Don’t Leave Home Without It: Patek Philippe Calatrava 24-Hour Display Travel Time, Ref. 5224R-001

 

Vacation season is upon us, and a good travel time watch is a useful addition to any journey—or any day—particularly when a time zone change is involved. Patek Philippe’s new rose gold Calatrava 24-hour Display Travel Time steps things up with elegance and ease, offering local and home time on a simple-to-decode 24-hour display.

Reference 5224R-001 is driven by a self-winding movement that has been totally reworked, 31-260 PS FUS 24H. It features  a variety of enhanced technical innovations gained through some travel of its own. It is based on the 31-260 ultra-thin self-winding caliber, first launched in 2011 in the Annual Calendar Regulator. The movement was entirely reworked in 2021 for the In-Line Perpetual Calendar, and again in 2022 for the Annual Calendar Travel Time (Caliber 31-260 PS QA LU FUS 24H). And this brings us to the present incarnation, which has benefited from this aristocratic ancestry and several important patents.

The rich navy blue dial is a real showstopper—aesthetically and technically. Patek Philippe’s Calatrava 24-Hour Display Travel Time tells local time and home time via central hands turning on a 24-hour scale, eliminating the need for a day/night indicator. You may remember that Patek Philippe has used 24-hour displays in the past, perhaps most memorably on the Chronometro Gondolo watches made in the early 20^th century. And rather than positioning noon at 6 o’clock as on most 24-hour dials, it is here found at its traditional place for enhanced user friendliness.

Small seconds are at 6 o’clock, with the counter featuring a finely snailed finish outlined in rose gold gilt. Contrasting finishes at the center and hour circle add interest without interruption. Applied Arabic numerals and baton-style indices enhanced with luminescent material mark the hours, and rose gold syringe-shaped hands, also with luminescence, point to the hours and minutes. The secondary time zone hand is skeletonized.

The expertly polished case with curved two-tier lugs measures 42mm in diameter and 9.85 in height, from crystal to display back; total height is 10.2mm.  The sapphire display caseback offers a luxurious view of the finely finished and decorated movement, which is fitted with a platinum mini-rotor.

Aside from the three-position crown, the case profile is devoid of any additional pushers or buttons in keeping with the Calatrava’s unfettered round design. The watch will provide about 48 hours of power reserve and is water resistant to 30m.

The shade of the dial is echoed in the calfskin strap, also navy blue, with a nubuck finish. The contrasting cream-colored hand stitching adds a touch of travel-ready casualness, I think, while the 18-karat rose gold pin buckle pulls it all together with tasteful restraint. The watch is available now, priced at $57,366.