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Your Next GMT Watch: 8 Options Under $5,000
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Rising disposable income and the expansion of airlines like Pan Am in the 1950s and 1960s created a surge in demand for travel, both for business and for pleasure.
Pilots had long been relying on accurate timepieces to navigate, but now they found that having at-a-glance legibility of a second time zone – home, HQ, GMT – was invaluable. That was just as true for travelers as it was for flight crews, especially if they were crossing time zones repeatedly on a trip.
Rolex was the first to respond to this need, introducing the innovative GMT-Master in 1954. Relying on a 24-hour bezel, this revolutionary design became the blueprint for GMT watches, and the architecture of the dial lay-out of the GMT Master, drawing heavily on the 1953 Submariner’s aesthetics, defined the look of this style even today.
GMTs can be expensive, but a growing number of manufacturers offer accessible exciting options for less than $5,000 – and some sell for far less!
Two kinds of GMT watch: caller vs. traveler
Two different complications were designed to do this: the so-called caller/office GMT and the aptly-named flyer/traveler GMT.
The caller design features a 24-hour bezel and a second hour hand that indicates a second time zone. This style of GMT complication is outstanding for keeping track of day/night differences, but not as easy to set immediately for rapidly changing time zones while travelling.
By contrast, the flyer/traveler GMT complication uses a second hour hand, typically of a different design than the primary, to track that alternate time zone.
In some models, it can be set without disturbing the minute hand, a feature that many enthusiasts enjoy as it doesn’t demand that you constantly correct the minutes (or seconds) while adjusting the hour.
I’ll note which of the complication styles each of the watches on our shortlist employs, and without further introduction, let’s get into the details.
Tudor Black Bay 58 GMT
If you’re on the hunt for a GMT, you’re probably already familiar with Tudor. Established by Hans Wilsdorf, the founder of Rolex, Tudor offers similar quality, precision, and aesthetics – all at a more affordable price point.
Tudor produces the Black Bay 58 in a 39mm case, making it more compact than the pre-2018 model. Slimmer and more svelte on the wrist do to a reduction in thickness from 14.6mm to 12.8mm, the current iteration wears beautifully, a testament to the practical history of the GMT.
Tudor partners with Kenissi to produce the MT5402 movement at the heart of this watch, emphasizing robustness, practicality, and flawless function.
The GMT complication on the Black Bay 58 relies on a bi-directional bezel marked in 24-hour increments. A true “caller” GMT, adjusting the second time zone is possible independently of the local time, and with hacking seconds, precise time is simple to track.
Available with your choice of a stainless bracelet or rubber strap, the Tudor Black Bay GMT captures the 50s and 60s aesthetic perfectly, offering timelessly retro swagger.
To me, it perfectly captures the luxury and romanticism of the post-war aviation boom, much like a wearable vintage travel poster, without deviating from the GMT Master’s general aesthetic sensibilities.
And Tudor knows that details count: consider details like the black and burgundy bezel, complete with gold details; it’s immediately recognizable by cognoscenti, marking the wearer out as someone in the know, someone who appreciates horological history.
Expect to pay $4,600 for the watch with a bracelet, and slightly less for the strap.
Longines Spirit Zulu Time
Longines’s Spirit Zulu Time is a sharp-looking design that strikes all the right aesthetic notes for me. I’m especially fond of the green and stainless version, as its clean good looks are easy to wear, easy to read, and surprisingly easy to own, too.
Longines equips the Spirit Zulu with its L844.4 movement, a variation of the ETA A31.L91 that includes a silicon balance spring for enhanced accuracy and resistance to magnetic fields.
Robust and accurate, the L844.4 drives a 24-hour GMT hand matched to an hour-marked bezel, two cathedral hands for the hours and minutes, a second hand, and a date window at the 6.
The L844.4 offers a “caller” style GMT complication that won’t disrupt the minutes and seconds of your local time as you set a new time zone.
