A good travel watch does three things well: it tells you the time where you are and the time at home, it is easy to read in any light, and it keeps going without fuss. Choose first by the complication you need, whether that is a second time zone or simply the day and date. Then choose by movement, water resistance and strap, so the watch suits the way you travel.
World Time, GMT or Dual Time: What Is the Difference?
A world time watch shows the hour in every time zone at once. Its dial is usually ringed with city names and a 24-hour scale that turns through the day, so you can read the time in Tokyo or New York without any arithmetic. It is the most complete answer for someone who moves between many places.
A GMT watch carries one extra hand that goes round the dial once every 24 hours, read against a 24-hour scale. Set it to home time and the main hands to local time, and you have both in view. A dual time watch does the same job with a second dial or subdial. For most trips, two time zones are all you need: where you are, and where the people you call are.
The watches we have chosen here keep a second time zone or the calendar in plain sight. D&G's Polished Stainless Bracelet Watch has two silver dials for two time zones at once, on a polished stainless steel bracelet. Guess's Gold-tone Multi-function Watch has subdials for the 24-hour time, the day and the date. Seiko 5's Beige Field Watch adds 24-hour markings to a day and date window at three o'clock. Citizen's Automatic Diver's 200m Watch shows the day and date beside a rotating bezel.
- Polished Stainless Bracelet Watch
- Gold-tone Multi-function Watch
- Beige Field Watch
- Automatic Diver's 200m Watch
Why the Day and Date Matter Away From Home
Long journeys blur the calendar. A night flight, a change of time zone and a few days without a routine, and it is easy to lose track of the day itself. A date window answers one question; a day and date display answers both, which is why it is so useful when you are away.
A 24-hour scale or subdial helps in a similar way. When local time and body time disagree, it tells you at a glance whether the hour on the dial is morning or evening.
Legibility: A Dial You Can Read at a Glance
A travel watch is read in departure halls, on dim trains and in unfamiliar hotel rooms, often in a hurry. Look for clear contrast between the hands and the dial, distinct hour markers and nothing that crowds the face. Luminous hands and markers, which glow in the dark, are worth having if you check the time at night. Citizen's Automatic Diver's 200m Watch has luminous hands and markers on a blue dial; Seiko 5's Beige Field Watch pairs silver hands with a beige dial.
Light-Powered, Quartz or Automatic?
The movement decides how much attention a watch asks of you. A quartz movement runs on a battery and keeps accurate time with little thought. An automatic movement is wound by the motion of your wrist, so if it rests in a drawer for a few days it may need winding and setting again before you leave.
A light-powered movement charges from light, natural or artificial, which suits a watch that travels. Citizen describes its Eco-Drive watches as powered by light with no battery to change. Citizen's Eco-Drive Dress Watch with the blue cabochon crown sets a mother-of-pearl dial in a 31 mm case. Its two-tone Eco-Drive Dress Watch has a stainless steel case and minute markers for precise reading. Fossil's Solar Powered Fashion Watch has a mother-of-pearl dial and a crystal-studded bezel in a 36 mm case with a rose gold finish.
Water Resistance for Holidays
A water resistance rating, given in metres or ATM, comes from a pressure test. It is not a depth you can safely swim or dive to, so always follow the maker's own guidance before you take a watch into the sea or the pool. Mondaine, for example, describes its 3 ATM rating as light splash protection. Higher ratings are built for more water, and a watch made for diving is designed for it from the start.
For a beach holiday, choose a higher rating and a strap that does not mind getting wet. Citizen's Aqualand Diver's 200M Watch is water resistant to 200 metres, with a rubber strap, a rotating bezel and luminous markers. Maurice Lacroix's Modern Plastic Wristwatch is water resistant to 10 ATM, with a lightweight 40 mm case and a caucciù rubber strap. Fossil's Gold-Tone Dress Watch is water resistant to 100 metres, with a gold-tone case and a white dial. Philip Watch's Stainless Steel Classic has a dial marked water resistant to 100 metres, with an automatic movement and a date display.
Choosing a Strap for Travelling
The strap is what you live with all day, so match it to the trip. A metal bracelet is the most versatile and goes from a meeting to dinner. A fine mesh bracelet is light and sits close to the wrist. Leather is comfortable and dressed, but is best kept away from water. Rubber and silicone are the easiest choice for heat, sand and swimming, and dry quickly.
Mondaine's Stainless Steel Watch pairs a 34 mm case with a stitched leather strap. Citizen's Eco-Drive Dress Watch with the rectangular face sits on a silver mesh bracelet. Stroili's White Dress Watch has a silicone case and an interchangeable, adjustable silicone strap, with water resistance to 50 metres.
How to Choose
If you often call home from another time zone, choose a watch that shows two. If your trips are shorter and your days less ordered, a clear day and date display may be all you need. Then think about where the watch will go: a light-powered or quartz movement for ease, a higher water resistance and a rubber or silicone strap for the beach, a bracelet or leather strap for the city.
Start with the one question that matters most on your journeys: which time do you need to know, and when.
Lascia un commento