I am going to italy in August: VENICE/Florence/Siena/Tuscany/cinque terre/ LUCCA/Pisa..
I am having trouble finding closed toed sandals ( like Keens) which fit me well.
I want to bring a light open shoe because it will be hot. Do men in italy wear open sand led like flip flops or Tevas? Will I be turned away from any sights because I have exposed toed?
There's no problem with "exposed" toes. I've never noticed about men's sandals (and I haven't been to Italy in summer), but even in May there were a goodly number of Italian men in shorts, so go for the sandals.
The only things I would caution you with open toes is that much of Italy is cobblestones, and dirt of all sorts gets into the cracks between the stones and with open toes you will likely get extremely dirty feet.
The other problem comes because cobblestones are not even and level, and when you invariably bump your toes if they have no protection they may be a touch ouchy.
That's what Im wearing today. My Italian passport also proves I'm an Italian man, therefore Italian men do wear open sandals in Italy. Since I bought mine here in Italy there is proof that some other Italians wear them too otherwise they wouldn't sell.
Do pat attention to what Nigel said. It's very true.
You may have already tried these, but Chacos has come out with a line of closed toe sandals/shoe similar to Keens called the OutCross Lace or OutCross Web. I found they have more arch support than a Keen so they work better for me.
In other sandal trivia, when I wore Keens to Sicily, I found that although they protected the toes, they also trapped small stones all the time. Back to my open Tevas (and washing feet at night).
I have to mention this after reading this post....the typical Italian man dresses very well compared to their American counterparts. There are tons of stores dedicated to men's clothing, shoes and accessories in Italy and you can usually tell the Italians by how impressive they dress. So yes, you can wear open toed sandals, but please respect the culture by wearing shirts with collars, pants not cut off shorts and no dirty feet!
For the one who said to wear what you wear at home and what you are comfy in - so true. My husband is a jeans only kinda man. When we went to Italy for the first time, he packed a pair of Dockers/chinos? (Ugh - word is escaping me). Guess what - he never wears them at home (had them for special occasion - which we never do anyways)...and he never wore them on holiday either! Just something taking up space and weight in the carry on. And what was said about Keens trapping rocks - I can see that happening. I used to live in my Clarks clogs and made the mistake of wearing them on a gravel/dirt path - I have to stop every 2 min or so to knock out gravel. Probably OK for city walking, but you might not want them if you are hiking. Some people say not to wear sandals because your feet get dirty - well - don't they get dirty at home if you wear sandals? Just clean them before you go to bed or when you get in for the day. I wouldn't want to suffer thru the heat of August in a pair of shoes.
On the streets the crowds will look very much like they do in your home town. If you are from the US you will notice less sports gear, especially baseball caps. Yes, the businessmen look snappy, and should given the price of suits. About the only prominent
dress code is in churches where sleeveless shirts, for men and women, and short-shorts are considered disrespectful. This restriction is enforced. But sandals? Like the Apostles wore, or so we think? Choose whatever will be the most comfortable for long hours of walking.
