Elite Traveler Spring 2019

elite traveler SPRING 2019 37

OMEGA SEAMASTER PLOPROF 1200M An update of its iconic 1970 dive watch, the new Ploprof (short for plongeur professionnel , meaning “professional diver” in French), doubles its water resistance to 1200m from 600m, but keeps many of the unique technical features from the original timepiece. Its bezel is bidirectional, and it’s locked in place with a security pusher at 2 o’clock, which unusually places the screw-in crown at 9 o’clock (making it especially useful for lefties). At 4 o’clock, there’s a helium escape valve; it has a “sharkproof” bracelet, which is suitable for diving, and it comes with an additional rubber strap. $18,000, Omega in New York, +1 212 207 3333, omegawatches.com

PANERAI GUILLAUME NÉRY

SUBMERSIBLE DIVE WATCH Thanks to its work with the Royal Italian Navy in the 1900s, Panerai is synonymous with the ocean. Its latest dive watch is inspired by champion freediver Guillaume Néry. While most watches use blue or green luminescence, Panerai uses both: The crucial zero minute and the minute hand are blue, and the other markers are green. It has a flyback chronograph with a central second and minute hand (eliminating a minute counter increases legibility) and an hour counter at 3 o’clock. The caseback features Néry’s signature and the depth of his freediving record, a staggering 126m. With a 300m water resistance, this watch could certainly handle his next world record.

$19,400, Panerai in New York, +1 212 223 1562, panerai.com

BLANCPAIN FIFTY FATHOMS BATHYSCAPHE ANNUAL CALENDAR As the first diving watch ever created, Fifty Fathoms is steeped in heritage. Naturally, it has all of the expected diving requirements, including many that Blancpain created, although its depth limit has increased to 300m from the original 50 fathoms (91m) in 1953. Last year, Blancpain added its first non-diving-related complication, an integrated annual calendar. Apertures show the day of the week, date and month in the new in-house automatic caliber, which is visible through an open caseback. The meteor-gray dial is offset by luminous hour markers, luminescent baton hands and a unidirectional bezel with ceramic insert and dive-scale markers.

ROLEX DEEPSEA D-BLUE DIAL

Deep sea, indeed. This watch is tested to 3,900m, and its dial boasts serious street cred; it was inspired by a custom watch James Cameron wore when he descended to the bottom of the deepest point in Earth's ocean, the Mariana Trench. Specially made Deepsea watches were affixed to the exterior of his submersible, and they returned fully functioning from quite literally the bottom of the ocean. In 2018, Rolex updated the movement, which holds 14 patents, has a date window at 3 o’clock, Chromalight hour markers and hands with blue glow, and a helium safety valve.

$12,550, Rolex in New York, +1 212 759 8278, rolex.com

$26,100, Blancpain in New York, +1 212 396 1735, blancpain.com

BREGUET MARINE ROYALE 5847 One of the most elegant dive watches out there, Breguet’s Marine Royale 5847 is not just another pretty face. It boasts a handy and unusual alarm feature, so you can set the alarm before you dive into the water to remind you to check your air. The beautiful dial features hand-engraved guilloché, and the unidirectional bezel’s numbers are discreetly etched into 18K white gold. The automatic movement has a date window at 6 o’clock, power-reserve indicator at 10 o’clock and alarm window at 12 o’clock (so you know it is activated and you won’t risk it going off during a meeting).

$47,300, Breguet in New York, +1 646 692 6469, breguet.com