Let’s face it, dads are notoriously difficult to buy gifts for. Gadgets can befuddle and mystify, shoes are tricky and may not suit their tastes and food and beverage items aren’t worth the risk lest some “fitfluencer” declare cheese and crackers to be carcinogenic. Which is why, we must look toward watches, as a token of appreciation for the man who taught you the value of time. Probably.
Your ultimate watch gift guide for Father’s Day 2024
1. Tudor Black Bay 58 GMT
If your dad’s a frequent flyer, this year’s offering from Tudor has just the sort of sombre theme befitting a cultured, worldly-wise man in his 50s or 60s. The Black Bay 58 GMT can be had in a steel bracelet or a fitted rubber strap. A functional, durable and ergonomic GMT of manageable proportions (the case size is only 39mm) the Black Bay 58 GMT is a terrific travel companion that doesn’t draw too much attention except the gaze of true watch connoisseurs.
2. Rado Captain Cook High Tech Ceramic Limited Edition
The Rado Captain Cook remains, to this day, one of the most iconic dive watches. Originally launched in the 1960s, Rado has offered enough re-issues over the years to make it a staple of its modern-day watch collection. This latest edition offered in the brand’s proprietary high-tech ceramic is all about celebrating modern-day Rado. It’s got a skeletal movement and in its latest shade of olive green makes perfect use of Rado’s ceramic material to create a shade that’s both lustrous and understated. Water resistant upto 300 metres with a diving scale coated in super luminova, this is form and function working in perfect unison.
3. Breguet Type XX Chronographe 2067
Dads and steel chronographs go together like dads and New Balance sneakers with orthopedic soles. The Type XX Chronographe is quite un-Breguet in a lot of ways and yet, quintessentially Breguet since chronographs have been Breguet’s stock-in-trade since time immemorial. It doesn’t have trademark Breguet hands, nor does it boast of any wave motif on the dial. This is a straightforward steel chrono with a bi-directional rotating bezel, a self-winding movement, a no-fuss, matte black dial and interchangeable straps. For extra rugged appeal, ditch the steel bracelet and go for a Nato strap.
4. Longines Conquest Heritage Central Power Reserve
While the Longines Conquest Heritage Central Power Reserve does not tread upon the brands’ trademark themes concerning mid-century aviation and equestrian sports, the new Conquest does hold the sole distinction of being based on a watch that was the first Longines watch ever to have its name protected by the Federal Intellectual Property Office in Berne, Switzerland, back in 1954. If that doesn’t do much for you, then the fact that it’s one of the most sartorially versatile dress watches to come from Longines in recent times should.
5. Rolex 1908
Is there a more elegant, rich and tasteful dress watch in the market than the Rolex 1908? The question is of rhetorical variety since this watch is the successor to the now-discontinued Rolex Cellini. Available in 18-carat yellow or white gold, this watch gets an elegant white or matte black dial and an Observatory-style hour and minute hand. That, coupled with the Sans Serif, Art Deco font and the clean, minimalistic elegance echoing the aesthetic of the gorgeous Cellini makes the 1908 collection a modern classic.
6. Chopard Alpine Eagle 41 XP TT