Solidly dependable, the Spirit Zulu can take the abuse of bumps and knocks, whether you slam it into the counter at check in, wedge it between bags as you shift your luggage in the trunk, or strike your wrist on the door of a taxi at the airport.
Think of this Longines as an adventure watch, ready for whatever your travels throw at it. Snorkelling? Shopping in a crowded Moroccan bazaar? Dinner in a sea-side restaurant in Malta?
Check, check, and check.
Available in at least eight different configurations of dial and bezel color as well as strap or bracelet design, this Longines is available in both 39 and 42mm diameters for an MSRP of $3,300.
Sinn 144 St DIAPAL
Sinn’s 144 St DIAPAL is what you might call a “sleeper:” a watch that’s so good it’s hard to understand why it’s not more popular among the rank and file consumer.
But for horological cognoscenti, this Sinn is a legend – and I don’t say that lightly. Strapping it on makes me feel like an F-22 pilot, and the overall look of this watch whispers speed.
The heart of this Sinn is La Joux‑Perret’s column‑wheel LJP 8000 movement, a modification and enhancement of the venerable ETA 7750.
Sinn transforms this workhorse movement, adding a true column wheel mechanism for more refined time-keeping, as well as the inclusion of a very high tech, lubricant-free DIAPAL escapement.
The results are impeccable accuracy, long service intervals, and reliability that’s hard to match.
The 144 St DIAPAL relies on a second, GMT hour hand – the “traveler” style rather than a 24-hour bezel. This makes the Sinn very easy to adjust on the fly, but it does require that you stop the seconds hand and adjust the local time to set that alternate time zone.
Aesthetically, the Sinn 144 St DIAPAL leans into its flieger heritage, offering tachometer and pulsometer bezel markings, three subdials, and hours, minutes, and seconds hands marked with luminescent material.
With either a gray fabric strap or stainless bracelet, it’s undeniably handsome, just a touch retro, and very, very stylish.
Expect to pay approximately $3,000 for this Sinn.
Traska Venturer GMT
Traska is a new watchmaker with a growing reputation for quality, craftsmanship, and affordable performance. Their Venturer is a GMT design that stays true to the company’s core mission of creating beautiful, dependable, rugged timepieces.
Traska uses off-the-shelf Japanese movements like the Miyota 9075, allowing for a true “traveler’s GMT” movement in which the GMT hand can be set without disturbing the local time.
That’s a big deal for frequent flyers, and very rare at this price point. That’s undoubtedly why Traska uses the Miyota 9075: it’s an outstanding movement that’s widely available, easy to repair or service, and capable of true GMT capability.
Traska offers the Venturer in a range of dial colors: carbon black, artic white, steel blue, and bottle green. The blue and green really catch my eye, but the black and white are strikingly attractive in their own rights.
Offered with a stainless bracelet, and finished with real attention to detail, this is a timepiece that’s already making a mark in horology.
I really appreciate its elegance, and there’s simply no question that the Traska Venturer is both easy on the eyes and easy to wear.
The blue dial is especially handsome, and its rich color and subdued dial texture really sets off the simple hour markers, hour and minute hands, and GMT hand – especially given its bright orange hue.
The Venturer retails for $750, making it more than a bargain given what it offers.
Christopher Ward C63 Sealander GMT
Christopher Ward endeavors to deliver Swiss precision and design at a moderate price point, and they were among the earliest watch brands to bypass retailers and sell directly to consumers to obviate the need for middlemen.
That has proven itself a smart strategy, and if you’re looking for a clean, good-looking GMT, the C63 Sealander deserves a close look.
Driven by the Sellita SW330‑2 movement, the C63 Sealander offers true “caller” GMT function, using a rotating bezel and second hour hand to track an alternate time zone.
This allows you to switch that second zone without disturbing the time, but it’s less useful if you’re switching time zones constantly.
A robust workhorse that’s known for exceptional accuracy for the price, the reserved aesthetics of the C63 Sealander appeal to people who want understated elegance.
