps my plantar fasciitis. Somewhat of a hybrid between shoes and sandals. I like that these soles have some grip, which is nice on wet pavement or floors. They are a bit pricier than I would like, but I waited patiently and found them on sale. Super happy with my purchase!I work in an indoor cultivation facility with high temp and humidity conditions on concrete floors. These sandals allow my feet to breathe as well as providing excellent support to mitigate low back, knee and foot pain. I've had them for over a month now and am very pleased with the quality. I usually wear size 8 1/2 so I ordered a size 9 and they fit perfectly. I plan on using them for hiking soon as they stay securely on my feet without any rubbing whatsoever. Love them!!!I almost didn't buy these as I'd seen so many reviews about the Whisper being really narrow. Ihave regular width feet and chose my usual size 6. I don't find them too narrow at all, they just feel like they fit. There's plenty of space in the toe area and it feels like they grip the rear of my feet well. They are easy to slip on and the bungee makes it easy to adjust the fit quickly. I'm marking them down by one star simply because the arch support isn't amazing and as someone who over-pronates a decent footbed means I can walk further without pain, but as these are water shoes, I'm only going to be walking short distances wearing them to get into the water anyway and the footbed feels supportive enough, just without the level of arch support I like. They are really comfy though, hold my foot in place well and whilst I've not yet used them out on the water, they feel capable and are a great replacement to my very old KEEN Uneek water shoes.I am a convert to Keen footwear but I do agree with a lot of reviewers in so much that the sizing between Keen products can vary quite a lot. I have two pairs of different styles of Keen walking boots, and each fit is a little different, but I am normally a UK size 5 and I needed a 5 1/2 in their hiking boot range. I read the reviews for these sandels carefully and decided on a size 5 rather than the 5 1/2 I would normally go for in Keen footwear. These are an odd fit, they almost feel too big, with my big toe nowhere near the end of the shoe. However, although the toe end feels a bit on the big side, the shoe is comfy and doesn't feel like it will fall off, nor does it rub. As my feet warmed up the sandel was more comfortable to wear which I guess is probably the point of a sandel allowing your foot to expand in the heat. I knocked off a star as getting a perfect fit is very complicated. I am sure the 4 1/2 will feel too small, and a 5 1/2 would probably just slip right off my foot! So if your not used to rather weird sizing with Keen footwear you might want to try on before you buy if possible, or go for an offer with free postage returns. Overall I am pleased with these sandels and they are robust and comfortable to wear.After researching quite heavily into a new pair of walking sandals I decided to try these based on the number of positive reviews. Sadly, they were tight at the top of the laces with very little ability to widen the gap.I fully loosened the laces but they didn't really alter the fit much, especially at the back of the sandal. Although just trying them on, they felt OK, I felt that once I'd worn them for any period of time, they would become uncomfortable and would no doubt pinch.Very disappointing really. I've had similar style sandals that were able to adjust the fit in a number of ways to make them comfortable, these did not.I've gone back to my Hi-tec sandals, much comfier, more flexible fit, hard wearing and £50 cheaper!These are very comfy right from first wear. I have a high instep and they did press on the top of my foot at first but stretched ok after a go with the ball and ring stretcher (it's a real thing for stretching shoes in certain places).I've worn them on a 5/6 mile walk with rocky underfoot. They aren't as stable as my hiking boots but they do a good job. I've not found them to be slippy. For these longer walks though I will wear an invisible sock because the rubber under your foot will get a bit rubby when hot and bothered.They look really good and people have said they really like them.They will go in a river or a stream but then will be a bit rubby on the bottom of your foot. But to be fair that would be expecting too much from a pair of sandals.Little stones will get in but not as much as with other sandals.So overall, not a boot, but for a walking sandal, the best one I've ever had.Easy on and off.Having had a pair of Keen sandels that had lasted over 6 years of heavy use, and still functional though tatty looking. I decided to invest in another. These new sandals are smaller than my old ones for the same size and much narrower. I have slim feet so this isn't a problem, though could be for others. The grips also appear to have changed are not as deep as my old pair so will be interesting to see how they wear.Haven't yet taken them for a long walk so have not been able to award 5 stars.