Travel Watches
While we admire the romance of a moon phase or the whirl of a tourbillon, the multi-timezone function is one of the few watch complications developed for today's on-the-go lifestyles.
Glashütte Original's Senator Cosmopolite ($43,500 in red gold and $45,300 in white gold) covers every possible travel destination with the ability to track all 37 of the world's time zones, including the 13 that deviate from established norms by 15, 30 or 45 minutes. The clean, easy-to-read dial shows local time as designated by the official city airport code in two windows (for standard and daylight savings) at 8 o'clock. The world's 24 standard time zones are in black, while blue type is used for time zones offset by 30 minutes, and red for those offset by 15 or 45 minutes. The day/night indicator at 9 o'clock and the big date at 4 o'clock are synced with local time, while home time is shown on a sub-dial at 12 o'clock with a home day/night indicator and power reserve.
With more than 400 parts, the newly manufactured movement is ingeniously devised to be user friendly. Just pull the crown at 4 o'clock and turn clockwise if you've flown east or counterclockwise for westward travel until your designated city code appears in the correct aperture at 8 o'clock. As you turn the crown forward or backward, the hour and minute hands will automatically adjust to the correct local time for that zone, and the day/night indicator and big date follow suit.
Breitling's new Galactic Unitime SleekT ($9,000) world timer runs on the brand's first in-house movement that does not have a chronograph function, the automatic Breitling Calibre B35 with a 70-hour power reserve. This movement, which has four patented systems, is also designed for easy setting: just turn the crown forward or backward to easily change local time and date. The 44-mm stainless steel case is appointed with a super scratch-resistant tungsten carbide bezel, which is five times harder than steel. The world-time city ring and 24-hour disc encircle the dial, which is available in black or white, embellished with an outline of a world map.
And for those who can make do with just three time zones on their watch, Carl F. Bucherer is marking the 10th anniversary of its Patravi TravelTec collection with the introduction of the Patravi TravelTec II ($12,900). This anniversary TravelTec features an upsized 47.7 mm case and a new bezel marked with a 24-hour scale to indicate the third time zone, while the second zone is shown on the 24-hour scale around the periphery of the dial. The pusher at 10 o'clock lets you adjust the local time in both directions with the date shifting accordingly.
Outfitted with one of these mechanical travel companions on your wrist, you can crisscross the International Date Line and still keep track of what's happening at home all without skipping a beat.
Visit glashuette-original.com, breitling.com, carl-f-bucherer.com
