Round-UpAlways In The Zone: 10 Exquisite GMT Watches Handpicked For The World Traveller

It took us 10,000 years to go from the simple medium of the handwritten transcript to the invention of the printing press…but only about 500 more to get to emails. The accelerating rate of technology is a topic oft-discussed. However, what’s usually not considered is our astonishing pace of adapting to this evolution. A lot has changed over the last 60 years, but connectivity, in its various forms, has grown 10-fold—be it the internet, advancements in transportation, or communication. Cross-continental travel has gone from being a luxury to almost a necessity for the masses. This rings especially true to the modern individual, who will spend a lot of time jet-setting around the globe, either for business or pleasure. It certainly would behoove this globe-trotter to invest in a good and reliable GMT watch. 

GMT watches rely on a 24-hour scale for time indication. While there are some aspects that are constant across all GMT watches, there are also variations in the genre, with different watchmakers bringing something new to the table. The most common examples display a second time zone via a central hand that completes a rotation every 24 hours. The bezel is either fixed or rotatable. The watches with a moving bezel add an extra layer of practicality, as you can turn it around to see the time in more zones, so long as you’re okay with a little math.

This complication is the most widely used in the market, second only to the chronograph. However, if you haven’t yet embraced the GMT complication, here are 10 of the finest GMT watches that you could get your hands on today.

Baume & Mercier Clifton GMT Power Reserve

Simple design and superb engineering have been hallmarks of Baume & Mercier—the Swiss luxury watchmakers—since their inception in 1830. A part of their popular Clifton collection, which was launched in 2013—this particular timepiece surely packs a punch with its aesthetic perfection. Housed in a 43mm, classic round, steel case, its sunray-finished blue dial is quite eye-catching. The rhodium-plated dauphine hands, indices, and Arabic numerals create soothing contrast against the blue dial. It also comprises three very defined features—a power reserve indicator at six o’clock, a date window at three, and a GMT function placed at 12 o’clock. On taking a closer look, the intricate details appear more pronounced. The semi-circular GMT display features a dual-coloured hand, with one end in striking red and the other in silver—each corresponding to the half scales, with clarity. On the reverse, the caseback offers an unimpeded view of the Côtes de Genève finishing on the oscillating mass and the perlage decoration of the main plate. This elegant timepiece is powered by an automatic movement—the Soprod 9035—which offers a power reserve of 42 hours and beats at a frequency of 28,800vph. This neatly crafted watch is presented on a black alligator strap with a triple-folding steel buckle. 

Baume & Mercier Clifton

₹3,87,000

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Panerai Luminor 1950 3 Days GMT Automatic

Nowadays, GMT watches don’t necessarily adhere to the rules of yesteryear; case in point—the Panerai Luminor 1950 3 Days GMT Automatic. It sticks to the Panerai aesthetic and doesn’t feature a rotating bi-coloured bezel or a GMT hand that rotates every 24 hours. Instead, there’s a far speedier one that completes a rotation every 12 hours. Panerais were always built to survive pretty much anything life could throw at them and still bounce back. Panerai has continued to offer ample ruggedness and reliability as a taste of the past. Beating within its 44m titanium case with DLC coating is the brand’s in-house calibre P.9001 that gives it an impressive power reserve of three days. 

Breitling Navitimer Chronograph GMT 46

The Navitimer Chronograph GMT 46 is a rather special offering from Breitling, as it features two popular and widely used complications within a single watch—the chronograph and the GMT hand. This makes it one of the most practical tool watches out there. The watch, with its black dial and effortlessly legible dual timezone system, is designed for the modern traveller. A red-tipped central hand displays the second time on a 24-hour scale and the caseback is engraved with the time zones of the world’s major cities. The movement is housed in the 46mm case, which has a bidirectional rotating bezel and Breitling’s iconic circular slide rule for onboard calculations. Powered by a self-winding Breitling 24 calibre, this sophisticated tool watch is can find many uses on the wrist of a business-driven globetrotter. 

The perfect watch for your jet-setting needs is the timeless Breitling Navitimer. Its iconic design has been around since the 60s and still hasn’t lost its instantly recognisable appeal

The self-winding chronograph movement is housed in the 46mm case and features two useful and important complications: the chronograph and the GMT function

Breitling Navitimer

₹6,69,600

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Oris Whale Shark Limited Edition

Oris’ stellar repertoire comprises a number of exquisitely crafted timepieces specifically dedicated to marine ecosystems. One such watch from the brand that seamlessly balances great visual appeal with functionality is their Whale Shark Limited Edition. Sheathed in a 43.5mm multi-piece stainless steel case is its blue dial featuring a shark-skin pattern. Its Super-LumiNova-filled hour markers, hands, and indices guarantee improved underwater visibility. The dial also accommodates the name of the brand positioned right under 12 o’clock, with the date display at three o’clock. A key feature of this watch is the bidirectional-rotating GMT bezel with a laser-engraved 24-hour scale, on a ceramic insert. It is segmented into two parts—with black representing night hours and blue for the daytime. While the orange arrowhead hand points to the fixed 24-hour GMT scale on dial itself to indicate a secondary time, the hand can also indicate the time in other zones, as you rotate the bezel. At the core of this watch sits the Oris calibre 798, which beats at 28,800vph, and guarantees a power reserve of 42 hours. Water-resistant to 300m, this watch is presented on a three-row stainless steel bracelet with a folding clasp. Designed in support of Oris ambassador—Gerardo del Villar, who has been documenting whale sharks for more than 15 years—this watch is limited to only 2,016 pieces. The number signifies the year when the International Union of Conservation Nature (IUCN) announced that the global population of whale sharks had halved over the previous 75 years.

