I took a 30 and hope they fit as got them hemmed. I usually wear a 30 Extra Slim in their chinos and the old 30 Slim accord Trousers fit me great. They have a 32” waist. Sizing down to 29 would have made it much too tight in the waist I feel
Yep, could well be the right approach. The reality is that the listed waist measurement is probably exactly where I'd want to end up. It's just that with jeans I've had good luck when the waist starts at ~31" followed by about an inch of additional stretch.