It was my fault. I wrecked them by letting the tide catch me, but until the salt of the Pacific destroyed them, my Merrell mary janes were the “don’t leave home without them” shoes. I had worn down the soles but good by wearing them, well, everywhere. They were functional, I could wear them to ride my bike or to guide my guests all over the cobblestones of Salzburg. They were cute enough to wear with a skirt or dress if I needed to clean up. And did I mention comfortable? I could walk in them all day long – and did, on many an occasion. So when the leather didn’t recover from the salt water bath, I was sort of bummed but I’d had them for so long and put in so many miles on them. They wanted replacing.
I have recommended Merrell shoes to travelers on many an occasion, long before Merrell landed in my inbox. I probably picked my first pair up at the Nordstrom Rack or some other clearance location because I’m kind of cheap. Of course, I was way psyched when Merrell’s PR gal got in touch and offered to send me a new pair. There have been some nice design improvements over my old pair, the foot bed is spongier, the soles a bit grippier. The tags say they’ve done a bunch of research to redesign their women’s shoes to suit the way we walk – I can’t confirm or deny the results of that research yet. I’m not wild about the plastic clip on the strap, I’m marginally worried that it will break before I’ve worn out the shoes, but time will tell – my other pair lasted through years and years of steady wear.
Slaves to fashion aren’t going to go nutty over these shoes,though, wait, these are totally cool. I want a pair! I’m not carrying any more shoes in my luggage than I have to – if I can find a pair that will work for sightseeing and dining out and bike riding and the occasional short hike (no, really, you can skip down a trail in them, though for a real hike I’d want a something more substantial), then I am a very happy person indeed. Get yours from the recently relaunched Merrell site or hey, do me a favor and get them from Amazon
No matter how you get them, do get a pair, your traveling feet will thank you. Yeah, the pair on the floor over there came from Merrell, but my first pair didn’t. I feel good telling you that they are the best pair of travel shoes I’ve owned. No contest.
I’m keen on Keens, but I always admire my friends’ feet when they are wearing Merrells. I think I need a pair of those Mary Janes…. (my kids have worn Merrell snow clogs for years..)
@Kara: Keens do NOT fit my feet. I have tried them on every time I’m shopping for a travel shoe and they just do not work for me. People swear by them, I know, but a design less suited to my paws I have yet to find. Plus, I don’t think Keens do the double duty for dress up the way Merrell does.
Like I know anything about style.
See, I’m so cheap that, while I love love loved my Merrell mary janes, when they got too stinky for wearing in public I replaced them with Land’s End trekker mj’s. $39.50, totally cute and comfortable. They’re not Merrells, but they’re half the price and have enough support for touring and leisure walking to suit me.
Sadly, Merrell shoes only go to size 11, and I’m a 12 – but I think they’re super cute. I could probably rock a pair of men shoes, I guess.
I have a pair of Keen’s (again, in men’s) and while they formed to fit my feet, my feet hurt after wearing them – annoying after plunking down $85.
This is so funny – I just bought a pair of Merrells (from Nordstrom Rack, no less!) last week. I have wide feet with high arches, and these Merrells are sooooo comfy!
Funny that Keens don’t fit your feet. Merrells don’t fit mine! I am a Keen girl — and Clarks, too. I really love cute shoes, but I will choose comfort over cute any day. And clearly, not all feet are made alike!
The Merrell website is so useless! I can’t even believe it!
nia:
I worked on the new Merrell.com site and I would love to get more in depth feedback from you so we can improve our site. You can contact me at donkmi”AT”wwwinc.com or reply back here in the comments if you prefer. Thanks!
Nerd’s Eye View:
Glad you love our shoes; it is always great to see posts like these!
Sorry to hear your merrells got ruined. Happy to hear you got a new pair.
I found my first pair of merrells when living in Saudi Arabia and haven’t looked back. They have pride of place in my suitcase along side my ecco sandels.
I own 5 merrell shoes now.
2 for work.
1 for day hiking.
1 for winter.
1 for casual wear.
Never look at any brand again. Merrell is the best!!!.