Women have loads of nice-looking sandals to choose from that are also comfortable enough to wear all day and into the night. The choices are much slimmer for men. Some companies have been trying hard lately to remedy that though, putting out stylish closed-toe sandals that can be worn in multiple situations, like these suave Rockaway Sandals from Keen Footwear.
I’m a big fan of sports sandals and water shoes from the likes of Keen and Teva, but those aren’t the kind of thing you want to wear with a pair of nice slacks. These Rockaway sandals do well on the double-duty scale, with a classy look that doesn’t shout, “I just went river rafting!” So if your trip is more about staying cool and being cool than hitting trails and kayaking, these are a good choice.
They’ve got a nice leather upper that covers the whole foot but has ample places for the air to pass through. Like most Keens these won’t squeeze your foot into a narrow tube, but the adjustable wide strap with Velcro allows you to tighten them as needed. There’s a bouncy non-marking rubber sole and a supremely comfortable anatomical footbed. I’ve worn these off and on for several weeks and on a couple days were my only footwear from morning until night, remaining comfortable after long walks.
The footbed has an odor-resistant compound in it also that worked well in my tests, though I did find the surface a bit sticky when the weather turned hot and sweaty. Some kind of design adjustment with grooves or a variable surface pattern might help. Although these are leather, they are water-resistant.
These Keen sandals come in brown or black and list for $89 at the Keen Footwear site, where you can see them from more angles and how they look with jeans. They’re currently going for a tad less at the retailers below.
Get the KEEN Rockaway Sandal at Backcountry
Keen Rockaway Sandal at Amazon
