Are these able to be worn in the water? Looking for a nice pair of shoes for ocean swimming near reefs in Hawaii

Hawaii maintains strict protections of its reefs throughout the island state. Walking on a live reef will cause damage to its ecosystem and therefore walking on any reef is illegal. Snorkeling, swimming, and surfing, without contacting the reef, is allowed. I just had to put this out there with the return of visitors to Hawaii who may be unaware. Aloha!

I would say check with Amazon....a lot of things have slowed down because if the covid scare

I could be a size 8-8.5 … do I choose 8, 8us or 9?

I tried getting an answer to the same question before buying. I went with a 9, and am happy I did. They can be tricky to put on, I have bunions so prefer not having too tight of a fit. The 9 work very well. I have long feet, but not very ‘fleshy’ nor broad - for the exception of the bunion on primarily my right foot. My recommendation is to size up.

I have the same question as someone else here: I wear 8 - 8.5, they don't have 8.5, so do I (and the other person) choose size 8, 8 us or 9?

It is very hard to answer the sizing question due to the fact feet sizes are unique, and shoe sizes do not translate well to barefoot shoe wear. The next best thing is to buy a size up and size down. Return the ones that do not fit. Make sure you get the shoes with free return shipping.