Available in green, white, and black dials, as well as a larger 40mm model that complements the standard 39mm collection, this Christopher Ward retails for roughly $1,000.
Zodiac Super Sea Wolf GMT
Zodiac is another watchmaker with a strong reputation among aficionados. Their Super Sea Wolf GMT breaks with the Rolex Master GMT aesthetic and charts a course of its own, hewing closer to the C63 Sealander from Chrsitopher Ward than the retro-inspired Tudor.
Equipped with the STP 7-20 GMT movement, a close relative of the ETA 2893-2, it uses a rotating bezel and second hour hand to track an alternate time zone.
Easy to set without disturbing local time, this “caller-style” GMT is very easy to read at a glance due to the contrasting dial and GMT hand color scheme.
Zodiac’s aesthetic choices for the Super Sea Wolf – a 40mm case that’s
13.6mm thick – give it a luxury heft and weight. It’s not heavy, but it does feel like quality on the wrist. Its prominent bezel, big case, and two-tone stainless bracelet offer a rugged and adventurous look for world travelers and flight crews, especially in the limited edition “Sherbert” dial and bezel design.
MSRP for the Super Sea Wolf is $1,995.
Grand Seiko (ref. SBGN011)
Grand Seiko has been pushing the boundaries of Japanese luxury for decades now, challenging Swiss watchmakers to keep up with its commitment to unyielding excellence.
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When I think about daily luxury – a wrist watch that’s beautiful, elegant, but also practical and wearable, Grand Seiko never fails to impress. And that’s just as true of its GMT models, like the unforgettable SBGN011.
Grand Seiko breathes life into this timepiece through the Grand Seiko Caliber 9F86. This quartz movement offers no-nonsense precision in the range of ±10 seconds per year, as well as a second GMT hour hand paired with discrete hour markers on the dial. A “caller-style” GMT complication, it can be set independently of the local time.
An under-appreciated gem, the SBGN011 features a 40mm stainless-steel case polished in the traditional Japanese Zaratsu style, as well as a sunburst champagne dial.
Simple hour markers and hands offer an understated elegance perfectly in keeping with Grand Seiko’s vision of wearable luxury.
For me, this is the dressiest of the GMT watches I’m discussing today, and if suits or smart casual are your daily sartorial options, I simply don’t think you’ll do better than this Grand Seiko.
Expect to pay roughly $3,765 for the SBGN011.
Seiko 5 Sports (ref. SSK023)
The Seiko 5 Sport GMT (ref. SSK023) is another timepiece that horological insiders will already know well. Essentially a field watch with added GMT functionality, the Seiko 5 GMT is adventure-ready and eye-catching.
Seiko powers this watch with its in-house 4R34 movement, a reliable, rugged, tool-watch movement that delivers acceptable accuracy, easy service, and relatively low cost.
I own and wear a Seiko 5 every day, and it’s taken abuse I’d rather forget without missing a hitch. The GMT feature is a “caller-style” complication that measures the second time zone via a GMT hand a 24-hour marked bezel.
The clean lines and contrasting dial and GMT hand make that second time zone easy to read at a glance, and if your travels take you off the beaten path, a watch like the instantly legible, drop-dead durable Seiko 5 GMT may be the best fit for your active, adventurous life.
Delivered with a well-executed bracelet, this watch retails for $435.
Conclusion
GMT watches were once essential tools for travelers and flight crews, and they maintain some of that practical function even now for frequent travelers who need to keep track of multiple time zones simultaneously.
And while flagship models like the Rolex GMT Master II are unsurprisingly expensive, collectors and users alike should realize that there are exceptional GMT watches under $5,000 – if you know where to look.
Whether you’re a frequent flier yourself, work in a business in which time zones matter, or just need to keep track of the time at home, one of the watches I’ve discussed today should be a perfect fit for your needs, style, and budget.
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