Oris Aquis

₹1,60,000

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Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean 600M

The funky colourway of the Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean 600M works in its favour as a tool watch. At 45.5mm, the timepiece is bold, making it easier to read. The water resistance, at 600m, is quite high, and there’s also multi-coloured lume to aid in low-light situations. The watch features an all-ceramic construction in blue with bright orange accents. The Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean 600M isn’t a watch that catches your attention as much as it demands it. And to top it all off, this purpose-built watch also has a 24-hour GMT complication, making it an appealing prospect for the jet-setters who enjoy more than a dip in the ocean every once in a while. 

The funky colourway of the Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean 600M works in its favour as a tool watch

Raymond Weil Tango GMT Bob Marley

Bob Marley was a person who is universally adored and globally revered as one of the stalwarts of reggae and a revolutionary musician. However, the reason why we’ve chosen this inspired watch from Raymond Weil is mainly the colourway that the Swiss watchmaker went with for this watch. The colour palette, picked from the Ethiopian flag, works wonders for its GMT time-telling functions, with the arrow-shaped central GMT hand in green clearly differentiated from the baton-shaped seconds hand in red and a circumference circle in yellow. This allows the user to instantly recognise the home time from local time, while a rotating bezel with 24-hour markers sets the time zone. This 42mm has a stainless steel case, within which it beats to the tune of a high-performance quartz movement, making it a worry-free and highly accurate prospect for years on end. 

The Raymond Weil Tango GMT Bob Marley beats to the tune of a high-performance quartz movement, making it a worry-free and highly accurate prospect for years on end.

The colour palette, picked from the Ethopian flag, works wonders for its GMT time-telling functions

Graham Chronofighter Oversize GMT 

The Chronofighter Oversize GMT by Graham caters to, as its name suggests, the big wristed folk. This 47mm behemoth is every bit as bold and adventurous as it looks. The aesthetic appeal of this watch is in its stainless steel and red gold case, which is further enhanced by an elaborate black sapphire bezel and a large see-through sapphire case back. The Chronofighter Vintage GMT is built around the calibre G1733, an automatic chronograph movement with a date and a GMT complication designed for half-hour time differences. Its unidirectional rotating GMT bezel is made of ceramic and features 24 positions. 

Frederique Constant Classics Date GMT

Here is a watch that makes a statement with its effortless sophistication. The 42mm case in rose gold-plated steel helps it make a striking impression, balancing form with function. A feature that reflects Frederique Constant’s commitment to classic design is this timepiece’s neatly segmented dial—accommodating black, printed Roman numerals for the hours along with Breguet-style hands indicating the local time. The name of the brand stands perfectly highlighted on the guilloche decoration in the central area of the dial. You can also see a dedicated GMT hand bearing a striking, red arrowhead tip—which points to the 24-hour GMT track to indicate time in a secondary zone—along with a date window neatly positioned at three o’clock. The timepiece is powered by calibre FC-350, which offers a power reserve of 38 hours and beats at a frequency of 28,000vph. The watch is attached to a dark brown leather strap which enhances its conservative, yet classic appeal. 

The GMT hand of this Frederique Constant Classics features a striking, red arrowhead tip—which points to the 24-hour track to indicate time in a secondary zone

Longines Conquest VHP GMT

The Longines Conquest VHP GMT is a technological wonder. Unlike other watchmakers that put all their chips in mechanical watchmaking, Longines has pushed the boundaries of quartz accuracy. This watch, for example, will only have a maximum deviation of five seconds per year, according to Longines. VHP stands for Very High Precision, and that’s what the timepieces offer. However, the most distinctive feature of the watches is what the brand calls ‘Flash Setting’–used to set the second time zone with the help of a smartphone. This remarkable innovation is a must-have for globetrotters as it allows you to change and set time without the use of the crown while providing outstanding precision in displayed time. The watch is powered by the quartz calibre L287­–known not only for its top-notch accuracy but also for its use of a gear position detection (GDP) system that quickly resets the watch’s hands after an impact or exposure to a magnetic field. Available in several avatars, the timepiece that we have handpicked comes housed in a 43mm stainless steel case with strikingly impressive black carbon dial, decorated with lume-coated hands and the date window display at three o’clock.

Carl F. Bucherer Patravi TravelTec GMT 

The TravelTec, as its name suggests, is a very technical travel watch. The timepiece upped the game in the GMT genre at its launch in 2005, with a movement capable of displaying three time zones, coupled with a chronograph. The multi-purpose steel watch continues to be a crowd favourite to this day, some 14 years later. With a case size of 46.6mm, the TravelTec GMT is fairly large, evoking a timeless design that doesn’t seem to age. The watch uses the calibre CFB 1901.1 that gives it a power reserve of 42 hours.