I'm in the Merrill camp. I've bought three pairs so far. The plain leather clogs work best in terms of style. I can walk all day every day in them.

I saw a cute pair of Softwalks (the Hermosa ones), but the heel is a little thick. Tripgirl, you should check them out and see. They are actually sandals, but I think they could work with skirts.

One more. These are Paul Green Euros that I saw on that Sierra Trading Post site (thanks for the link, by the way. its great!)

http://www.sierratradingpost.com/xq/...qx/product.htm

Is this a women only thread? If not, My wife bought me some Mephisto sandelss and for the first time my feet were comfortable outside of my boat shoes.

Machin, Apparently this is a woman's only thread as your entry signalled the end of this fascinating discussion.

I am off to Nordstrom South Coast Plaza (generally acknowledged to have the best/largest shoe selection in S. Cal) and have alloted 2 hours (!) to trying on shoes for my upcoming 2.5 week trip to China.

I look forward to trying on all of your suggetions.

Lost track of who posted about Zappos but now I don't know whether to thank you or make a voodoo doll with your name on it. Wonderful. Now have to check out shoebuy and onlineshoes.

Sharon-
I know what you mean about Zappos, onlineshoes, and shoebuy. My husband actually applied for a job at Zappos recently and I have my fingers crossed. I'll be in shoe heaven if I can get an employee discount! Then again, my husband may never see his paycheck... :O

jbee, that sounds like a dream job :D
Good luck!

I have Nordstroms cataloge in front of me with all the spring shoes. sighing.
I want the Munore "girl print" sandals. I know they are the most comfortable shoes in the world, I have them in black, but look at the print!
They are like the Icons but not even close to the price.
I ((L)) shoes

<i>yes, I know I gave catalog a new way of spelling :D</i>

Scarlett-
I think it was the last Nordstrom shoe catalog, but did you see the moon boots on the back? I was thrown back to my childhood - I've never wanted a pair of ugly shoes so badly! The bad news (other than the ugliness) was the price tag - $450 or around there... Eek!

Mephisto

Gawd I've looked at some of those shoes and cannot believe how ugly some are. Am I the only one wearing the Cole Haan Nike Air shoes?

I've had Ecco, Born, Naturalizer, Pliner, and Teva's. The TEVA's lace up/closed toe hiker shoe, is by far the most comfortable/sturdy shoe I have ever worn. trekked 30 days in Italy on them. 2nd-place--Ecco's.

I have been wearing Reebok DMX Walk Ultra walking shoes for 10 years and have been able to work up to a walking habit of 25-30 miles a day with no foot or leg pain or even tiredness. I wear them on the street, in the Sierra and Hawaiian jungles. They have an ingenious MIT developed technology with air which circulates between two huge front and back air compartments via a transmission tube in between. I have tried every walking technology and none compare! I buy them at Reebok Factory Shoe outlets for their standard 3-for-2 offer which at around $49 pair less a 20% AAA discount ends up costing less than $30 a pair for the best shoes ever created. They consistently last 500 miles which for me is 20 days walking - I rotate the 3 most recent pair until I feel the ground which means they are going flat. If there is ever a defect, squeaking - anything at all - they cheerfully replace them no questions asked. They have a 800-number Shoe Locator service available thru the Factory Stores which will ship your order for no charge via UPS. In fact I use that service to keep myself supplied and only go to the stores now to try the latest Walk Ultra and comparable editions. Unfortunately they are entering a phase where the DMX Walk Ultra Plus has a foreshortened front air compartment (probably not noticeable except to a walking pro) so I am now using the even cushier DMX Walk Max which are $5 more.

I love Zappos! They have a good selection of walking shoes, in many sizes and widths, among them ECCO shoes. I also like their return policy. You print off a shipping label, and take it to a UPS drop off or a USPS label and drop it at the Post Office. I recently purchased a pair of Born shoes, and unfortunately, they didn't fit my feet well. I printed up a shipping label, popped them back in the box, and took them to the Post Office -- my account was credited within days. Shipping is free. The first pair of shoes I bought from them was a pair of ECCO, and they're one of my favorite pairs of shoes. I wear them all the time!

Sandy

Rant (well, it IS Friday): a.) Morton's Neuroma (anyone else out there afflicted?) b.) Big feet, so any shoe remotely clunky (as so many comfortable ones are) looks waaay clunkier on me.

Rave: Fodorite shoe enthusiasts!

I'm browsing shoebuy.com at the moment and have made notes on all the other good information here. Would love to find a comfy shoe that could take me from a day of sight-seeing right to a just-a-bit-dressy dinner....the quest goes on.

Dear Tuckerdc,
I love having quests. For awhile, it was for the perfect pair of taupe shoes, then it moved to perfect walking shoes, then to the perfect pink bag. Now, as I get ready for my trip to Italy and France, I have several quests: taupe leather gloves, 18K gold earring with either old coins or old glass in them, the same lipstick that I bought in Paris 5 years ago. Ah, the search continues. &quot;This is my quest...&quot;

I bummed around Eastern Europe for 10 days in my Easy Spirit mary janes, and had no problems. They're widely available; I got mine at the outlet mall for about $40. They work well with both jeans and long, casual skirts.

Tuckerdc, I have a Morton's Neuroma also and my feet are wide in the toes and narrow in the heel! I've done a lot of walking in my Merrill's. I've started inserting a pad to shift my weight a bit on the foot with the neuroma - helps quite a bit. I also like my Franco Sarto loafers with an oblique toe. Neither the Merrill's nor Sarto really look nice with skirts but the Sarto's are OK with slacks and a dressy top - just barely! If you find that perfect shoe, let me know, it might be mine to.

I bought a pair of Dankso Mary Jane's from Zappos for our upcoming trip and they are really comfortable except for the strap across the top. I'm hoping I can break them in and stretch the strap out a bit before I go since they are really cute and will look good with pants and/or skirts.

I also bought a pair of Tsubo shoes at Zappos and they are super comfy! They come in all different colors and are a bit more dressy/stylish than regular trainers but will look cute with jeans.