Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I bought these for a Belize vacation. The only fins I'd ever used before this purchase were rentals / loaners so that's really given me more breadth than depth of experience with different types of fins. These were more comfortable than many other fins I've tried. I think a lot of this was due to the good heel strap that is easy to release or adjust when you want to but doesn't slip or loosen as you swim. I liked the fact that these were short enough to fit in my carry-on luggage (16.5 inches tip to heel base) and came with a mesh bag roomy enough to also fit my snorkel, mask, etc. The fact that they have an adjustable heel strap is handy in many respects: loaning them to friends, opting to wear fin socks or surf booties or not, and the general uncertainty of purchasing an apparel type item online. I ended up wearing surf booties with mine most of the time and they fit fine. The heel strap never once, in a full week snorkeling, came loose or caused me any problems. I am fairly athletic on land but would not characterize myself as a swimmer in pretty much any respect so I was wondering how well I'd be able to keep up with my baggage-check buddies with the very long fins. Turns out I had no problem at all - we snorkeled for an average of 2-3 hours / 3-5 miles at least once a day and I didn't fall behind at all. In fact, I was able to confidently snorkel over shallower coral without fear of damaging it and, of course, I didn't have to wait or pay for checked baggage! One day, I swapped these fins with a friend who had longer dive-type fins - neither of us noticed a difference in factors such as acceleration, leg fatigue or comfort. If you were looking for swim speed you may indeed find more propulsion from a more flexible fin (these are quite stiff) but if you are generally an enjoying-the-scenery type of snorkeler with the occasional functional trek swim or gotta-see-it burst of speed, I think you would find these most suitable. For me, it was the ideal travel fin for snorkeling.